Community Development of Morrison County Provides the Spark for Local Business Growth

LITTLE FALLS, MN, March 29, 2012

Recent business growth in Morrison County has been due to smart management of local resources by companies like Smude's Natural Sunflower Oil, the Central Minnesota Ethanol Cooperative, Larson Boats, and the Crestliner business incubator.

Use of natural resources has paid off for family businesses in Morrison County. The Smude family saw a gap in the market for healthy and tasty Sunflower Oil and successfully used local and national resources, including help from the Community Development of Morrison County, the Initiative Foundation, North Central Economic Development Association and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency to build their business from one pallet shipped every six months to two pallets each month. The oil is used in many fine restaurants in the Minneapolis area.

Use of local manufacturing and facilities is also making a difference. Larson Boats is now sticking close to home and manufacturing in Little Falls again, using local employees and resources to reinvest in the community - a strategy that has paid off based on number of employee rehires and the bottom line. The former Crestliner plant in Little Falls is now home to over a dozen businesses who are preparing for their next phase of development thanks to Tom Elbert's business incubator.

Energy-efficient and shared utilities, cheap rent and a community conference room and equipment allow companies like Road Dog, which manufactures trailers for motorcycles, to move from a small space that didn't allow room for inventory to planned future business expansion. The goal here is to nurture already existing local businesses rather than seek out larger businesses from outside the community. The incubator is over 50% full and is already seeing success and recognition. Morrison County's smart use of available resources is taking off and is making a difference in both the county and the state.

MORRISON COUNTY, MN is located approximately 100 miles northwest of Minneapolis/St. Paul, in central Minnesota at the junctions of Highways 10, 27, and 371.

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT OF MORRISON COUNTY can be found on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/#!/cdc.morrison.mn.us). Community Development of Morrison County provides assistance in many areas important to business expansion or new location such as attractive financing, identification of potential employees, employee training, local government support, identification of real estate and necessary support services for your company.

MORRISON COUNTY, MN is located approximately 100 miles northwest of Minneapolis/St. Paul, in central Minnesota at the junctions of Highways 10, 27, and 371.

MEDIA ONLY Contact:
Ron Kresha
Golden Shovel Agency
+1-888-266-4778
rkresha@goldenshovelagency.com