Business Opportunities Weblog

Tuscaloosa News:

Necessity may be the mother of invention, but for lifelong tinkerer Tim Bryant, opportunity is a close and equally important relative.

Bryant, art director for Randall-Reilly Publishing’s ‘Better Roads’ magazine, said an eye for opportunity led to his invention, a portable flagpole holder called Flagpole To Go that is being sold on Target.com and Amazon.com.

‘I was sitting on the Quad during tailgating two or three years ago and looked over the crowd and wondered to myself ‘What do these people need?’ ‘ said Bryant.

Seeing the number of flagpoles jammed crookedly into the ground or crudely tied to the poles of canopies and pavilions, Bryant concluded that a portable, mountable flagpole holder was just the ticket. A little research quickly revealed that no such product existed.

‘It’s one of those situations where it just sort of hits your head, ‘Man, why wasn’t that out earlier,’ ‘ he said.

After a couple of months of tinkering, Bryant developed the prototype, an adjustable flagpole bracket mounted upon a short piece of PVC pipe — not elegant looking, but more than enough for Bryant to shop the idea to manufacturers.

Michigan-based tubular assembly company J.T.D. Enterprises Inc. picked up the idea and together with Bryant fleshed out the design. The finished product, which is manufactured in China, went on sale in June 2007. Prices range from $8.99 to $9.99, depending on the retailer.

Bryant said the product has sold steadily since its release last June, and is in use by area real estate agents and apartment complexes. He said a slightly modified version of Flagpole To Go will be used by the PGA Tour. NASCAR is also a target market.

Photo by Dusty Compton.

These posts have had recent comments:

On April 24th we posted an interview with Lisa Alfieri, the creator of the Beelu feeding pillow. She has donated a giraffe feeding pillow, as shown here, to be given away to one of our readers.

If you would like to be entered for a chance to win this great pillow, leave a comment on this post telling me why you would like to win it. The giveaway starts now and will run until May 29th at 11:59pm. On the 30th I will choose the winner and they will be contacted by email. Ships to the US or Canada only.

If you’d like to see all of the feeding pillows she has available they are listed on her purchase page.

AP Online:

Sometimes during peak hours, the phones are silent in Andy Freitas’ pizza restaurants, yet the cooks are busy keeping pace with hungry customers.

That’s because orders are rolling in through the Internet.

“It’s pretty amazing not to hear a phone ring on a busy night,” said Freitas, an operating partner with the largest Papa John’s franchisee in the Washington, D.C., market.

In the past seven years, Louisville-based Papa John’s International Inc. has made a lot of dough from online ordering, more than $1 billion to be exact.

The nation’s third-largest pizza delivery chain trumpeted the $1 billion milestone, noting that its U.S. online sales have been growing at an average clip of more than 50 percent per year. In 2001, the chain’s online sales totaled $20.4 million. Last year, its online sales approached $400 million.

“I knew it would be a big part of our business, but this has blown my expectations away, and I think it’s even going to go higher,” Freitas said.

The concept is tailored for customers like Emily Goatcher of Raleigh, N.C.

“I’m so into the Internet and the ease of doing things that way,” she said in a phone interview.

The online option lets her scan the menu and look up specials. She also thinks there’s less of a chance of getting the wrong order. But the mother of two young children said the main attraction is convenience.

Photo by Patti Longmire.

HBSP:

I spend a lot of time visiting with companies and figuring out what ideas they represent and what lessons we can learn from them. I usually leave these visits underwhelmed. There are plenty of companies with a hot product, a hip style, or a fast-rising stock price that are, essentially, one-trick ponies—they deliver great short-term results, but they don’t stand for anything big or important for the long-term.

Every so often, though, I spend time with a company that is so original in its strategy, so determined in its execution, and so transparent in its thinking, that it makes my head spin. Zappos is one of those companies. Two weeks ago, I paid a visit to Zappos headquarters in Henderson, Nevada, just outside Las Vegas, and spent time with CEO Tony Hsieh and his colleagues. I could write a whole series of posts (and just might) about what I learned from this incredible operation. But I want to focus this post on one small practice that offers big lessons for leaders who are serious about changing the game in their field—and filling their organization with people who are just as committed as they are.

First, some background. As most of you know, Zappos sells shoes—lots of them—over the Internet. The company expects to generate sales of more than $1 billion this year, up from just $70 million five years ago. Part of the reason for Zappos’s meteoric success is that it got the economics and operations right. It offers customers a huge selection—four million pairs of shoes (and other items, such as handbags and apparel) in a warehouse in Kentucky next to a UPS hub. (If Imelda Marcos weren’t already dead, she’d visit that warehouse and have a coronary on the spot.) It also offers free delivery and free returns—if you don’t like the shoes, you box them up and send them back to Zappos for no charge.

It’s a hard job, answering phones and talking to customers for hours at a time. So when Zappos hires new employees, it provides a four-week training period that immerses them in the company’s strategy, culture, and obsession with customers. People get paid their full salary during this period.

After a week or so in this immersive experience, though, it’s time for what Zappos calls “The Offer.” The fast-growing company, which works hard to recruit people to join, says to its newest employees: “If you quit today, we will pay you for the amount of time you’ve worked, plus we will offer you a $1,000 bonus.” Zappos actually bribes its new employees to quit!

Why? Because if you’re willing to take the company up on the offer, you obviously don’t have the sense of commitment they are looking for. It’s hard to describe the level of energy in the Zappos culture—which means, by definition, it’s not for everybody. Zappos wants to learn if there’s a bad fit between what makes the organization tick and what makes individual employees tick—and it’s willing to pay to learn sooner rather than later. (About ten percent of new call-center employees take the money and run.)

Image via MyLegalAdvance

Web Worker Daily:

So, you’re ready to do it: the time has come to quit your full-time job, go independent, and join the self-employed web worker economy. Only one thing stands in your way: the necessity to keep paying the rent and buying groceries while your new microbusiness gets on its feet. What’s a web worker to do?

Use Your Savings. This is the safest way to get going, if you value not being stuck owing money to someone else. If you can live off of money in the bank while you’re getting your business going, you can continue to make all of your own decisions without being responsible to banks or investors.

Tap Friends and Family - If anyone is going to believe in your prospects, mom and dad are the most likely. If you have some plan for generating excess income, above your own needs, you can take in private loans from friends and family and offer to pay a reasonable interest rate.

Small Business Loans - In the US, the Small Business Administration can help you get a loan from a bank or other lender. Alternatively, if you’ve been banking at a small and friendly bank for years, you can talk to the loan officer directly about their small business products.

Venture Capital - We’ve all seen the stories about VC-backed sites that make a bundle of money for all concerned. But even if your web work dream is to build an online powerhouse, you need to think twice about VC money. Typically, you’ll give up both a substantial chunk of ownership and control to get funding, and end up with a boss (or a board of bosses), which may be what you were seeking to escape in the first place. But if you need half a million dollars or more, this may be the only feasible way to get the money.

Photo by monique72.

Wisebread:

Good news for those who shop for food and gas in the Northeast and Canada.

Shaw’s Market and Irving Oil are teaming up to save you money. In a recurring promotion for both retailers, Shaw’s will give you a coupon worth ten cents off every gallon of gas that you purchase at a participating Irving BlueCanoe, or Mainway Stations. The more groceries that you may need, the more you could potentially save.

Here’s how it works: for every $50.00 you spend on groceries, Shaw’s will give you a coupon worth ten cents off every gallon of gas at participating stations. If you spend $100.00, you’ll get twenty cents off, and $200.00 gets you forty cents off., and so on.

For more information about the promotion, as well as locations of participating stores and gas stations, check out the Shaw’s Rewards website.

Editor’s Note: Any business could set up a similar promotion with a local gas retailer. It’s not going to make the business rich, but it does bring in traffic for a nominal expense.

Photo by tome213.

Personalized items from towels to jewelry make for great gifts, or even something for yourself. Linda Sellers is a mompreneur who makes her business selling monogrammed and personalized items she finds from a variety of different dealers, bringing them all into a one stop shopping spot online.

Using trade shows and by searching online Linda is able to find some of the best products possible to offer to her own customers. Big or small, her vendors all offer something unique in their own way.

What is ‘Monogrammed Gifts and More by Linney Shvede‘?

Monogramed Gifts and More by Linney Shvede is an online boutique offering personalized products for everyone and every occasion.

How many different products do you offer from your website?

We have hundreds of different products to choose from for each age group and for every holiday and special event. We carry around a dozen different vendors, some big name and some small artisans and work at home moms like myself.

What is the most popular item sold?

I sell more monogrammed handbags than anything else. I think a lot of moms out there like to pamper themselves a little and a new handbag with the season is a great way to do that.

What inspired you to start your business?

I have always love to shop and they always say find something you are good at and find a way to get paid for it. Opening an online boutique seemed like the logical thing to do!

Continue reading In The Business Of Personalizing: Monogrammed Gifts And More

In comments, tell us how you handle your business when you can’t get online.

Via our Business Humor Blog, comes this Japanese commercial that features non-alcoholic beer for children - complete with foam mustache and pizza. The company also sells wine and champagne for kids.

Crazy, but business ideas are everywhere.

When someone passes a vending machine, what do they usually see? Probably candy bars, potato chips or other forms of not-so-healthy foods. YoNaturals is a natural, organic vending option for schools, stores or office buildings but also has the potential to be a desirable franchise opportunity.

Another thing that won’t be seen on those other vending machines is probably the option to pay for your food or drink using a debit/credit card. Customers don’t always have cash on hand, or that one dollar bill might be torn beyond repair. Their will be no losing customers when they can just use debit/credit instead.

Continue reading Healthy Vending With YoNaturals

It’s America’s pasttime, right along with baseball and apple pie. Bad Dawgs has found its niche in the market too, offering a multitude of creative toppings for its pup in a bun. For example, ever had a hot dog with blue cheese crumbles? Sliced pepperoni? Crushed pineapple or sweet red pepper relish? This is one hip and fresh company in an otherwise boring marketplace. Their T-Shirt slogan says it all when it boasts, “It’s All About The Weiner!” Bad Dawgs has several stand alone restaurant chains in the New England states, but is very well known for their mobile units selling gourmet hot dogs for county fairs, festivals, company picnics and other lucrative venues across the country.

This franchise knows how to operate. When you contact Bad Dawgs for a franchise opportunity, they supply you with an experienced real estate team that helps you identify and secure prime real estate that ensures the best chance for success, they even supply lease negotiations and support every step of the way. Store Development is efficient, offering complete project management, because they know that once the lease is signed the clock starts ticking, and you do not want to miss one minute of possible earnings. Franchise packages offer financial assistance, equipment, training and continuous support. The Franchise Support Team is there to help with questions that are bound to come up even after your Grand Opening. Their job is to motivate, encourage and share the best of practices with every franchisee. If you are excited to be your own boss and own your own business, become part of the Bad Dawgs franchise family!

We want to educate our children and the best way to do that is in a way that will be fun for your child and and will integrate the both parent and child in the learning process. Goosie Cards does that.

Using photos that you supply, Goosie Cards turns them into durable cards with the caption of your choice on them that you and your child can play with many times over. Whether the cards are used to go through photos of loved ones, or to teach letters of the alphabet, it’s fun.

Jennifer Marchett is the mom who founded this great business. With a passion for children she saw the opportunity in her business and ran with it. Parents are the first people to educate their children and her flash cards are a great way to start that process.

In the interview below Jen talks about some of her inspiration for her product and some of the things she had to do to get started.

Giveaway:

With our interview Jen has also donated a gift certificate which will be given away to one of our readers. It is for 10 free custom Goosie Cards like the ones pictured here.

Anyone who would like a chance at winning the gift certificate can enter the giveaway but leaving a comment on this post telling me what you would like to do if you won the 10 free cards. Starting now and ending on May 29th at 11:59pm. I will choose the winning comment on the 30th and that person will be contacted by email. Ships to the US only.

Continue reading Goosie Is The New Word For Flash Card

The Wall Street Journal:

While his friends scramble for jobs flipping burgers or bagging groceries this summer, 18-year-old Mike Everest will be working as a trader in the fantasy Web world of Entropia Universe, buying and selling virtual animal skins and weapons. His goods exist only online, but his earnings are real. In the past four years, he’s made $35,000.

Everest, of Durango, Colo., is among a new breed of young entrepreneurs seeking their fortune online in imaginary worlds. As the pool of traditional summer jobs shrinks, tech-savvy young gamers are honing their computer skills to capitalize on growing demand for virtual goods and services. Some work as fashion designers, architects and real-estate developers in Second Life, a fantasy world populated by digital representations of real people. These so-called avatars shop in malls, buy property, hang out with friends or sit “home” watching TV, all manipulated by their real-life counterparts with computer key strokes and a mouse.

In the real world, summer jobs are in short supply. Only about a third of teenagers are expected to work this summer, the lowest levels in 60 years, according to the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University. Summer youth employment has fallen from about 45% of teens in 2000, a downward trend made worse this year by the faltering economy.

“It’s an incredible environment for young entrepreneurs,” says Claudia L’Amoreaux, of Linden Lab. “The ones who are really successful at it are beginning to make that their main work.”

Photo by Entropia Universe.

The Wall Street Journal:

Small businesses looking to find a hot idea — or trying to sell a hot idea to a big company — are about to get some help.

Next week, Eureka Ranch Technology Ltd. of Cincinnati plans to unveil the USA National Innovation Marketplace — an online registry where researchers and inventors can post ideas they’ve developed. Businesses can then browse through those ideas by category, much like searching through résumés at a job-hunting site. If the companies see something they like, they can contact the inventor to buy the idea or collaborate on it.

Companies of any size can use the registry. But small companies will be able to view new innovations first. They also can list ideas or products that they’ve developed and want to pitch to big businesses.

The goal, says Eureka founder Doug Hall, is to have small businesses incubate ideas from researchers and then sell them to large companies. The time is right for the idea, he says, since big businesses are coming under greater pressure to innovate quickly — but often lack the internal resources to do the job.

“Small businesses are best at taking an idea and taking it to first sale,” he says.

To be sure, putting ideas online for anyone to see raises the specter of intellectual piracy. Hall says he advises people to post only ideas for which they have patent protection. If they don’t, he recommends describing only what the product promises — not how it is created.

On the other hand, there’s the danger that people will post ideas that they don’t actually own and try to sell them. Hall says his company is looking into “validation systems” that would help establish ownership and the accuracy of claims made.

The registry’s site, planeteureka.com, launched on April 28, is accepting ideas from inventors and allowing businesses to view those ideas, both on a limited basis.

Photo by Eureka Ranch Technology Ltd..

Fortune Small Business:

Weddings may not be as inevitable as death and taxes, but they’re usually fairly impervious to slumps in the economy.

“People are never going to stop getting married,” says Keri Chantler, who co-owns Twirl Boutique in Scottsdale with Jenni Hailer. But lately Chantler has seen a surprising number of bridesmaids asking for cheaper gowns - a new phenomenon for her high-end boutique.

“People are shopping cautiously,” says Chantler, 36. “In a stable industry like ours, budget-conscious bridesmaids are a true sign that the economy is undergoing changes.”

Photo by MSDesigns.

The Baltimore Sun:

Broad economic slowdowns can often trickle down to small businesses, including those in relatively stable industries. But a downturn does not have to spell disaster for your small business.

Good financial management practices will help you weather even the worst of economic times and be ready to capitalize on new opportunities, which inevitably will come when good times return.

Begin with the basics. When times are terrific, no small business can survive without good recordkeeping, budgeting and cash flow monitoring and credit management.

Be on good terms with your creditors. Falling behind on payments is never the answer, even if it is just one time. Creditors will be more amenable to renegotiating terms with small businesses they consider to be conscientious and reliable.

Watch your receivables. You need to stay on top of outstanding debts to your company, particularly problem accounts. Be firm, but also willing to negotiate where appropriate.

Scrutinize your spending. Rather than arbitrarily slashing your budget, strive to spend only on those things that have a justifiable positive effect on your business.

Photo by artfiles.art.com.

Donald F. Kuratko at IndyStar.com:

Many myths have arisen about entrepreneurs. These ideas are the result of a lack of research and understanding. As many researchers in the field have noted, the study of entrepreneurship is still emerging, and thus “folklore” will tend to prevail until it is dispelled with contemporary research findings.

Myth 1: Entrepreneurs are doers, not thinkers
Although it is true entrepreneurs tend toward action, they are also thinkers. Indeed, they are often very methodical people who plan their moves carefully. The emphasis today on the creation of clear and complete business plans is an indication that “thinking” entrepreneurs are as important as “doing” entrepreneurs.

Myth 2: Entrepreneurs are born, not made
As a professor of entrepreneurship, I hear this one all the time. The idea that the characteristics of entrepreneurs cannot be taught or learned, that they are innate traits one must be born with, has long been prevalent. These traits include aggressiveness, initiative, drive, a willingness to take risks, analytical ability, and skill in human relations.

Today, however, the recognition of entrepreneurship as a discipline is helping to dispel this myth. Like all disciplines, entrepreneurship has models, processes, and case studies that allow the topic to be studied and the knowledge to be acquired.

We are all born with different traits, however, no special trait exists that will make you an entrepreneur.

Myth 3: All entrepreneurs need is money
It is true that a venture needs capital to survive; it is also true that a large number of business failures occur because of a lack of adequate financing. Yet having money is not the only bulwark against failure.

Failure due to lack of proper financing often is an indicator of other problems: managerial incompetence, lack of financial understanding, poor investments, poor planning, and the like.

Many successful entrepreneurs have overcome the lack of money while establishing their ventures. To those entrepreneurs, money is a resource but never an end in itself.

If money was the sole answer then every professional athlete and every “rock star” would be an entrepreneur. Unfortunately they squander their money and never use it to develop an entrepreneurial venture because that is not where their passion lies.

Read more.

Photo by viryboss.

Entrepreneur.com:

The Central Valley Business Times announces a $250,000 business plan contest accepting nationwide entries. Finalists will compete in October. Entrants have to have a convincing business plan and be at least 18 years old. That’s it as far as entry requirements.

“Anyone who has an idea for an innovative new business, and a business plan to match–or who has already started and is growing a business with a promising business plan–is welcome to enter,” says the sponsor, the Lyles Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

The Lyles Center is at California State University, Fresno. Click here for the fully detailed Web announcement. Read down past the sponsorship discussion and the local business justification to the details, including the unusually open entry.

The top 10 finalists will travel to Fresno for a two-day competition Oct. 2 - 3, where they will present their business plans to a panel of judges. On Oct. 4, the winner–and recipient of $100,000 in cash and $150,000 worth of in-kind services–is to be announced during halftime at the Fresno State Bulldog football game.

Entries will be accepted beginning June 1.

Photo by Lyles Center.

U.S. News:

How much do entrepreneurs need to fear regulation? It turns out that you can be punished for being an entrepreneur inadvertently. According story out of the Miami area:

“A man who said he thought he was just helping a woman in need is accused of running an illegal taxi service. Miami-Dade County’s Consumer Services Department has slapped Rosco O’Neil with $2,000 worth of fines, but O’Neil claims he is falsely accused.”

Miami’s established taxicab services have less competition to worry about because there’s a law against unregistered taxi services. That makes it expensive for new entrepreneurs to get their feet in the door. But that’s not true everywhere. For example, in Denver, a small group of cabdrivers was able to found a cab company by getting the state licensing laws overturned in court. The Institute of Justice, the public-interest law firm that represented them in that case, keeps track of many of the other instances around the country where established businesses benefit from local regulations that nip start-up businesses in the bud.

Image via AAA Taxi Florida

My SA:

The first idea that turned Robert Young into an entrepreneur grew from the frustration of working in a captive embroidery digitizing house.

At Radio Cap Co., now the San Antonio-based subsidiary of Norwood Promotional Products Inc., Young was head of the digitizing department in the 1990s. All their work was done for one company, and Young saw the department had capacity to contract with other firms.

That suggestion was ignored, but Young wouldn’t let it go. In 2001, he left RCC to start his own digitizing house, Volant Technologies.

Five years later and flush with customers, Young jumped on his second idea. Rather than just providing digitized computer programs for embroidery shops, why not make fine art?

“After 18 years in the business, I got bored with just doing corporate and sports logos,” Young said.

And Volant Embroidered Art Studio at 315 E. Commerce St. was born. The gallery, in operation less than two years, caters to conventioneers and tourists. But Young has been pursuing interior designers in hopes that these unique art pieces will be added to the repertoire of home decorating items in affluent homes.

Image via Embroidery Library

Steve Strauss at TheStreet.com:

For me, the interesting thing about Iron Man is that it is Marvel’s first foray into solo movie producing. For years Marvel has been licensing its superheroes to big studios and then acting as a simple co-producer.

Then Marvel wised up.

Why license your fantastic product for a fraction of what you could make when you can instead take it in-house, become the studio yourself, cut out the middle man and keep all the profit?

$1 billion in gross sales (the Spiderman franchise) can be a very persuasive argument.

So what does this have to do with small business, you ask? Plenty.

Until recently, small businesses that created a product often found themselves in a position not unlike that of Marvel: They had to hire expensive third parties to create the product, and that really cut into margins.

For instance, about a decade ago I had an associate who wanted to create a new back support system. As it was too expensive to produce here, he traveled to China and found a manufacturer who then created and shipped his product to him.

These days there are an incredible array of tools that allow us to create (or just buy) products better, cheaper and faster. The point is, there is no need for any small business to behave like Marvel pre-Iron Man. It is so easy these days to literally or figuratively take your own production in-house that it would be a shame not to.

Editor’s note: Here are the latest box office numbers for Iron Man:$222,485,000. WOW!

Photo by Marvel.

CBS 4 Denver:

Like most people, Scott Konke loves his iPod, and like most teenagers, he may be a little hard on it.

“It worked for a long time. I don’t know what happened — maybe I dropped it too many times. It just kind of shut down,” Konke told CBS4.

That’s when he found buymytronics.com, a year-old Web site that offers money for used or broken electronics.

“It usually is more money to repair an electronic device than it is to actually buy a new one,” said Brett Mosley, company CEO.

Mosley got the idea for buymytronics.com after his iPod stopped working. He wanted to provide an easy convenient way to recycle small electronics. So he taught himself how to repair the gadgets and he resells them as used.

“We’re kind of filling a niche in the market. People need to get money for their broken gadgets and we’re the spot to do it at,” Mosley added.

Mosley breaks down some of the gadgets for parts. Others he fixes and sells, and the bits and pieces he can’t use he sends to an environmentally ethical recycler.

He’s planning on expanding the business to include old laptop computers, GPS devices and digital photography equipment.

Image via Command Tab

KC Chronicle:

First came beer with pizza flavors, an idea that Tom and Athena Seefurth parlayed into a successful home-brewery business.

Then came pizza crust and sausage made with the Seefurths’ Mama Mia! Pizza Beer at Michel Angelos Pizza & Pasta, Inc., 40W143 Campton Crossings Drive, Campton Hills.

Now comes celebrity: 190 North, the WLS-TV show about what’s hip and happening, sent Lou Canellis to tape a segment at Michel Angelos about the pizza beer pizza.

Michel Angelos owner Frank McCarron said he was told the segment would air at 10:35 p.m. May 25.

McCarron said he’s been adding pizza beer to the crust and sausage for about six months after pizza beer creator Seefurth ate a slice of his New York style pizza.

Participants brought bottles of Mama Mia! Pizza Beer they bought from nearby Lighthouse Liquors because Michel Angelos did not have a liquor license.

In the minutes before taping, McCarron hurriedly filled out paperwork, got fingerprinted and paid $250 for a bring-your-own-beverage liquor license from Campton Hills.

“We have been doing it since we opened two years ago, but now you have to have a license for BYOB,” McCarron said. “It has to be legal. I’m across the street from the police department.”

Image via KC Chronicle

Moldova:

The Swiss town of Fribourg decided to create an urban golf course to allow locals and tourists enjoy a unique experience, tourist officials say.

Fribourg Tourism head Nicolas Zapf said the idea initially came from a business intern and has proven to be a fun golf experience for various groups, Swissinfo.com said Friday.

I think it’s a course and a sport suitable for everyone — families, work outings, groups of friends, Zapf said.

The tourism official has warned those hoping to use the urban course to emulate U.S. golf star Tiger Woods will likely be disappointed.

If people want to come and improve their handicap this isn’t the way. It’s really just a game, to have fun, discover the town, he told Swissinfo.com.

The Web site said the risk posed by the course to residents in the town is minimal, despite each hole being located in pedestrian areas of Fribourg.

Image via Gadmin.ch

Tampa Bay Online:

Redner and his son Joey are hoping to open the microbrewery by September. The brewery will be at the elder Redner’s headquarters on Spruce Street, near Dale Mabry Highway.

The pair want to sell the beer to a distributor, who would then sell the brew to restaurants, bars and liquor shops. They also would give patrons tours of the brewery and samples. If customers like the beer, they would be able to buy more at the gift shop

He said he has no plans to sell pints of beer or turn the venture into a bar. His goal is simple, he said: Produce about 2,000 barrels a year and focus on local flavors, such as exotic fruits. He wants Cigar City Brewing to be the go-to microbrewery in Tampa.

The brewery would be in the Redner Enterprises complex, which already includes a lighting company and offices. Joe Redner plans to turn a vacant building into a boxing gym for amateurs and children in the Carver City/Lincoln Gardens neighborhood.

Image via WunderBeer