Alexander Steele still has no idea who gave him $2,000 to help launch his business of hand-crafting guitars and ukuleles. Using the website Kickstarter.com, Steele needed only a month to raise $15,000. That was enough for him to quit his job so he could build guitars full-time in his basement in Cedar Rapids. According to Kickstarter’s [...]

Even on the grayest of days, there is a burst of color inside the newest fabric shop in downtown Mount Vernon. Kevin Carpenter and Leland Turner, who moved to Mount Vernon in 2011, run Helios Stitches N Stuff on the second floor of the First Street Community Center, 221 First St. NE. After starting the [...]

Caribou Coffee locations in Iowa will not be affected by the company’s decision to close 80 stores this month. The Minneapolis-based company announced on Monday plans to close the stores on April 14, but specific locations were not announced. Spokeswoman Blythe Posner confirmed Tuesday that no Iowa locations will be part of the closures. A [...]

The $20 million office building formerly occupied by disgraced executive Russell Wasendorf Sr. will be shown off for potential buyers at an open house on April 18. GA Keen Realty Advisors , a division of the Great American Group, has been retained to market the 48,250-square foot former home of Peregrine Financial Group in Cedar Falls. Bids [...]

Two “car guys” from Cedar Rapids are confident their low-tech product will lead to high-level success. John Henecke, 50, and Shawn Gallagher, 51, owners of J & S Products, have teamed up to develop an oil drain pan that is made out of cardboard and completely recyclable. Speed-E-Pan started as a napkin sketch in 2007, [...]

Early-morning sunlight streams through the front windows at Huntington’s Restaurant in Marion. Owner John Huntington is already at full-speed, with a smile. “How’s breakfast, guys?” Huntington asks two men in a booth, who both give positive responses. It’s Friday, the end of the work week for some. But Huntington is gearing up for one of [...]

The Riley’s Cafe on Center Point Road NE will relocate to a new spot nearby as the neighboring Wendy’s fast-food restaurant moves forward on plans to rebuild. Riley’s co-owner Phil Pankey said the restaurant at 4242 Center Point Rd. NE will close, and the new location at 2010 Sylvia Lane NE, Suite A, will open within [...]

An effort to enhance a regional economy will take the next step later this month. The Creative Corridor Project, designed to connect innovators and tell their stories, will launch April 19. A luncheon has been scheduled for noon at the Hotel at Kirkwood Center. In February 2012, leaders unveiled the regional identity known as Iowa’s [...]

A marketing twist that literally puts the message in your hands is delivering results for a local performance venue. Hancher Auditorium has promoted various events on the sleeves that adorn coffee cups at Java House locations in Iowa City for more than six years. Right now, the sleeves touts the Working Group Theatre’s “The Broken Chord,” a [...]

Hostess Brands workers whose jobs were eliminated in the past 16 months can learn about reemployment options at an informational meeting next week. The meeting for individuals let go since Nov. 11, 2011, will cover possible reemployment services, including training, job relocation and possible wage subsidies and tax credits. Deadlines and time frames also will [...]

The light bulb came on for Ben Anderson at a networking event for entrepreneurs. As the speaker described feedback-based services, Anderson wrote “Bandwidth Pool” on a piece of paper. He registered the domain name that night. Anderson, of Cedar Rapids, launched his latest enterprise on Feb. 27. Bandwidth Pool is a website that allows Internet providers [...]

Doctor shortages continue to be an issue in Iowa’s most rural areas. But momentum is picking up with hopes of reversing the trend. Iowa ranks 43rd nationwide in the ratio of doctors to residents, and ranks last in the number of emergency medicine and OB-GYN physicians, according to the Iowa Medical Society.  Neighboring states such [...]

The ink is dry on a key agreement between Interstate Power and Light Co. and the Duane Arnold Energy Center. The Alliant Energy utility subsidiary announced Wednesday the signing of an 11-year contract to purchase 431 megawatts of power from NextEra Energy’s nuclear power plant near Palo. The deal goes into effect in February 2014. [...]

Allan Mallie is used to harvesting corn and soybeans, but later this year, he’ll also be collecting sunlight. Work is under way to install 168 solar panels on Mallie’s farm along Highway 1 just north of Mount Vernon. Once activated, the 40.3 kilowatt solar power system should cut in half the amount of electricity Mallie [...]

As a boy in Chicago, Chuck Smallwood sometimes preferred to stay inside and watch family members cook rather than play outside with the other kids. It’s been a long road since then, including a move to Cedar Rapids in 1999. But Smallwood’s passion for cooking has remained with him. “I was always sitting in the [...]

What defines the difference between an employee and a valued worker, between a supervisor and a superior leader? Some hiring executives and social psychologists — while not all in complete agreement — will say it could be emotional intelligence. The concept of emotional intelligence, a person’s ability to understand and manage his or her own [...]

Construction has started on a new Dunkin’ Donuts in Cedar Rapids, prompting a few visitors to check in on its progress. One police officer dropped by Wednesday morning to inquire about the work, and workers shared the news of the doughnut chain’s impending arrival. City Planner Vern Zakostelecky said a site plan was approved in [...]

A rapidly growing way for entrepreneurs to connect with one another over coffee made its debut Wednesday morning in Cedar Rapids. The 1 Million Cups program , started by the Kauffman Foundation in Kansas City, held its first event in Eastern Iowa at the Vault Coworking and Collaboration Space in downtown Cedar Rapids. Each week, a new start-up [...]

Though the business was started in Wellman more than 30 years ago, it seemed the time had come that Cabinet Works craftsmen needed not only tell prospective customers about the work they do — they needed to show it, too. Its first retail location was opened last August in Coralville, where the company displays built-ins, counter tops and [...]

Negotiations began Monday on a contract that covers nearly 2,000 union workers at Rockwell Collins in Cedar Rapids and Coralville. Members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) covered by the contract make avionics products for national defense systems and commercial industries. The current five-year contract expires May 3. “We anticipate a productive round of [...]