All Episodes

How do you feed a community during a pandemic? FOCO Cafe's Executive Director, Mallory Garneau, shares her bigs wins and key challenges 2020 brought for their non-profit. Learn about the creative adjustments Mallory and her team put in place to continue feeding the Fort Collins community, all while achieving record-breaking fundraising! FoCo Cafe’s mission is to build community by providing nutritious and delicious meals to the people of Fort Collins regardless of their ability to pay while usi...

Becky Lauridsen is the Founder of IOME - Guilt Free Self Care. IOME is a membership organization that provides access to a supportive community in the areas of Mind, Body, and Soul, with plans that include access to discounts with community partners, monthly therapy/coaching session, and monthly small group engagements. IOME provides the therapy/coaching/small groups, and partners provide an array of discounted services to members, including but not limited to massage, chiropractic, nutrition, y...

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...

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 Grou...

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 H...

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,...

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 own...

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 b...

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 rocksta...

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...

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...

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 ...

Listen in as Ali Abouzalam shares the details of his founding story behind Bee-Nails. This LoCo Shorts episode uncovers the small steps and connections that truly shape a business from the beginning. Ali also shares not only about his business story, but also how the pandemic, industry changes, MMA, and daily gratitude influence him and his business. Bee-Nails is a Colorado-based lifestyle company transforming the way we consume with affordable, medical-grade, vaporizer products that are better...

Aaron Everitt has traveled a distinctive business journey. From growing up in a locally-famous real estate family to finding his love for business as part of a traveling music group, through stints in the family business in land development and home building, and then starting, building, and eventually abandoning his own entrepreneurial venture - he’s written some interesting chapters. Aaron shares his business and life journey in introspective detail and shares his forecast for the future of No...

Ever considered taking one of your favorite things and making it a business? That’s what Lauren Storeby and her husband, Shawn, did to share their love of good, healthy food with the community through Snack Attack! Learn about Lauren’s transition from extreme sports clothing production to feeding Fort Collins, CO with specialty sandwiches and brews. This LoCo Shorts episode looks back on Lauren’s key transferrable skills throughout her life that pointed her right where she needed to be to succe...

Lance Cayko (pronounced psycho!) is a founder and partner of F9 Productions, a residential and commercial architecture firm in Longmont, Colorado, founded in 2009. Lance and his business partner Alex Gore (Al Gore, hah!) have founded and operate multiple enterprises including a development company, construction company, and a popular business podcast called Inside the Firm Since connecting with Curt, Lance invited Curt to be on his podcast, has become a LoCo believer, and is preparing to launch ...

Has a key moment in your life led you to a passion? Madeline Kent, owner of Sante Health and Wellness shares her health and business journey in this LoCo Shorts episode. Madeline unfolds her story of nutritional "ah-ha's" along with her drive to help people naturally (and effectively), all while committing to her path of entrepreneurship. SANTE stands for Scientific Approach to Nutrition Therapy and Empowerment. Each journey to wellness is unique, so your individual story will carve the path. T...

Erik & Kim Whitin are the founders and owners of Tri-State Concrete in Fort Collins, Colorado. Kim is a member of LoCo Think Tank! The Whitins moved to and restarted their business in Colorado after the Great Recession, and found themselves living off Stove Prairie Road in the mountains west of Fort Collins when the 2012 fires broke. Their property was one of the first to be destroyed, and they had only a few hours from witnessing the first wisp of smoke to gather what they could and leave with ...

Welcome to the LoCo Experience Podcast! We have many business stories to tell - some long, some short - so we're giving you the audio rundown of what to expect when listening to the LoCo Experience and LoCo Shorts episodes. This trailer provides a brief background of LoCo's mission to uplift business owners through collaboration, now through storytelling! Subscribe now to get the latest episodes in all the places you listen to podcasts. PS - We LOVE our musical friends with A Brother's Founta...