The LoCo Experience

Historical fiction writer, award-winning author of eight books, and speaker + blogger, Teresa Funke, shares the business life of a creative. Through the trying times of the pandemic, she shares the importance (and how-to) of keeping creativity up while adapting to new business ideas.

Teresa talks about the challenges and big opportunities that come with being a solopreneur, including her guiding question: “Do I believe it’s true?”

In this LoCo Shorts episode, you’ll learn how to lean into your Bursts of Brilliance and find inner-guidance to make your dreams come true.

Learn more about Teresa and her work here.

The LoCo Experience Podcast is sponsored by:  Purpose Driven Wealth Thrivent: Learn more

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Music By: A Brother's Fountain

Greg and Drew Yancey represent the 3rd and 4th generations of leadership of Yancey's Food Service - a family-owned Northern Colorado enterprise that began in 1940 and sold to FSA in 2012.   Greg served as CEO and Drew as Director of Strategy at the time of exit, and Drew stayed on as President of a spin-off enterprise not included in the sale.  Greg currently serves as full-time Grandfather/Husband and part-time Pastor at Mountain View Community Church.  Drew is an Advisor at InCite Performance Group in Fort Collins and is also a LoCo Facilitator - you can learn more about Drew here on the LoCo Think Tank website.   

Greg started working in the company while in Junior High, and never worked outside the family enterprise - leaving college to join the leadership team as General Manager at the age of 21 in 1980.   Drew also joined the company at a young age, and was highly involved in journey toward finding a mutually beneficial exit partnership.  This episode pulls back the curtain on the food distribution industry, revealing secrets of growth through building strong relationships and a focus on customer service.   Greg and Drew share stories of business successes and failures, and the learnings found in both.  

The LoCo Experience Podcast is sponsored by:  Purpose Driven Wealth Thrivent: Learn more

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Music By: A Brother's Fountain

Turning your craft into a business isn’t always smooth sailing, but as Mitch Holmes, owner of MitchCraft Tiny Homes experienced, build it and they shall come!

In this LoCo Shorts episode, Mitch shares with us how he turned his love for minimalism and quality production into a somewhat unplanned, step-by-step successful business journey. Of course, this isn’t without learning some key lessons, so listen in to hear about scaling, growing a team, troubleshooting customers, and even being on Tiny House Hunters on HGTV!

Don't forget to scope out some of their work on Instagram.

The LoCo Experience Podcast is sponsored by:  Purpose Driven Wealth Thrivent: Learn more

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Music By: A Brother's Fountain

Karen Fournier is the Founder and Owner of Starstream Productions in Loveland, Colorado.  Her entrepreneurial journey began with a volunteer documentary short about a local non-profit, and she has served the non-profit and educational communities for over 13 years, winning several national awards.  She has interviewed over 600 individuals to help draw out stories of impact and learning, from which she develops everything from non-profit benevolence videos to educational training courses.  

In 2020, Karen began pursuing a new passion project, driven by a very personal journey with her three teen daughters through suicide attempts and depression.  She has been writing a supportive book for parents and has an active Indigogo campaign for that effort, and will soon be launching a podcast series featuring interviews with experts to help parents navigate an environment where their children are struggling with mental health.  Karen has a big heart and an even bigger vision for how the world can be different for teens and parents, with lives of resiliency built on connection and understanding.  

The LoCo Experience Podcast is sponsored by:  Purpose Driven Wealth Thrivent: Learn more

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Music By: A Brother's Fountain

Learn how working for a visionary, like Elon Musk, can prep you for business entrepreneurship! On this LoCo Shorts episode, we dig in deep with Jeremy Lasman, Co-Founder of Star Systems, Conscious Leadership Network, Creator or Mania Comic, and Technologist with SpaceX, to explore his business journey.

Jeremy candidly shares the steps from his self-discovery, business creation, technology experience, and understanding of high-efficiency performance in business which led him to help business owners remove their own roadblocks.

Learn what it takes to unlock visionary tendencies and step out of your comfort zone by going within your mind to find the answers to your life and business.

The LoCo Experience Podcast is sponsored by:  Purpose Driven Wealth Thrivent: Learn more

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Music By: A Brother's Fountain

Camron Lente founded NG Companies in 2009 at the age of 20, leaving a six-figure oilfield industry job to sort through dumpsters at rig sites looking for recyclable materials to help his clients reduce waste and save money.  After a few years of finding its footing, the company moved into construction and infrastructure focused on the same industry and has now evolved into a service and infrastructure business that serves a broad market of clients with many services.  Ben Gates is a career small business banker with an entrepreneurial mindset and a thoughtful outlook, who left behind a successful banking career to join Camron in helping to grow and evolve this nimble enterprise in the years ahead.  

This is a long-running episode with a little too much scotch, and more business twists and turns and learnings than the Poudre River has through the Canyon!  Today, Camron is a 31-year-old CEO with a high-school education, strong competitive instincts, and an appetite for risk, and NG has about 100 employees and operations in 7 states.  There's a lot of philosophy in this one too, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness especially.  

The LoCo Experience Podcast is sponsored by:  Purpose Driven Wealth Thrivent: Learn more

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Music By: A Brother's Fountain

How does being a philanthropist relate to being a business owner? In Mel Ulle’s case, owner of Philanthropy Expert, it’s all about having a plan, passion& impact, leaving a legacy, and having the right team (and heart) behind all you do.

From politics to the Denver Art Museum, to even a show on the Travel Channel, Mel unpacks her career in entrepreneurship.

Listen in as Mel describes more about the business side of giving back to communities through philanthropy and how she created her rockstar team and solid company culture to support that journey.

Learn more about Mel and Philanthropy Expert here. 

The LoCo Experience Podcast is sponsored by:  Purpose Driven Wealth Thrivent: Learn more

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Music By: A Brother's Fountain

Mike Gugliotto was a gifted writer since his youth, and attended Colorado State University as a Journalism major.   Constant curiosity and an intrinsic love for people and business carried him to greater and greater responsibilities, culminating as the President and CEO of Pioneer News Group in Seattle, WA - a group with at one point more than 1,000 employees and operations in 24 communities!  Mike shares stories of navigating the intrinsic challenges of business while facing declining revenues and the urgent need for innovation faced by the newspaper industry in that period, and gives interesting clarity to leading a company through a sale.  Mike's journey led him back to Northern Colorado, where he lives with his wife Janet and now serves as LoCo Facilitator for two Thinkers chapters, while also serving as a mentor and encourager for the LoCo HQ team.  

The LoCo Experience Podcast is sponsored by:  Purpose Driven Wealth Thrivent: Learn more

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Music By: A Brother's Fountain

Think back to March 2020. How did your organization react to the COVID outbreak and shutdown? Nathan Morimitsu, Director Of Operations at H2 Manufacturing Solutions, shares H2’s fast and innovative response to helping businesses and individuals in Colorado remain safe during the pandemic. Through late night ideas, 3D printing, and community collaboration, H2 was able to ship over 1500+ face respirators and develop a program to keep essential and non-essential businesses protected and open.

This story highlights a business living out their mission by acting fast to serve their clients and greater community in a critical time of need, even when such actions weren’t their primary service offerings.

Learn more about H2 Manufacturing Solutions and their COVID Safety System for businesses take the right precautions to stay open.

The LoCo Experience Podcast is sponsored by:  Purpose Driven Wealth Thrivent: Learn more

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Music By: A Brother's Fountain

Mike Labate and his twin brother Greg started Rocky Mountain Westy in their garage in Fort Collins in 2002, and purchased their first commercial property just before the Great Recession.  A "top-3 most likely headed for bankruptcy" business acquaintance at that time has grown into a cherished friendship, and it was Mike who said something along the lines of "Bear - you should start a think tank" in 2014.   An original member of LoCo Think Tank, Mike and his brother have grown their business into a market dominant and vertically integrated service, manufacturing, and distribution enterprise focused on the iconic Volkswagon camper van - especially the Westfalia (aka Westy).  

Rocky Mountain Westy got it's start by creating a kit to put Subaru engines into the V W camper vans, and they now manufacture over 250 different parts and accessories.  Mr. Mechanic is a service enterprise, and the brothers acquired a competitor in the niche industry, and moved Van Cafe (vancafe.com) from Santa Cruz, CA to Fort Collins, CO in 2018.  

This episode with Mike tells a tale of constant opportunity-finding, and adapting the business to best deliver value to their clients and create a great place to work for their employees.  In this episode, you'll learn a lot about van life, chasing a dream,  and enjoying the journey along the way!      

The LoCo Experience Podcast is sponsored by:  Purpose Driven Wealth Thrivent: Learn more

💡Learn about LoCo Think Tank

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Music By: A Brother's Fountain