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Small Businesses are
Thriving
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The annual
Small Business Week awards showcase the St. Louis region’s most
successful entrepreneurs.
Although the Nation has experienced a downturn in the economy since
September 11, St. Louis small businesses are thriving. With the
largest concentration of small businesses in the country, St. Louis
is poised to celebrate the stellar achievements of those who made
this possible.
The 2002 Salute to Small Business took place May 6-9 with seminars,
networking events and programs. According to Bob Brockhaus, chairman
of this year’s event, participants learned from experts in a variety
of business-related professions, as well as networked with each
other and met this year’s award-winning small business owners.
“We are very excited about the fact that most of our winners this
year were women,” Brockhaus says. “They have shown us the strength
of women in the business community.”
Featured on the next few pages are the recipients of the Small Business
Awards, as well as a brief description of their achievements—both
business and civic endeavors.
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TESSA GREENSPAN
Sappington International Farmers Market
Business Person of the Year
Tessa Greenspan demonstrates the entrepreneurial spirit of a successful
business owner. She understands from personal experience the many
challenges facing owners of small companies. As a woman in a largely
male-dominated industry, she has had to overcome many obstacles
to success.
Tessa’s entrepreneurial career began in 1981 when she took on the
challenge of resurrecting Sappington Farmers Market, a 50-year-old
grocery store landmark located in St. Louis. She was settled into
a comfortable life as a homemaker and volunteer, raising two children
and occasionally helping out in the family grocery business. Little
did she dream that she would be handed the keys to a failing suburban
business, overburdened with $413,000 in debt, and parley it into
an award-winning, multimillion-dollar enterprise.
With just a few business and psychology courses from Washington
University under her belt, Tessa tackled the job head-on. Working
20-hour days for more than six months, she gradually paid off the
store’s substantial debts, restored employee morale, and turned
around the failing business.
After rescuing Sappington Farmers Market from the brink of bankruptcy,
Greenspan vowed to share her knowledge with other business owners.
In addition to directing them to the Small Business Administration,
as well as other community business resources and programs, she
even referred fledgling entrepreneurs to her own banker for financial
advice and assistance.
But that’s only the beginning. In addition to being a regular participant
in Retailers Round Table for Women, Greenspan presents workshops
for NAWBO members on how to start a business. One-on-one, she has
advised business owners on everything from negotiating a lease,
to advertising and marketing.
Serving as a mentor for other business owners has been as rewarding
for her as for the individuals she assists. “I’ve never forgotten
my roots and the fact that I started with practically nothing,”
she explains. “If I can help one person achieve success, I feel
I will have started to pay back the debt I owe to those who helped
me.”
In the community, she serves as a mentor and role model for junior
girls in the St. Louis public school system, encouraging them to
aim high and not underestimate their own abilities. Quietly and
without fanfare, she sponsored local high school students so they
could attend a motivational speech by Jackie Joyner-Kersee. She
also makes herself available to talk to students about goal setting
and achieving what they set out to do.
Greenspan gives to the community in other ways as well. Walk into
Sappington Farmers Market any day of the year and you’ll see the
Sappington Wishing Well benefiting local charities. Not only does
Greenspan collect donations for a different group each month, she
also matches all contributions up to $400. During the holiday season,
there are toy and food drives for needy families. Her store is also
a regular collection site for donations for hurricane and tornado
victims.
Greenspan doesn’t stop there. The World Affairs Council has selected
her store as a site for visiting Russian business people. She also
opens her doors to groups from Women in Leadership and the International
Institute, so they can learn how to run a successful enterprise.
Teachers from the St. Louis Public School System also shadow Greenspan,
observing how a real-life grocery store operates in order to be
able to teach practical skills to their pupils.
Greenspan has been recognized on both the local and national level
for her generosity and community spirit, including NAWBO’s Distinguished
Woman Business Owner of the Year (1994), Missouri Small Business
Development Center’s Missouri Excellence in Business Award (1996),
Small Business Administration’s Small Business Person of the Year
(1996), the Blue Chip Enterprise Initiative Award (1996), Crestwood/
Sunset Hills Chamber of Commerce’s Business Person of the Year (1997),
and Small Business Administration’s Women in Business Advocate (1998).
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JOANNE M
FERRANTE
St. Louis Regional Chamber
and Growth Association
Veterans Small Business Advocate (Region VII Winner)
Joanne Ferrante is a director of business development and military
affairs for the St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association.
She is also Director of the Center for Entrepreneurial and Existing
Business Development, organized in December 1999. She has been with
the RCGA for 17 years.
Ferrante currently serves as Vice President-Public Affairs of the
Navy league of the United States-St. Louis Chapter, and is a member
of the executive board, she is also Vice President-Communications,
Air Force Association-Spirit of St. Louis Chapter, and a member
of the association of the United States Army (AUSA) and was appointed
to the advisory board of AUSA in November 2001.
In her role at the RCGA, Joanne develops programs for the Center
for Entrepreneurial and Existing Business Develop-ment, including
a special set of programs to assist entrepreneurs and small business
owners, with special emphasis on minority-owned businesses, women-owned
businesses, and veterans.
Previous to her association with the RCGA, she was a financial consultant
with Urban Programming Corporation and prior to that, she spent
three years with the St. Louis Development Corporation, which is
the economic development arm of the City of St. Louis.
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MARK A. JANSEN
Rubin, Brown, Gornstein & Co. LLP
Accountant Advocate of the Year (St. Louis District Winner)
Mark A. Jansen is the Partner-in-Charge of Rubin, Brown, Gornstein
& Co.’s Small Business Group, which works closely with client-owners
to provide automated bookkeeping, financial management, tax planning,
and turnkey outsourcing in a close, personalized way. He serves
clients in the contracting, manufacturing and real estate industries;
and is a lecturer and discussion leader at various construction
and real estate industry conferences and meetings.
Jansen has served on the Associated General Contractors (AGC) Stempel
Plan Advisory Board since 1998. Along with this, he also serves
as a Director for the Construction Financial Management Association
and is a member of the National Electrical Contractors Association,
the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, and the
Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants. Formerly, Jansen
served as the treasurer for the Resident Assistance Corporation,
which assists residents of public housing in starting their own
businesses.
Jansen’s community involvement includes serving as the Vice President
for Rebuilding Together (formerly known as Christmas in April),
as the District Chairman for the Scouting for Food Campaign, and
as the District Chairman of the Family Friends of Scouting Campaign.
DR. RAYMOND
L. HILGERT
Washington University
Hall of Fame Inductee
Dr. Hilgert is a dedicated teacher of business and a true advocate
for small business. Since 1961, he has focused his efforts on teaching
labor relations and human resources at Washington University, where
he has been named professor emeritus.
Dr. Hilgert started the first “Small Business Institute” in St.
Louis where Washington University students worked with small local
businesses on case studies to improve their chances for success.
Dr. Hilgert has taught for 15 years in the Minority Youth Entrepre-neurship
Program at Washington University. He was a long-serving U.S. Small
Business Administration Advisory Council member.
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CAROLYN K.
GEGG
CIT Small Business Lending
Financial Services Advocate (St. Louis District Winner)
A 16-year veteran of the lending industry, Carolyn Gegg has served
as the regional account manager of CIT Small Business Lending for
the past six years. As a Regional Account Manager, Gegg’s job is
to help small businesses with their financing needs through the
U.S. Small Business Administration 7(a) and 504 programs within
the St. Louis SBA district. An SBA loan could be used to refinance
debt, purchase a business/franchise, expand a business, purchase
equipment, purchase and/or construct real estate, and provide working
capital.
For the past nine years, Gegg has specialized in the U.S. Small
Business Administration industry. Prior to CIT, she marketed SBA
loans in Illinois for GE Capital Small Business (formerly ITT Small
Business Lending). Within one year in this new market, Gegg received
the 100% Award for achieving her 1994 sales budget. In addition,
she was a credit analyst, analyzing SBA loan requests throughout
the Eastern Region of the United States for GE Capital. Prior to
specializing in SBA financing, Carolyn worked with several Missouri
banks over a seven-year period as a credit analyst and loan processor.
Since 1996, Gegg has served on the Small Business Committee for
Eastern Missouri. For three years, she was the chairman of the Sponsorship
Committee of the Small business Week. While serving as chairman
of the subcommittee, she was able to dramatically increase monetary
contributions for Small Business Week. In 2001, the U.S. Small Business
Administration St. Louis District Office elected her to be Chairman/
President of the Small Business Week of Eastern Missouri.
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PAT MCILVAINE
Common Sense Business Solutions
Home Based Business Advocate of the Year
( St. Louis District Winner)
McIlvaine’s experience spans some 40 years at various levels in
a variety of industries. This background became her “training ground”
in preparation for the business planning service she founded, owns
and operates today. Her passion for home-based businesses grew out
of more than 30 years that were devoted to building and operating
her own businesses, all home-based.
In one business pursuit, she built a sales organization of more
than 350 independent representatives in several states, all of whom
operated as home-based businesses. She provided on-going training
to them in all aspects of selling and business operations. For the
third year, McIlvaine served on the committee to plan the Small
Business Week events.
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MANDLEEN
HANSON-HAYES
Par-Way Tryson Company
Small Business Exporter (Region VII Winner)
In 1948, H. Wayne Hanson developed a new coating product that solved
the problem of damaged goods for the bakery industry. His company,
Par-Way Tryson, grew into a major corporation that provides oils
to many of the world’s food producers.
After Hanson passed away, his wife, Mandy Hanson-Hayes, took the
leadership reins by becoming CEO and Chairman. In her new role,
she emphasized company expansion to meet the growing demand, to
develop cutting-edge products, and to provide increasingly better
service. “Our primary goal is to produce the best. This means devoting
our company to the development and production of products that do
the best job of meeting our customers’ needs.”
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CHARLES R.
SAULSBERRY
Blumenfeld, Kaplan & Sandweiss, P.C.
Minority Small Business Advocate (Region VII Winner)
Growing up on the South Side of Chicago in a poor community adjacent
to Chicago’s affluent Hyde Park neighborhood, Charles Saulsberry
became intimately aware of the differences between black and white,
rich and poor. This early exposure caused him to dedicate his life
to church, family, minorities, and women in his community.
A graduate of Harvard University and Northwestern University School
of Law, Saulsberry began his career as an associate at Chicago’s
fourth largest law firm, Winston & Strawn. He practiced for nearly
10 years in the areas of corporate, health and municipal law. Ultimately,
he managed the firm’s national municipal law practice, representing
such clients as Merrill Lynch, the State of Illinois, and the City
of Chicago. He became the firm’s second African-American partner.
In August 2000, Saulsberry joined the law firm Blumenfeld, Kaplan
& Sandweiss, P.C. as the firm’s first African-American partner.
He is the firm’s senior securities lawyer and currently is assisting
the firm in developing and expanding its corporate, healthcare and
municipal securities practice areas.
Although Saulsberry has represented Fortune 100 companies and major
public entities, he is most proud of the services he has performed
for developing minority- and women-owned businesses. This work has
involved structural, finance, organizational, contract, strategic
alliances, certification, and a variety of other topics.
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HOLLY CUNNINGHAM
Hollyberry Baking Company
SBA Young Entrepreneur
(St. Louis District Winner)
Holly Cunningham, founder of Hollyberry Baking Company, is a native
of St. Louis. She comes from a family of excellent “practical” bakers
and started baking when she was 5 years old. At age 7, she compiled
her own book of family recipes. At 15, while attending Westminster
Academy, she worked for Mrs. Field’s Cookies.
Upon graduating college, Cunningham worked as a sales account manager
for Tech Electronics. She continued her baking heritage by personally
baking appreciation gifts for clients, because there was no existing
source that provided the quality and service she desired. In response
to her enthusiastic reactions of her clients, Hollyberry Baking
Company was born as a part-time endeavor. A year later, the company
became a full-time operation providing excellent gifts of appreciation
to clients with discriminating tastes.
Cunningham’s philosophy is simple—under promise and over deliver,
and provide quality without question. To her, it’s not just the
product, but also the service. If you are going to do something,
she believes one should go overboard. In three short years, Hollyberry
Baking Company has grown from a part-time endeavor to a thriving
company with eight employees and an innovative web presence, with
progressive plans for the future. At 28 years old, Cunningham has
already proven herself as a successful entrepreneur.
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MARIELEN
PARRISH
Progressive Women’s Publishing, Inc.
SBA Small Business Journalist of the Year (St. Louis District
Winner)
A native of St. Louis, Marielen Parrish demonstrates her pride as
a lifelong resident by using her efforts and abilities to improve
her community and by helping others to help themselves.
Parrish is founder, publisher-owner of Progressive Women’s Magazine,
a monthly publication, “In Touch with Metro St. Louis Women” since
1994. She also is founder-president of The Image Area, a graphic
arts service.
Parrish is the immediate Past-President of the Greater St. Louis
Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners and
has been on the board of directors for six years. The Small Business
Administration awarded the Media Advocate of the Year Award Parrish
in 1999 for Region VII.
Parrish has long supported women’s issues and concerns through the
publication of Progressive Women’s Magazine and through the commitment
to service and volunteerism.
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JANET POPPEN
Poppen & Associates, CPA’s, P.C.
Women in Business Advocate (St. Louis District Winner)
Janet Poppen is the sole owner of Poppen & Associates, CPA’s, P.C.
She is responsible for all aspects of the firm, including administration
and quality control. The firm is the only female-owned CPA firm
certified by the City of St. Louis as a Woman Business Enterprise.
The company focuses on small businesses and their owners, governmental,
and non-profit agencies.
Poppen serves as the Chair of the Small Business Committee for the
St. Louis Chapter of the Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants
(MSCPA). She received their Distinguished Service Award in 2000.
She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
(AICPA) and the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO).
She received the Region VII Accountant Advocate of the Year Award
in 1999 from the Small Business Administration.
Poppen has devoted her time and expertise to training the next generation
of women entrepreneurs, teaching classes at NAWBO-St. Louis Success
Savvy programs and Smart Business conferences; and participates
in the St. Louis Community College Entrepreneurship Program as guest
speaker.
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