By Joshua Schuetz
celebrating Madelia’s businesses.
Entrepreneurship is the engine that drives many small communities forward. In April, the Madelia EDA organized an Entrepreneur Roundtable event in partnership with the local Chamber of Commerce and Area Redevelopment Corporation to recognize the city’s entrepreneurs and introduce entrepreneurship to other community members.
“We had six panelists from Madelia discuss their journeys to entrepreneurship, with a range of experience from 3 months to 20 years,” said CEDA team member Celia Simpson, lead organizer for the event.
The event was held on April 17th at Inspire Weddings and Bridal Events Center, a new business in downtown Madelia that opened in April. The panelists were: Lynne Speckman from Sweet! Indeed, LLC; Katie Sorenson from K Marie’s Pizzeria; Dustin VanHale from Total Lawn Care & Landscape; Laura Sorenson from Linden Sky Boutique; Cody Eager from Minnesota Golf & Outdoor; and Krystal Hernandez from La Plaza F!esta.
“The talk was focused on why they wanted to be entrepreneurs, why they chose Madelia, some of the surprises they faced when they became business owners and advice they had for potential entrepreneurs,” Simpson said. “A majority of panelists were from Madelia, and some had come back to the city to start their businesses.”
Simpson said one challenge was engaging students, as the event took place in the evening, which is a difficult time to reach them. Nevertheless, the event was a success, with nearly two dozen attendees from different walks of life taking the time to learn about the experiences of local entrepreneurs. Simpson credited the panelists with providing an informative and friendly environment for attendees.
“One of our goals with this event was to celebrate our entrepreneurs and support their role in the community,” Simpson said. “Our panelists were really friendly and willing to step up and speak-they’re strongly connected with Madelia, and we saw that front and center at this event.”