February 2010

Businesses finding Madison good place to be

By Alan Van Ormer

Madison is becoming a community that businesses are willing to expand or even take a chance on starting a new enterprise.

“Madison has worked diligently to position itself as a place to open a new or expand an existing business,” said Dwaine Chapel, Executive Director of the Lake Area Improvement Corporation. “We have created a loan fund at the LAIC, and created an atmosphere that helps small businesses get off of their feet.”

Chapel said the loan fund was accomplished by the partnerships created with the South Dakota Small Business Development Center, the Enterprise Institute, a local attorney who has worked with entrepreneurs in the past to protect intellectual property, and many others.

“Madison offers a variety of hiring, tax, and utility incentives to businesses,” he added. “Madison has a strong and energetic workforce including Dakota State University students and a highly skilled manufacturing population.”

Hyland Machining, located in southwest Madison, has been taking raw steel and making parts for industries for the past five years. Almost 90 percent of the work is for the Sioux Falls area, but Jeff and Michelle Hyland are working with the LAIC to provide more services for industries in the Madison area. Just last year, the business had grown enough where the Hylands were able to add a full time person.

Since 1995, Gaylen’s Homegrown Popcorn has been selling varieties of yellow popcorn around the area, as well as around the world.

Gaylen Backus, who lives on a farm near Wentworth, said the community is great because people want to help you achieve your goals. “Everyone supports local businesses well,” he said. “It is just a great community and is close to larger communities for us to market our popcorn.”

In addition, Backus said there are the interstate and main roads to move the popcorn out of the area in semi loads.

Gaylen’s Homegrown Popcorn is averaging 400-500 acres of popcorn a year. Over 1.5 million pounds of yellow variety of popcorn is sold annually. In addition, the company provides 20,000 ears per year in individual packages.

Each year Backus continues to expand. This year he added a warehouse with two loading docks.

For the past 10 years, Be Online, Inc., an online Internet-based training company, has been providing training for responsible food serving and food safety for restaurants, as well as online training for home inspectors, energy auditors and weatherization experts.

“When we first started, no one was sure what we were about,” Rob Graham said. “Now that they know, it has become a big growth area.”

Graham said there is a lot of potential for technology companies in Madison because of Dakota State University. “It is nice to have a college in town that has resources,” he said, adding that Madison has a strong base and good people live here.

In addition, Graham said the LAIC and Madison Area Chamber of Commerce has been helpful in providing contact with the state. “It is good to have someone like the LAIC in your corner,” Graham said. “From a business standpoint, if there is something that they can do to help you out they will do it.”