Inside mega recyclingpageturnpro2.com.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/... · DELAWARE BUSINESS TIMES JULY 5, 2016 3 VOL. 2 NO. 17 AUGUST 18, 2015VOL. 2 NO. 15 JULY 21, 2015VOL.

JULY 5, 2016 • VOL. 3 • NO. 14 • $2

Inside

Clean governmentAt Mid-Atlantic Services, 80 percent of jobs are in state buildingsPage 10

In this issueFirst Look .......................... 3

Business News .............5-13

Viewpoint .................... 14,15

Spotlight ......................16-18

DBT Book of Lists: Media Companies .......................19

Smartboard ......................22

Readers’ Guide ................23

Market WatchSmyrna office property for sale

Page 23

Family OwnedBusiness AwardsWinners honored for 2016Pages 8-9

Thy Geekdom ConCosplay and comics coming in NovemberPage 18

Mobile mannersWe’re polite, but others aren’tPage 11

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Buy a bridge or 5 million hazmat suits

at Repurposed Materials

Sam Rogers of Repurposed Materials has 208 55-gallon metal barrels for sale

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VOL. 2 NO. 15 JULY 21, 2015 FIRST LOOKVOL. 2 NO. 17 AUGUST 18, 2015VOL. 3 NO. 14 JULY 5, 2016

ITALIAN-AMERICAN HERALDThe

Founded 2014A Biweekly Newspaper ServingDelaware’s Business Community

Vol. 3, No. 14 dated 5 July 2016, © Copyright 2016 by Today Media, All Rights Reserved.

This newspaper or its trademarks may not be reproduced in whole or in part in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical,

including photocopying or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system now known or hereafter invent without written

permission from the Publisher. For licensing, reprints, e-prints, plaques, e-mail [email protected].

CEO/PresidentPublisher

Robert F. MartinelliNews

Senior ReporterKathy Canavan

Acting EditorChristi Milligan

Copy EditorAl KempAdvertising

Director of SalesAvie Silver

SalesLisa Fleetwood

Art DirectorSuzanne Duffy

Production ManagerC. Belinda CimoGraphic Designers

Elena MenaqualeHeather Vega

Vice President of Business DevelopmentCharlie TomlinsonFounding Publisher

Sam Waltz

For Advertising [email protected]

(302) 504-1326For Subscription information

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To submit Press Releases or Story Ideas,[email protected]

Today MediaPresident: Robert F. Martinelli

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Chairman: Angelo R. MartinelliDelaware Business Times is printed 26-times per year by Today Media,

3301 Lancaster Pike Suite 5C, Wilmington DE 19805 and is available by subscription for $59.00 per year. Single copy/back issues are available at the cover price of $2.00 plus $2.00 shipping and handling. Bulk rates are

available, call (302) 656-1809. Attention Postmaster: Send address changes to Delaware Business Times, PO Box 460516, Escondido, CA 92046-9808.

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spotlight Entrepreneurs

• Wilmington is the newest market for Denver-based Repurposed Materials, which keeps the supply chain in motion for an ever-changing hodgepodge of construction and commercial materials ranging from used hardwood and conveyor belts to nuclear waste storage modules .................................... 16-17

• Entrepreneur brings a comic convention to Concord Pike ...........................................................18

Sam WaltzFounding Publisher

ROUND UP: FIRST IMPRESSIONSGetting hired now starts with your digital impression .........5

POWER MOVEThe state contracts with Direct Energy ...............................7

FAMILY AFFAIRMore than 170 people celebrate with the winners of the Delaware Business Times’ Family Owned Business Awards at the Christiana Hilton on June 24 ................................ 8-9

DUST-FREE SINCE 1985Mid-Atlantic Services began in the early 1980s with one van and a handful of cleaning supplies. Today the company has

more than 160 employees and operates in 178 buildings across the state, most of them government-owned ............10

CELLPHONE DEPENDENCY?According to Bank of America’s Trends in Consumer Mobility Report, only 17 percent of respondents think they use their cellphones too much, while more than half believe other users are guilty of that very same thing ..................11

BE PREPAREDThe IT consultancy firm Continuity Dynamics helps businesses prepare for the worst-case scenario in data security ...........................................................................13

Does the Brexit vote signal the outcome of upcoming U.S. presidential election?

At risk of overworking an overworked topic, an additional perspective on Brexit – the UK vote to exit the EU over the next two years – deserves some elaboration for U.S. policy, the

international economy and American politics.

Having followed European economy and politics since graduate school, I followed the UK vote with a great deal of interest.

In this column, less than a year ago, I’d written from portside on the Danube River in Hungary about the European economy and about the effect on it of immigration. At that time, in Calais, France, thousands of immigrants had worked their way north from the Mediterranean in search of some freedom, security, and – oh yes – the social and financial safety net the UK offers its poorest citizens.

Mini-riots at Calais, including forcible entry and violations of the law by the immigrants without papers, led to property damage as they sought to assert some right that did not exist, a right to enter the UK and a right to have the Brits support them.

Culture in the UK, indeed throughout Europe, has been and remains diverse, an artifact of ethnicity, of how Italians made Italy unique, and Germans made Germany unique, the Brits and the French and so on.

Having been to Europe perhaps 20 times in the last 45 years, the Europe that I really began to see last year had changed significantly from trips a few years earlier, not to mention dramatically from 40 and 45 years earlier.

And, unlike previous waves of immigration, where assimilation had been a defining characteristic, that assimilation was lost in favor of the ghettoization – in the European sense – of non-assimilating peoples. And the bilingualism of Germany – once German and English in Munich, for example, has been succeeded by German and Arabic.

What we saw in the Brexit vote was the reasons that states organize themselves, and that’s to advance, preserve, protect and perhaps even grow their self-interest. The Brits saw what was happening in Europe and effectively said, “Thanks, but no thanks.” It’s that simple.

In probably the only time in my life that I’ll quote Donald Trump, he said, “They took back their country.”

That brings us to the larger question, “Why do states exist at all?”

It’s basically for two reasons -- to promote self-interest and to provide common services, which range from defense, statecraft, commerce, civil society, international relations, public education and infrastructure such as highways that would seem virtually impossible for citizens to voluntarily and collectively provide.

We’re blessed that our country and its people are generous. We’re generous to a fault, from gazillionaires – many of whom today are pledging to give away their fortunes – to everyday people who give away some of their daily substance and subsistence to help others.

We’ve sent aid to foreign countries, helped build their hospitals and infrastructure, taught them trades and professions, and advanced their agriculture.

But, in modern times, we’ve never thrown open the doors to say, “Y’all come into America,” because we live with the knowledge that America is a small boat in a global world, and it would be swamped if the people

who built America were to take on the world’s welfare issues by inviting in the global poor, giving them all the minimal requirements, and, oh, by the way, providing all the benefits, too, of American citizenship.

Immigration policy exists to manage that, and Congress sets that policy in a reasonable way that advances America’s self-interest ,while administering it with a heart, for some of the neediest, as well as for refugees.

The awareness exists for many, if not most Americans, that it was our parents and our grandparents and our great-grandparents who sacrificed themselves to build this country as a legacy for us and our children and our grandchildren. They sacrificed themselves from the battlefields around the world to the factory floors and in entrepreneurship and from every hamlet to every city.

Our parents and grandparents fought off invaders who had rifles and cannons and planes and jets. We agreed to stand in the streets to fight off those who would invade our nation.

What we never imagined is that those outside our country would seek to define for us what American generosity is, and they would seek to nullify American policy, indeed nullify American sovereignty, by wantonly violating the law, sometimes with encouragement from employers who profited from their cheap labor or landlords who profited from providing cash-paid housing or even by a president determined to remake America in his own image and to his vision.

Like millions of Americans, I see our two candidates for president, and I want to say “a pox on both their houses.”

Having said that, unless things change over the next few months, it seems likely that the Brexit constituency also exists here in the U.S., and they will vote to the benefit of Donald Trump. n


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Custom sponsorships available at a variety of price points. [email protected] | 302.656.1837

Visit DelawareBusinessTimes.com/40 to make a nomination.

ReceptionHercules Plaza 1313 Market Street Wilmington DE 19801 October 13, 2016 | 6:00-8:00 p.m.

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PAUL POMEROYManaging Partner, ab+c Creative Intelligence

On standing out from the crowd:As with everything else in our society

today, technology is setting the course. In most cases, this means the job interview starts long before an actual in-person meeting. While resumes still have a place, how candidates present themselves online and via social media channels is the 21st century version of the first impression.

LinkedIn profiles need to be updated and filled with relevant career-oriented information. Social sites should be scrubbed appropriately to put one’s best face forward. In terms of being able to cut through the clutter to land an actual

interview, a candidate should be clear and focused in how they present their interest in particular positions and how that interest is in line with their ultimate career goals.

While this can be customized per position, a blanket expression of interest in “marketing” or “advertising” is not enough to separate an applicant in a crowded and competitive field. And when it comes time for the actual interview, polished interpersonal skills are a must. While some workplace communication takes place online, most does not. How a person communicates in an interview is a reflection of how he or she will do so in an actual workplace setting and how they might fit, culturally, within an organization

CHRIS BARTONPresident, Barton Career Advisors

On the importance of social media:Over the last decade hiring practices

have evolved along with technological innovations and the emerging needs of businesses that are striving to compete in a hyper-competitive global economy. A number of tools are employed to screen and vet candidates including psychometric assessments, virtual web-based interview software and third party outsourced recruitment resources.

Candidates are encountering an increasingly more complex landscape for actively engaging decision makers, as the overall hiring system is designed to minimize human contact in its initial stages.

Today’s professionals looking for work need to be social media-savvy, particularly with LinkedIn, and work diligently and appropriately to break the relational barrier into organizations. It is actually more challenging to get the interview than to survive the interview itself, although the interview presents the “stage time” that is so critical to advancing in the process.

It is advisable for job seekers to practice video interviewing, prepare for group scenarios and above all gain knowledge of some of the more common interview questions. The simplest questions are the toughest! A seemingly innocuous ‘tell me about yourself’ can be the end of the process for many candidates.”

ANTARA DUTTAFounder & CEO Ayuvia, LLCPast president, SCORE Delaware

On knowing what you’re looking for in a candidate:

Amongst managing risks every day, [whether] as a small business owner, a corporate executive or a nonprofit administrator, recruiting and retaining human capital ranks high in priority.

While there are some commonalities in finding the best match for a large corporation, a small start up or a volunteer managed nonprofit, there are some evolving trends worth paying attention to:

Cultural fit — When hiring for large corporate organizations, cultural fit is front and center in ensuring team dynamics stay balanced with new comers. One way to ensure alignment could be using a panel of diverse members. Ranking three to five finalists with inputs from a panel is a great way to get a balanced perspective on cultural fit.

Drivers for change — When hiring for a nonprofit or a small business, it’s important to understand why someone is choosing to pursue giving back or joining a startup or a smaller organization that does not guarantee a long-term stable income.

Ability to cope with uncertainty — No matter what the role, or who the hiring entity is, a candidate’s demonstrated ability to cope with change in the past is key to success in the future. The pace of change in technology, globalization and economic trends impacts small and large employers alike. A candidate who has had the same job in the same company for more than ten years probably is not well equipped to cope with fast-paced change in the future.

HUMAN RESOURCESFirst impressions are made digitally, not personally

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are more than 5 million job openings in the United States. Whether you’re hiring or looking for a job, the methods of landing a coveted position or finding the perfect

candidate for your company have evolved.

Those doing the hiring can get a good look at their roster of candidates long before they’ve walked through the door for an interview, thanks to social

media platforms. And candidates can make or break

an opportunity by making sure those platforms showcase their best the minute they hit “submit” on the application forms.

Delaware Business Times asked business professionals for their perspectives on the changing dynamics on the hiring front and what tools are essential for today’s job-seeking professionals.



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CALENDAR7.14.16Business Resiliency Checkup The Small Business Development Center will host a Business Resiliency Checkup for small businesses and nonprofit organizations. It will take place at Penn’s Place, Middletown Main Street office, 216 N. Broad Street in Middletown from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. The event will consist of four topics of interest including Accounting and QuickBooks, Legal Matters, Insurance and Knowing Your Risks, and Business Continuity and Resiliency Strategy. Refreshments will be provided. The event is free.

How to Create an Effective Pitch The New Castle County Chamber of Commerce is holding a program from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. at 12 Penns Way near New Castle. Three speakers will teach entrepreneurs how to present a clear, concise and compelling pitch. The event will focus on group work to ensure that each person is able to find a clear objective, layout, planned outcome and supporting details for a pitch. The second half of the presentation will show how to

create an effective video pitch and giving

tips and tools of the trade for how to put

everything into practice. This event is free

and open to the public.

7.20.16Speed Networking The New Castle County Chamber of

Commerce is hosting its third quarterly

connection event at its headquarters at 12

Penns Way near New Castle. Each participant

will get the opportunity to stand and make

a two-minute pitch five separate times.

This will result in a guaranteed minimum of

24 networking connections. Only one per

business category may attend, so to register

contact Heather Fisher at (302) 294-2055 or

[email protected]. Sherms Catering will be

providing lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

7.21.1611th Annual Golf Outing The Middletown Area Chamber of Commerce

is hosting the 11th annual golf outing at the

Odessa National Golf Club. Registration and

lunch begin at 11 a.m.

A networking social, dinner, and special

awards will begin at 5:30 p.m. The entry

fee is $150 per golfer or $500 for each

foursome. This fee includes greens fees, a

cart, lunch, dinner, beverages, networking

social and many prizes. For more information

on the event and available sponsorship

opportunities, visit the Middletown Area

Chamber of Commerce website at www.

maccde.com. A portion of the day’s proceeds

will benefit the MACC Foundation that

provides educational opportunities and

scholarships for local youth.

8.2.16Are You a Leader or a Manager? The New Castle County Chamber of

Commerce is holding its business

education series from 8:30 to 11:30

a.m. in its headquarters at 12 Penns

Way near New Castle. This event’s topic

will be an active discussion on the

differences between a manager and a

leader. The facilitator of the talks will

be Chris Burkhard who currently leads

the Chamber’s CEO Think Tank or CEO

Advisory Program, the Placers, CBI

Group, and Barton Career Advisors. These

companies provide talent solutions and

workforce programs for talent-minded

customers. This event costs $15 and is

limited to 20.

8.5.16World Trade Center’s 17th Annual Tug Cruise Sponsored by the Delaware State Chamber

of Commerce, the annual tug cruise is a local

tradition that brings businesses together for

an evening cruise with hors d’oeuvres and

drinks from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at 1 Hausel

Road, Port of Wilmington. Please be sure to

bring a government-issued ID along with a

signed copy of the tug cruise release and

waiver form found on the event’s website.

Also be sure to wear casual boat attire with

flat-heeled shoes for comfort and safety. All

guests must be registered at least 24 hours

in advance of the event. The cost is $80 for

members and $90 for nonmembers. For

more information visit the event’s website,

http://www.wtcde.com/events/17th-Annual-

Tug-Cruise-149/details.



www.maccde.com

www.maccde.com

http://www.wtcde.com/events/17th-Annual-Tug-Cruise-149/details

http://www.wtcde.com/events/17th-Annual-Tug-Cruise-149/details

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UTILITIESDel. designates Direct Energy as retail power supplier

By Christi [email protected]

The State of Delaware formally named Direct Energy as the “Electric Retail Supplier Exclusively Contracted by the State of Delaware” for its 315,000 residents and businesses in the Delmarva territory and for Delaware Electric Cooperative’s 84,000 customers.

This is the first such program and designation made in the United States.

The new status was conferred on Direct Energy following a months-long competitive process and a vote by the Delaware Electricity Affordability Committee, chaired by Secretary of State Jeffrey Bullock, and with representation from the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, Office of the Controller General, Office of Management and Budget, Office of the Public Advocate, and the Public Service Commission.

“In Delaware, the generation, supply and sale of energy was deregulated more

than 16 years ago, but many of our residents have not yet taken advantage of the available energy choices and shopped around for the products and services that fit their family’s needs,” said Bullock.

More than 15 years after energy deregulation, only 10 percent to 12 percent of Delawareans proactively select their electricity supplier, as compared with 30 percent to 40 percent of the residents in surrounding states, according to Bullock’s office.

“We undertook this process to increase our residents’ awareness about the options they have related to their electricity, allowing them to take more control over their energy usage,” Bullock said. “We are happy to offer this designation to Direct Energy and hope residents take advantage of this opportunity to save money on their electricity bills.”

Direct Energy was one of six suppliers vying for the designation. Proposals

were evaluated based on the potential benefits derived from a combination of multi-year fixed price per kilowatt-hour offers, value-added products and services to help customers better manage their overall electricity bills, other potential consumer benefits, and the fiscal and technical experience of the supplier.

It is estimated that residential customers may save on average $15 per month with Direct Energy’s fixed electricity prices, set at 10 percent to 18 percent below Delmarva’s current price, according to officials.

On its website, Direct Energy offered its programs as a foil to Delmarva Power’s variant pricing.

Officials from Delmarva Power said they’re supportive of options in Delaware.

“Delmarva Power has always supported electric retail supply choice in Delaware. Delmarva encourages its customers who are interested in shopping for their energy supply to take a look at this new opportunity, as

well as the many other supplier choices available,” Delmarva Power officials said in a statement.

Direct Energy is one of North America’s largest retail energy and energy services providers, offering a suite of innovative products and competitive offers that can help residential and business customers save on their energy bills.

Starting July 1, special discounts, products and services are available to those in the Delmarva territory, including a nest learning thermostat, free heating and cooling equipment protection plans for six months, or solar power systems.

“We are thrilled to be the ‘Electric Retail Supplier Exclusively Contracted by the State of Delaware’ and look forward to a long and lasting relationship with the state’s 315,000 residents and small businesses,” said Stephen Girard, head of small business at Direct Energy Business. n

Ron Cerniglia, director of government and regulatory affairs at Direct Energy, Delaware Secretary of State Jeff Bullock and Steve Girard, head of small business at Direct Energy, mark the change in Delaware.

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SMALL BUSINESS

Delaware Business Times honors state’s family-owned businesses

More than 170 people celebrated with the winners of the Delaware

Business Times’ Family Owned Business Awards at the Christiana Hilton on June 24.

Seventeen family firms were finalists for the awards. The companies had a combined 914 years in business, and up to five generations of family members participating in the businesses. Only 30 percent of family-owned businesses make it to the second generation, said Rob Martinelli, CEO/president of Today Media, the parent company of the Delaware Business Times.

The oldest business nominated was Bridgewater Jewelers, founded in 1883.

Seven of the businesses are based in Wilmington, one each in Laurel and Seaford, two in Newport, three in New Castle and three in Newark.

The finalists: Assurance Media of Wilmington, Boulden Brothers of Newark, Bridgewater Jewelers of New Castle, Dukes Lumber Co. of Laurel, Fusco Management of New Castle, Giorgi Kitchens & Designs of Wilmington, Harvey, Hanna & Associates of Newport, Joseph Frederick & Sons of Wilmington, Lyons Companies of Wilmington, Mercantile Press of Wilmington, Nixon Uniform Service of New Castle, Pettinaro Companies of Newport, Polymer Technologies of Newark, Sussex Printing of Seaford, Tri-State Battery of Newark, Union Park Automotive Group of Wilmington and Waste Masters Solutions of New Castle.

This year’s judges were Rob Martinelli; Charlie Tomlinson, vice president of business development at Today Media; Allan Ash, associate publisher of the Delaware Business Times; Sam Waltz, the paper’s founding publisher; Margo Reign, business loan advisor for the Delaware Small Business Development Center, and Lisa Sable, mid-Atlantic region executive for Vistage International. n

Verino and Midge Pettinaroof Pettinaro Companies

The Ursomarso family, owners of Union Park Automotive group with Allan Ash and Robert Martinelli of Today Media Inc.

David Lyons Jr. of Lyons Companies and Mark Hutton of M&T Bank

Jennifer McKenzie, president of Assurance Media

Amy Higgins of Sussex Printing

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THE WINNERS:Small-size business: Fusco ManagementMedium-size business:Joseph Frederick & SonsSussex Printing/The GuideLarge- size business:Pettinaro CompaniesSpecialty Awards:The Community Service Award is given to the business that shows excellence in its level of community service: Harvey, Hanna & Associates

The Customer Service Award is given to that business which shows excellence in customer service: Bridgewater Jewelers

The Innovation and Technology Award is given to the business doing something different or modernizing operations to better serve its customers and clients:Polymer Technologies

The Emerging Family Business Award is given to the business that shows remarkable growth or market share:Assurance Media.

The Legacy Business Award is presented to a multi-generational company continuing to involve all family members actively in its daily operations and having an overall impact on Delaware and the business community: Union Park Automotive Group

Lisa Sable and Doug Ainsworth of Vistage International

The Giorgi family, owners of Giorgi Kitchen & Design

Mary Lenhoff, owner of Bridgewater Jewelers

The Fusco family, owners of Fusco Management

Robin Adair with Thom Harvey of Harvey, Hanna and Associates

The Berstein family, owners of Nixon Uniform Services

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SMALL BUSINESSKeeping government dust-free since 1985Mid-Atlantic Services relies on state contractsBy Alexander VuocoloSpecial to Delaware Business Times

Rosemary Everton was waiting in the hallway of the Sussex County Courthouse for jury selection when she couldn’t help but notice a spot of dust on the windowsill. She slowly moved towards the window, put her hands behind her back, and wiped the dust away with her shirt, all while talking to the other jurors.

“The hazard of this job is anywhere you go you start looking at dust,” she said.

Everton is the founder and CEO of Mid-Atlantic Services, a commercial cleaning company that operates in 178 buildings across the state. Her biggest client also happens to be the State of Delaware. More than 80 percent of the buildings cleaned by Mid-Atlantic are government-owned.

“They are a pleasure to work with. They are easy to work with. They are always responsive,” said Doug Minner,

chief of maintenance operations in the state’s Division of Facilities Management.

Everton and her husband Michael started a house-cleaning business in the early 1980s with just a van and their own cleaning supplies. Within five years, they had over 500 residential clients in Sussex County alone and had hired more than a dozen employees.

They incorporated the company in 1985 and began to move toward commercial clients. Their big break, Everton says, was getting contract to clean the offices at DuPont’s Seaford plant.

“I think we accidentally got it, to be honest about it,” Everton said. “I’m not sure they really wanted to go with us because we were unknown. But since we were the lowest bidder they said ‘OK, we’ll give you a chance.’ ”

The company started picking up government contracts soon after, and that changed the course of how it would grow over the next three decades. Hiring practices, for example, changed. The company now has to make sure all employees have their thumbprints taken and are cleared by the police before they can work on state property. And over the last 10 years, at least, the company has also been forced to consider security issues like terrorism.

“It was touch and go. We would lose contracts, gain contracts. But we’ve stayed steady and we have a pretty good reputation,” Everton said. “It’s still competitive. We have to bid.”

Today Mid-Atlantic Services grosses about $2 million per year and has more

than 160 employees, about 90 percent part time. The company started relying on part-time workers in the 1990s, Everton says, and has stuck with the model because it provides flexibility. “We always say, ‘Get a job with us in the evening to help pay your car payment or car insurance.’ It’s just a way to supplement your income,” she said.

Everton says that she feels a deep civic pride in being able keep state-owned buildings clean.

“There’s a lot of things that we do that people don’t notice behind the scenes,” Everton said. “When Beau Biden was lying in wake, they got us to go in and make sure all the floors were looking good and to make sure everything was ready.”

Everton also touts the fact Mid-Atlantic is woman-owned. While it began as a husband-and-wife operation, Michael Everton was more than happy to hand over the reins to his wife of nearly 50 years. “My husband said ‘you can handle it all, hon,’ ” she said. “We call him Pop-Pop Daycare. He handles the grandchildren.”

Everton says the trick to working with your spouse is treating it almost like a third date. “You’re close, but you have that respect,” she said. n

From left: Operations manager Keri Simpler, Crystal French and CEO Rosemary Everton gather at Legislative Hall, one of Mid-Atlantic’s contracts.

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APRIL 12, 2016 • VOL. 3 • NO. 8 • $2

Inside

Moving MessagesGovernment using Carvertise to advertisePage 17

In this issueFirst Look .......................... 3

Business News .............4-11

Viewpoint .........................18

Spotlight ...........................21

DBT Book of Lists: Century Farms ....................23Smartboard ......................26

Market Watch ...................27

Market WatchDover offi ce units in spotlight

Page 27

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Ron

Dub

ick

Self-made manMeet Glenn Fedale,‘Blue Collar Millionaire’

Page 14

Food Bankgiven $75KBank of America donation will help feed those in needPage 26

Spotlight: AgricultureFarmers reap benefi tsof irrigation advancesPage 21

Growing Corporate Interiors

Expansion is a triumphfor owner Janice Leone

APRIL 12, 2016 • VOL. 3 • NO. 8 • $2

Inside

Moving Messages

Government using

Carvertise to advertise

Page 17

In this issueFirst Look .........................

. 3

Business News .............4-11

Viewpoint .........................18

Spotlight ...........................21

DBT Book of Lists:

Century Farms ....................23

Smartboard ......................26

Market Watch ...................27

Market Watch

Dover offi ce units in spotlight

Page 27

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Self-made man

Meet Glenn Fedale,

‘Blue Collar

Millionaire’

Page 14

Food Bankgiven $75KBank of America donation

will help feed those in need

Page 26

Spotlight: AgricultureFarmers reap benefi ts

of irrigation advances

Page 21

Growing Corporate Interiors

Expansion is a triumph

for owner Janice Leone

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Survey: We’re not phone-dependent, but others areBy Kathy [email protected]

Only 17 percent of us think we use our cellphones too much, but more than half of us think other Americans are guilty of overusing them.

More than half of us believe we mind our mobile manners. Of course, we do. But more than half of us also believe other cell phone users do not.

According to Bank of America’s just-released Trends in Consumer Mobility Report, only 10 percent of us consider ourselves tuned out to the world when we’re using our phones, but 50 percent of us think other people are turned out when using theirs.

When they don’t have access to their smartphone, 29 percent of respondents said they feel anxious and 22 percent said they feel bored. Younger millennials experience the strongest range of emotions.

The report also noted that 59 percent of consumers have more than one mobile device and 24 percent own three or more.

Nearly half of all smartphone owners

say they use their phones to escape social interactions. Millennials are most likely to do it. Respondents say they’ve used their phone to get out of talking on dates, in meetings, at family dinners, in school and at holiday gatherings.

About 40 percent of us say we would use our phones to make purchases, up from 34 percent last year. Some already are. More than six in 10 say they are likely to use emerging payment methods.

How do you pay back a friend who lent you a Benjamin? About 28 percent of us do it digitally. Payment and mobile-banking apps are used by 28 percent of us, compared with the 40 percent of us who write checks and the 57 percent who still use actual Benjamins. Older millennials are most likely to go digital.

Most consumers would consider— or are already using — a peer-to-peer money transfer service from their banks.

More than 40 percent say they would use voice-recognition technology to do mobile banking, especially older millennials and Gen X’ers. More men than women said they would be willing to try it.

Nearly nine in 10 respondents said they use mobile banking alerts to signal them for fraud or unusual activity on their accounts Nearly three in 10 said they prefer holding conversations via text, and almost 70 percent think you should respond to a text in less than an hour. More than 40 percent would make that less than 10 minutes.

Looking into the future, 51 percent of adults think children under 18 won’t use cash, and 41 percent said they probably won’t use physical credit cards either.

More than half of all adults said their mobile personality differs from their in-person one. A quarter of all respondents

said their smartphone makes they more confident.

About 73 percent of adults admit they take selfies, and 65 percent use emojis. More than 90 percent of millennials do it, 80 percent of Gen X’ers, 61 percent of boomers and 50 percent of seniors.

About 89 percent want to capture important events via their phones. More than half take phone photos at weddings and 72 percent return from vacation with phone photos.

Women are notably more likely to take event pictures than men when they are buying a home, having a child, attending a graduation or observing a holiday. n

About 40 percent of those surveyed said they would use or already use their phone to make purchases at checkout, which is up from 34 percent in 2015. Millennials are the most likely to use them.

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TECHNOLOGYThe best possible plan for the worst-case scenarioContinuity Dynamics helps clients prepareBy Michael BradleySpecial to Delaware Business Times

The nonprofit working for the City of Philadelphia had waited — almost too long. Everybody puts things off, and when faced with something as daunting as concocting a disaster recovery plan for data, it’s natural that a firm might hold off until the guillotine blade is being raised. Philadelphia mandated the plan be in place before the end of July, and in late spring, procrastination morphed into panic.

Rick McCardell, vice president of business development for Newark-based Qnectus, an outside IT service provider, had everything under control for his client. He simply called Ralph Petti from Continuity Dynamics and explained the situation.

“[Continuity Dynamics] was able to put it together in one day,” McCardell said. “It only took that long for the company to have a plan that complied with the requirements of the City of Philadelphia.”

At a time when data is so important, it’s vital to have a plan capable of thwarting problems that can be caused by incidents of all kinds. For more than 25 years, Continuity Dynamics has provided consulting services to help businesses prepare for any number of potentially crippling episodes. Started in north New Jersey, Continuity Dynamics moved to Wilmington four years ago because Petti saw an opportunity to help myriad industries prepare for the worst.

“There is so much low-lying land in Delaware,” said Petti, the company’s founder. “There are nuclear power plants [nearby], a lot of major corporations and banks. We don’t say that these are terrorist targets, but we saw an opportunity to elevate the understanding of companies needs and help people address them.”

Although Continuity Dynamics does not back up data itself, it helps create IT contingencies for clients. It also crafts strategies to offset the effects of weather, power problems, fire, and yes, terrorist activity. Businesses are going to face problems, and the more they plan for them, the better they will be able to respond when trouble occurs.

Thanks to its substantial experience, Continuity Dynamics has the ability to work with a variety of businesses. For instance, because of its pandemic training work in the Philippines and Indonesia in 2013 that was sponsored by the International Medical Corps, the company has the ability to create plans for those concerned about a possible outbreak of the Zika Virus. Since Petti

is also a risk- management professional in the real estate field and works with the Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Group, he brings a unique perspective to commercial and residential clients for Continuity Dynamics.

“Even FEMA tells people that they need to be prepared for disasters, because they will likely be spending their first 24 to 48 hours on their own,” Petti said. “People in buildings can’t rely on their landlords. They have to get down to the granular level in buildings, houses, businesses, apartment buildings and homes. We have plans to address them all.”

It’s part of a comprehensive approach to risk-management consulting that makes Petti’s firm unique and allows its

customers to have the security necessary to continue business operations no matter what happens.

“We live in a different world today,” said John Panchery, a vice president at Continuity Dynamics who has a background in financial services. “I don’t think people are afraid to be educated about what might happen and how to prepare for it. People want to be informed.”

Panchery gives an example of what a firm could face in the event of an incident at its physical plant. Those in charge must be able to contact employees to let them know what has happened and what’s next. They have to have a contingency location for future operations. They need relationships

that will allow for any repairs or reconstruction that need to take place. And they need a cloud-based home for data, so that important information can be accessed from anywhere. Providing that level of planning allows business owners to know they have set protocols for just about anything.

“What we do depends on the business we are doing a plan for,” Panchery said. “I come from the financial industry, and it’s not should I have a plan. You have to have a plan. It needs to be efficient and tested regularly, and it has to work with first, second and third level vendors and supply chain participants that you need.”

Continuity Dynamics creates programs for its clients in a variety of ways. One is through a computer-training experience that combines game-based learning, online courses and a variety of simulations that allow management and employees to be prepared in the event of any unexpected circumstance. Over the past few years, the company has expanded its services to a variety of business categories, including long-term care facilities, schools, insurance agencies and brokers and even the American Red Cross. Although each industry and organization has its own specific characteristics and challenges, the overriding goals are the same: minimizing interruption to operation, protecting assets and making sure customers and vendors are addressed.

And since new threats of all kinds seem to be emerging on a regular basis, Continuity Dynamics is tailoring its programs to whatever comes next. Take the Zika virus. Although the world’s focus is primarily on Central and South America right now, thanks in large part to concerns about athletes and fans at the coming Summer Olympics, the rest of the Western Hemisphere needs to be prepared in case the disease migrates north.

“We are able to look at early warning signs,” Petti said. “Three years ago, in the Philippines and Indonesia, we saw children missing school and less traffic on the highways. You can see indicators of trouble emerging. They may be small, but they are real.”

In today’s world, businesses of all kinds, not to mention individuals, can no longer ignore even the tiniest possibility of trouble. Preparing for the worst will help produce the best results — at a variety of levels.

“We provide standards-based consulting that is done in template form with a variety of products to choose from,” Petti said. “We have some that cost $50 a month, all the way up to major undertakings. All businesses have different needs, and though we follow the same methodology, we customize it for our clients.” n

Ralph Petti founded Continuity Dynamics in north New Jersey 25 years ago, then moved to Wilmington when he saw an opportunity to help industries here prepare for the worst-case scenarios quickly.

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VIEWPOINTDelaware’s decline in startups follows national trendThe objective of ECONOMIC INSIGHTS is explain latest economic data and what it means for Delaware businesses.

What’s happening?

According to census data on business dynamics, the number of business establishments entering Delaware’s economy as a percent of total establishments has fallen from 16.3

percent in 1987 to 10.1 percent in 2013, the last year of data. There has been a steady decline over 20 years in the startup of new business establishments in the first state. Following the most recent recession there was even a period where the rate of establishment exits exceeded the rate of entry.

Why is it happening?

The dropoff in business-establishment startups is not unique to Delaware. The exact same pattern for entry and exit rates is found for the United States.

This trend has been accompanied by a decline in the share of economic activity in both Delaware and the nation accounted for by younger businesses. At the same time, adjusted for industry mix, the average wage of workers at younger firms has fallen relative to the wage at established firms. And the job openings available at any one time

diminish, as there is less job turnover at established firms.

It is notable that the rate of entrepreneurship has dropped off primarily among the millennials. This is driven by a number of factors. First, the last recession was very severe and, in a soft labor market, millennials are more likely to seek and hold on to

jobs with established firms. Second, student debt has soared and reduced the savings millennials might previously have put into a new venture. Finally, home ownership among millennials has plummeted and owned houses have been a traditional source of new-venture loan collateral.

Added to that has been a tsunami of business regulations under the Obama administration, the new affordable health care program and an uptick in occupational licensing at the state level.

The implications for business?

The economic growth of a state or a nation is closely wedded to the extent of “creative destruction” — the rate at which businesses and industries come and go. As painful as the closing of an existing business is, the startups bring new technology and produce goods and services that are in accord with changing demand.

The current decline in entrepreneurship translates directly into lower economic growth and a more stagnant economy. n

Dr. John E. Stapleford is a consulting economist with DECON First. Contact him at [email protected]

Dr. John E. StaplefordGuest Columnist

What’s good for visitors is good for DelawareEight million visitors added $3 billion to state economy in 2014.

Delaware is poised to have a great summer — great for visitors, great for businesses and great for the state.

Beachgoers can enjoy a long list of new things to do for summer 2016. Most notably, there are new places to eat

and drink all over the resort area.Delaware favorite, Dogfish Head,

expanded its footprint in downtown Rehoboth with its new restaurant, Chesapeake & Maine. Rehoboth also now boasts the reimagined Fork & Flask at Nage. Dewey Beach Club and The Starboard Raw are new to the main strip through Dewey Beach.

Visit Delaware recently expanded its Beer, Wine & Spirits Trail just ahead of the summer travel season. There

are now more craft beverage makers on the trail than ever. The list includes a number of additions at the beaches — Beach Time Distilling and Crooked Hammock Brewery in Lewes, Big Oyster Brewing in Rehoboth and Dewey Beer Co. in Dewey.

Options for family fun and entertainment at the beaches are growing, too. Let’s start with spending time in the great outdoors. The Cape Henlopen fishing pier recently reopened to the public. And the Resort at Massey’s Landing is a brand new site for RVs, camping and more that opened along the Inland Bays Memorial Day Weekend.

There is also more than ever to do indoors. Escape Rehoboth is an exciting new favorite for people who love the thrill of racing against the clock to complete a series of mind-bending puzzles. The Clear Space Theater in Rehoboth Beach expanded its 2016 season. And construction at the new Lefty’s Alley and Eats in Lewes is moving along swiftly. It will soon be a wonderful place for everyone to spend a day.

And obviously, there are Delaware’s five-star beaches themselves,

consistently rated the cleanest on the East Coast by the Natural Resources Defense Council. The beaches are in great shape, which is welcome news for visitors and locals alike. DNREC’s resident beach expert has said the beaches are doing well, and there’s plenty of room for fun. And he predicts the beaches will only get better as the summer continues.

A strong summer season is essential for the Delaware tourism industry and

the state’s economy as a whole. Tourism is the fourth largest public employment sector in Delaware. It generated $3 billion for the state in 2014 from a record 8 million visitors. All of that created $470 million in fees and taxes for local and state governments. Moreover, considering all the new places opening up, tourism is spurring new business.

Visit Delaware works constantly to increase awareness of the state as a vacation destination. For the past two years, television advertisements airing around the East Coast have boosted Delaware’s profile and visibility. All signs point to the positive effect this is having on drawing in visitors.

This state we call home has so much for travelers to discover. And the wide and increasing array of attractions, especially at the beaches, is available not just to people passing through the state but to each and every Delawarean. The tourism industry increases the quality of life here and makes the state a more fun and exciting place to live. n

Linda Parkowski is director of the Delaware Office of Tourism.

Linda ParkowskiGuest Columnist

Delaware’s five-star beaches are consistently rated the cleanest on the East Coast by the Natural Resources Defense Council




VIEWPOINT

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Tech is the last place for startups to cut cornersSo you are

thinking of starting your own business. Congratulations. It’s a big step that can be very rewarding and hopefully profitable, but it requires planning and organization. Many would-be entrepreneurs are

experts at their chosen profession, but do not know how to even begin to put together a solid and scalable IT infrastructure. In light of that, I’ve put together a checklist of IT-related items to consider when starting a new business.

Internet Access — High-speed internet access is very affordable nowadays, but you need to confirm with your prospective landlord that it is readily available for your office space. Plan to spend between $140 and $200 per month for a quality high-speed line from either Comcast or Verizon.

Email — Hosted email is the norm

for small companies in today’s business world. In general, it is affordable, reliable and relatively easy to get started. If you plan to use Microsoft Outlook to read and respond to email, I would recommend going with Microsoft Office 365; whereas, if you intend to perform most of your dealings using a web browser, Google’s Gmail could be a viable solution. Most importantly, remember that your company’s level of professionalism is usually greatly increased by using your own domain name in your email address (as in [email protected]) rather than something such as [email protected].

File Storage — Your business will inevitably generate documents, spreadsheets, and/or presentations. Where are you planning to keep them? Consider one of the many different cloud storage alternatives if you want access to your files from any location where you have internet access. If most of your users will generally be in the office daily, consider the traditional

option of a local file server. Whether cloud and/or local file storage, ensure that you have a common location available to increase efficiency within your company.

Data Protection — Securing and backing up your data is something that must not be overlooked. Some key features you should look for in anti-virus protection include real-time protection from threats, behavior-based protection against emerging threats, and centralized administration so that multiple devices can be managed through a single pane of glass.

It should go without saying that you should back up your data. You’ll want to have at least two copies, one that is kept on-site and one that is kept off-site. That way you’re covered in case one copy fails or a catastrophe causes you to lose the original data and on-site copy. Automating backups is also prudent so you are not relying on someone to run backups.

Phones — Your new company will hopefully be receiving many phone calls

from customers. With today’s voice over IP (VoIP) options, your company will not be forced to dump five-digit dollar amounts on a new phone system and you can still enjoy all of the benefits that those units offer such as messaging, call forwarding, conference calling, etc. Be sure to look at all available options before choosing a voice solution, because VoIP is not always the preferred solution.

Starting a business can be overwhelming. There are so many items to cross off the to-do list. You want to save money by cutting corners when you can, but trust me when I say there are certain corners that should not be cut. Your best bet is to work with a qualified IT vendor to make recommendations for implementing strategies that will work now, in the future and in keeping a technological advantage over your competitors. n

Rich Kenney is vice president of Wilmington-based TechSolutions Inc., which has provided skilled tech-nology services to small and mid-sized businesses since 1999.

Rich KenneyGuest Columnist

Labor analyst takes issue with columnistI would like to correct one of the inaccuracies in Dr. John Stapleford’s June 21 column “Recession slowed growth in state’s labor force.” Since peaking at 8.7 percent in February 2010, Delaware’s unemployment rate has dropped by 4.6 points to 4.1 percent in May 2016. During that same period, the state’s labor force increased by 52,805 people, from

430,180 to the current 482,985. The idea that the unemployment rate is falling because people are leaving the workforce is flat-out wrong. Delaware’s labor force participation rate has been rising for the last three years, and stands at 63.8 percent as of May 2016.

George SharpleyChief of Office of Occupational and Labor Market Information, Delaware Department of Labor

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In supply chain, what goes around comes around

By Kathy [email protected]

Repurposed Materials will sell you a bridge or the Wildcats’ home court

Damon Carson says he has the most interesting in-box in the world.

A recent e-mail: Somebody wanted to sell him 5 million brand new hazmat suits leftover from the BP oil spill.

He bought them. Carson’s business — Repurposed Materials — is

sort of an industrial Pinterest. He emails a newsletter of what he’s got — a 185-

foot pedestrian bridge or the University of Arizona Wildcats’ home court. Sellers e-mail him what they want to unload — IKEA chairs, a million magnets, nuclear waste storage modules.

It all started in 2010 when Carson found a few old billboard covers for sale and figured they could be reused as giant tarps. (“The technical term was ‘entrepreneurial screwing around,’” he said.)

One thing led to another and now his Repurposed Materials is growing 30 percent a year to more than $2 million in revenue last year. He has sites in Denver, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas and Wilmington.

Why Wilmington? “To be honest, there’s nothing magical about

Wilmington,” he said. “It’s neutral. It doesn’t help

or hurt. We just wanted someplace in the North Atlantic to serve that region out of. What’s best for us is just to be close to industry and people. I started this company in Denver because that’s where I live, but, in a lot of ways, that was about the worst place to start this kind of business because we don’t have industry and we don’t have very many people.”

The months-old Wilmington site, a plain-Jane industrial building across the street from the Kalmar Nyckel, is just starting to fill up with neon-green oil drums, concrete highway dividers, the gym floor from Penn State’s Erie campus and stacks of new hardwood taller than a minivan.

Sam Rogers, who runs site, calls the stockpile “the randomness that is our business.”

Repurposed Materials’ business concept is similar to house flipping — with no do-overs necessarily. Carson just has to find someone with the imagination to reuse what he bought — new purple linen dinner napkins or Campbell Soup’s old conveyor belts.

He sold Paramount Pictures a trailer load of 275-gallon liquid containers for the filming of the movie “Noah.”

“I would like to believe that’s where they stored

Sam Rogers, manager of Repurposed Material’s Wilmington warehouse, uncovers a wood pile in the Seventh Street yard.




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the flood water, but I can’t collaborate that,” he said.

The artificial turf from West Point’s playing fields was divvyed up for dog runs. Ditto the soccer field from Harvard. “We were joking that we were selling Harvard Yard,” Carson said in a faux-Boston accent.

He sold some used billboard vinyl to a U.S. Army Ranger facility in Fort Benning, Ga., for use in a training maze. “We were thrilled because we’re taxpayers, and, instead of buying new material, they bought used,” Carson said.

When Comcast sold him a huge pile of 15-year-old concrete pads complete with holes for cable wires, he said he had no idea who would buy them. In a couple weeks, a trucking company bought every

one to use as ballast when their empty trucks travel through windy Wyoming.

Once in a while, his Midas touch with trash fails. “My wife’s running joke is, ‘I think you bought a boat anchor, Damon,’” he said.

That happened when he snatched up the 40-foot-long steel deck of a rail car he thought could be repurposed as a poor man’s bridge. “I cannot sell that thing. What I learned is it’s too narrow for cars, but it still really shocks me that a golf course hasn’t picked it up because there’s plenty of room for a golf cart. We try not to let inventory sit on our lot, and that one’s about three years old unfortunately. We’re starting to make it birthday cakes.”

While the price of oil has crushed the

plastic recycling business, Carson said it hasn’t had much bearing on his business. “In some ways, it’s been good for us. If somebody in Dover, Del., has 40,000 pounds of plastic pipe that they normally would take to a recycler but the recycler used to pay 20 cents a pound and now they’re paying 5 cents, that’s better for us. But, by the same token, we can’t sell it for as much because, at the end of the day, it’s plastic and plastic prices are based on oil prices.”

Carson said he’d like to hear from Delaware businesses that want to offload materials or equipment. “If you’re a guy with a refinery on the river and you have a lot of pipe sitting in the corner, we would love for you to say, hey, maybe I should call them.” n

State OfficialsListed Alphabetically By Last NameState OfficialDepartment

Office Address

Office PhoneTerm

Anas Ben AddiDelaware State Housing Authority18 The GreenDover, DE19901

(302) 739-42632009

Carla Benson-GreenDepartment of Services for Children, Youth, and Their Familes 1825 Faulkland RoadWilmington, DE19805

(302) 633-25002015

Jeffrey W BullockDepartment of StateTownsend Building 401 Federal Street Suite 3Dover, DE19901

(302) 739-41112009

John C. CarneyU.S. Representative, Democrat233 N. King Street, Suite 200Wilmington, DE19801

(202) 225-41652015-2016

Thomas R. CarperU.S Senator, Democrat301 N. Walnut Street, Suite 102L-1Wilmington, DE19801

(202) 224-24412013-2019

Jennifer CohanDepartment of TransportationHighway Administration Building, PO Box 778Dover, DE19903

(302) 760-23032015

James CollinsDepartment of Technology and Information 801 Silverside Lake RoadWilmington, DE19904

(302) 739-95002014

Thomas CookDepartment of FinanceCarvel State Office BuildingWilmington, DE19801

(302) 577-89792009

Christopher A. CoonsU.S. Senator, Democrat1105 N. Market Street Suite 100Wilmington, DE19801

(202) 224-50422015-2021

Robert M CoupeDepartment of Correction245 McKee RoadDover, DE19904

(302) 739-42712013

Matthew P DennAttorney General, Democrat102 W. Water StreetDover, DE19904

(302) 739-42112015-2019

Steven GodowskyDepartment of EducationTownsend BuildingDover, DE19901

(302) 735-40002012

Edwin KeeDepartment of Agriculture2320 S. DuPont HighwayDover, DE19901

(302) 698-45002009

Rita LandgrafDepartment of Health & Social ServicesHerman M. Holloway Sr. Campus, 1901 N. DuPont HighwayNew Castle, DE19720

(302) 255-90402009

Jack A. MarkellGovernor

Tatnall Buildng 2nd Floor, 150 Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard SouthDover, DE19901

(302) 577-32102009-2016

Jim MosleyDepartment of Safety & Homeland Security Safety & Homeland Security Bulding, PO Box 818Dover, DE19903

(302) 744-26772009

OpenDepartment of Labor

4425 N. Market Street 4th FloorWilmington, DE19802

(302) 761-80012009

Kenneth SimplerState Treasurer, RepublicanDelaware State Treasury 820 Silver Lake Boulevard Suiite 100Dover, DE19904

(302) 672-67002015-2019

David SmallDepartment of Natural Resources & Environmental Control 89 Kings HighwayDover, DE19901

(302) 739-90002014

Karen Weldin StewartInsurance Commissioner, DemocratRodney Building, 841 Silver Lake BoulevardDover, DE19904

(302) 674-73052008-2016

Major General Frank VavalaDelaware National Guard1st Regiment RoadWilmington, DE19808

(302) 326-70011999

Ann S. VisalliiOffice of Management & BudgetHaslet Armory, 122 William Penn StreetDover, DE19901

(302) 739-42042009

R. Thomas WagnerState Auditor, RepublicanTownsend Building 401 Federal Street Suite 1Dover, DE19901

(302) 739-42412015-2019

Bernice WhaleyDelaware Economic Development Office99 Kings HighwayDover, DE19901

(302) 739-42712015

Source: Researched by: . Some companies may have been omitted due to lack of information, deadline restrictions, or space constrictions.

Editorial Estimate = Information derived from: publicly available sources, observation, news sources, and general market knowledge of the editorial team.

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9/1 Trade Schools 8/16

9/13 MBA and Business Degrees 8/30

▲

What’s on your shopping list? Here’s a sampling of items that were repotted from their original homes to a Repurposed Materials outlet:

• The 284,000-pound steel mezzanine used at the 2004 Democratic National Convention

• Parachutes• 80 gallons of used golf balls• Unused bamboo flooring• 200 utility poles• New insulated boxes• Bleacher seats• A diesel forklift• 50 five-gallon buckets of white paint• 300,000 poly meat trays still in the box• Highway guardrail timbers• Five drums of DuPont Zonyl 8740 stone

sealer• Food-grade plastic pallets• Safety masks• Liquid soap• 22,000 pounds of magnesium peroxide• 80,000 pounds of double-panel smoked

glass sheets• A 7-foot by 11-foot plastic menu book• 750 steel grates• Pool covers• Used steel-toed rubber boots• 800 aluminum poles• Six semi-loads of flood warning signs

Stacks of wood await buyers at the stockyard.Damon Carson started the company in Denver, but he now has stores in five states, including Delaware.

Repurposed license-plate letters welcome wisitors to the company’s Wilmington site accross from the Kalmar Nyckel Shipyard. Repurposed Materials is housed in a 19th Century building there.



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The geeks shall inherit the earth — or one hotel, anywayspotlight Entrepreneurs

Smash!…Bang!…Pow!...KA-CHING! Fandom conventions bring in billions to organizers each year. The majority of fans spend between $100 and $500 at fan events, not including basic costs like tickets, parking and food, according to an Eventbrite survey.

Here’s how the pros at Eventbrite break down the cons:

• Erase your image of a ballroom full of male nerds. Con-goers include slightly more women than men.

• While more women attend, more men spend at cons. About 66 percent of the big spenders are males. Con-goers splurge on prints and original artwork (78 percent), T-shirts and fashion accessories (72 percent) and books, comics and collectibles (66 percent).

About 10 percent will spend more than $500.

• About 34 percent of female convention-goers say they go for the cosplay — dressing up as a character from a comic book, a film or a video game. Cosplay is the major draw for nearly a quarter of all fans. Most cosplayers are 23 to 39 years old. Nearly 65 percent of serious cosplays are female.

• Cosplayers attend more cons than any other group — about 27 percent attend five or more a year and 64 percent attend at least three. About 70 percent spend $100 or more at cons.

• Males are more likely to attend cons alone, while women are more likely to travel in groups.

Celebration of comics and games grows stronger each yearBy Kathy [email protected]

Chris Cicero’s day job is in IT, but he moonlights with Batman and Deadpool.

The lanky 29-year-old entrepreneur is prepping to present his third annual comic convention at the Doubletree Hotel on U.S. 202 in November. Thy Geekdom Con II drew 800 fans to the Crowne Plaza in Claymont last year.

Billed as “a celebration of all things geek,” this year’s show will feature comic book panels, artists, board games, video-game tournaments, anime, game-centric crafters, cosplay contests and FGC. Non-geeks may need some scaffolding to understand “cosplay” and “FGC,” although both are popular enough to have warranted stories in the Wall Street Journal.

Cosplayers dress up as their favorite characters and frequently do battle with four-foot foam hammers and swords of jumbo proportion.

“FGC” stands for the fighting game community, an e-sports subgroup so serious about their video games that there’s bracketing involved.

Thy Geekdom Con bulks up every year. Cicero grew it from a small Wyndham over the Pennsylvania line in 2014 to 10,000 square feet at the Crowne Plaza in 2015, to this year’s 14,400-square-foot venue.

And, by keeping a close eye on costs and leaning on family and load-bearing friends for help, he’s already covered this year’s costs with past profits.

“We keep overhead down,” he said. “The priority is getting a nice venue people are going to enjoy. A lot of people try to get a dinky venue. That’s not going to work. There’s no need to overspend on things. We know people just want to have fun.”

“The rest is keeping it in the family. We don’t have to pay people much money. And, right now, we don’t pay for any celebrities because, a lot of times, [organizers of other conventions] get people but they don’t get enough people to warrant paying for them,” he said.

Thy Geekdom passes on national celebs, but it does feature authors and comic book experts and popular draws like Jeff Gordon, who bills himself as “the world’s tallest hypnotist” at 6 foot, 8 inches.

Running a fandom convention is a zipper merge of Cicero’s interests and his business management classes. A native New Yorker, he started playing video games on the wall of screens at F.A.O. Schwarz’s flagship store at age 4½. After he saw “Star Wars,” he took up fencing. His family took a road trip to Forest Hills, the Queens neighborhood where

the fictional hero Peter Parker, a.k.a. Spider Man, grew up.

“I played too many video games growing up,” Cicero joked. “I have a lot of comic books. A lot of movies. I have video-game paraphernalia. Life-sized weapons from video games. Resin replicas. I’m a collector.”

The biggest difference between his day job and his weekend job: “When you go to work in an office, you know pretty much what you’re going to do that day.”

During the April-to-June and September-and-October convention seasons, a con organizer can find himself face-to-waist to a hulking cosplay character or checking to make sure weapons are foam.

Jackie and Peter Cicero are their son’s business partners, and their influence is obvious. It was Jackie Cicero who chose a top-notch venue from the get-go.

And Thy Geekdom is a family event, so profanity is banned.

Ditto the woman who wanted to do burlesque, which was cool, but insisted on wearing only pasties and a merkin, which was not.

And, at a con where more than half the attendees come in costume, ditto on derisive comments on anyone else’s cosplay. “Some of the cosplayers get uptight. They say, ‘Oh, you can’t be this character because this character isn’t short and fat.’ If that happens, we give you the boot,” Chris Cicero said.

Nationally, con-goers spend between $100 and $500 at fan events — in addition to the cost of tickets, parking and food, so Thy Geekdom features a variety of vendors who pay $55 for tables.

One head-turner at last year’s vendor section was the dead-baby doll — baby dolls professionally painted to look dead. Their opaque eyes are lifeless. Some have fangs and drops of blood on their chins. “You’ll see people proudly going through the whole convention with those dolls,” Jackie Cicero said. “I asked one woman, ‘You bought one of those dolls?’ she said, ‘Oh, yeah, I collect them — in my bedroom.’ I appreciate the work they put into it but … ”

Kevin Helmes, who sold green-screen photos of cosplayers at both Thy Geekdom Cons, said Cicero’s convention crowds were slim to start out but they’re getting better every year and his prices — $75 for a 10-by-20-foot space — are very favorable. “I’ve looked into cons where they wanted me to spend $300 a day, and another one where they wanted me to rent out my own personal hotel room and also pay them for a hotel room,” Helmes said.

With last year’s ticket price at $5 and this year’s at $10, the Ciceros try to keep the event affordable to millennials in a slumping economy. Most fandom conventioneers are 18 to 35.

Running a con is not all fun and games: “It’s more work than people think. The weekends are spent at other conventions, either talking to potential attendees or vendors or whatever,” Chris Cicero said. “It’s all the time, especially on Facebook. There’s no 9-to-5. I could be eating and somebody messages me. I stop what I’m doing. I’m OK with that.”

Three years ago, Chris Cicero was just one of the two-thirds of all millennials who want to start their own businesses. Now he’s a business owner.

“When you’re working a job, you’re not in control of your own fate. I find that the workforce is more about the big companies, not as about you as a person,” he said. “When you do your own business, it’s the best interest of me — Chris. And I know I’m not going to get randomly laid off.” n

Nearly 65 percent of serious cosplayers – people who dress up as characters – are female.

Chris Cicero is a 29-year-old entrepreneur.




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Deardorff honored for strategic marketingDeardorff, an internationally recognized brand agency, has been honored for its strategic marketing excellence by four leading organizations.

Deardorff received the following awards from the Gramercy Institute, the Financial Communications Society, the Plan Sponsor Council of America and the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts:

• Gramercy Institute’s Financial Marketing Strategy Award for content marketing domestic for Planet DC magazine

• FCS Silver Portfolio Award for Planet DC magazine – Collateral (Business-to-Business)

• FCS Bronze Award for the Brave Conversations integrated media campaign, which launched under the theme of “Liberate Your Thinking on Retirement.”

• PSCA First Place Signature Award for Planet DC for plan publications for plan sponsors or advisors

• Academy of Interactive & Visual Arts Gold Communicators Award of Excellence as an industry magazine for Planet DC

Citizens Financial Group named to Fortune 500Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has been named to the Fortune 500, Fortune Magazine’s annual ranking of America’s leading corporation. Citizens Financial Group became a fully independent, publicly traded company in November 2015. This is the first time Citizens has been named to the Fortune 500.

Citizens Banks offers retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, large corporations and institutions. It operates through its subsidiaries Citizens Bank, N.A. and Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania.

Polsinelli earns high marks for health care practicePolsinelli earned high placements in state, practice, and attorney rankings in Chambers USA 2016 rankings for lawyers and practices, with 10 practices and 57 attorneys receiving recognition.

Chambers rankings are based on several factors, including information obtained from client interviews, submissions from law firms, and Chambers’ own database resources.

For the second year in a row, Chambers ranked Polsinelli’s Health Care Practice at the national level. The firm’s National Health Care Practice was ranked number 1 by Modern Healthcare last year. For the first time, Polsinelli’s Product Liability and Mass Torts Practice were ranked at the national level by Chambers.

Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell earns industry distinctionMorris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP has been ranked as a Band 1 law firm in the Delaware categories for Bankruptcy/Restructuring, Chancery, Corporate M&A & Alternative Entities, and Intellectual Property in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business 2016 edition.

The edition recognized 25 Morris Nichols attorneys as leaders in their fields in Delaware.

Partner Jack B. Blumeneld earned special recognition as a “star individual,” a distinction given to attorneys with exceptional recommendations.

Aleasa Hogate receives historical leadership awardAleasa Jay Hogate, vice president and education director of the New Sweden Centre, received a Leadership in History Award from the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH). AASLH gives Leadership in History Awards to create and encourage standards of excellence in the collection, preservation, and interpretation of state and local history. Hogate was nominated for her dedication and commitment to the collection, preservation, and interpretation of the 17th-century New Sweden Colony in the Delaware Valley.



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Escheat ruling could have major effect on state budget

DOVER, Del.— U.S. District Court Judge Gregory Sleet blasted Delaware’s practice of collecting abandoned property, issuing a ruling last Tuesday that could have dire budget consequences for the state.

Sleet said Delaware’s abandoned property, or escheat, practices violate due process and amount to a game of “gotcha” that “shocks the conscience.”

The ruling came in a lawsuit in which packaging company Temple-Inland Inc., a subsidiary of Memphis-based International Paper, challenged Delaware’s claim to almost $1.4 million in purported uncashed accounts payable and payroll checks.

Abandoned property is a critical source of funding for Delaware, amounting to about half a billion dollars annually and representing the state’s third-largest revenue category.

State Finance Secretary Tom Cook said his agency was reviewing the decision with attorneys and had no immediate comment.

Gov. Jack Markell said he had not reviewed the decision and referred to questions to his chief of staff, Michael Barlow, who declined to comment on the potential impact of the ruling.

“There hasn’t been an opportunity to review the decision,” said Barlow, who is an attorney.

Diane Green-Kelly, an attorney for Temple-Inland, said the company was pleased.

“We are still in the process of digesting the opinion,” she said.

“The decision is a positive for businesses, but will have a major impact on the state budget in the coming years,” said Delaware State Chamber of Commerce President A. Richard Heffron. “The Chamber has raised these issues to the State over the years in an attempt to help address what companies under an abandoned property audit went through to calculate what they may owe. It has been an unfair practice to look back 30 plus years when no company keeps records going back that long.”

Temple-Inland argued among other things that Delaware’s practice of estimating unclaimed property liability for years in which actual records are not available amounted to an unlawful taking of property and violated constitutional provisions regarding due process.

State officials began an unclaimed property audit of Temple-Inland in 2008, telling the company that the audit period would begin in 1981. But because the company was unable to produce records before 2003, officials used an estimation method to extrapolate that the state was owed $2.1

million. The figure was subsequently reduced to the amount that nevertheless remained in dispute.

The Temple-Inland lawsuit is one of several challenging Delaware’s abandoned property system, which has become a source of tension between the business world and a state that is the legal or corporate home to more than 1 million business entities, including more than 60 percent of Fortune 500 companies. It also has led other states to challenge Delaware in court over abandoned property.

Abandoned property can include unclaimed stocks and bonds, insurance policies, uncashed checks, unclaimed wages, dividends, even unredeemed rebates and gift certificates. Under federal law, a state can take such property if it remains unclaimed for a certain number of years and the true owner can’t be found.

Under U.S. Supreme Court rulings, states follow a two-tier scheme for reporting and claiming abandoned property. Under the primary priority rule, unclaimed property is reported to the state of the owner’s last known address appearing on a company’s records. But if the owner’s address is unknown or incomplete, the unclaimed property is reported to the company’s state of incorporation.

Because so many corporations are formed in Delaware, the state benefits significantly from the second-priority rule.

Delaware has been criticized, however, for the way it aggressively targets abandoned property, reaching back several years into companies’ records to search for it and using estimates to calculate what it is owed when documentation is lacking.

In his ruling Tuesday, Sleet said he found several aspects of the state’s abandoned property practices troubling. He noted that the state waited more than 20 years to audit Temple-Inland, exploited loopholes in the statute of limitations, never properly notified companies about the need to maintain unclaimed property records longer than is standard, and failed to articulate any legitimate interest in retroactively applying state law except to raise revenue.

He also said Delaware officials employed a method of estimation where characteristics favoring liability were replicated, but characteristics that reduced liability were ignored.

“To put the matter gently, defendants have engaged in a game of “gotcha” that shocks the conscience,” said Sleet, who said he would defer a decision on an appropriate remedy until later. n


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smartboardRETURNING | KUDOS | BIZ PIC | ACCOLADES

QUICK TAKES TO SHARE

WITH COLLEAGUES

(SmartBoard is compiled by Delaware Business Times staff. If you have a comment, or suggestion for contribution to SmartBoard, send it to [email protected])

accoladesDSU And SAP share Enterprise Resource Planning with HBCUs

Delaware State University recently opened up a new world for the faculty and students of a group of historically black colleges and universities through an eight-day Project Propel workshop in which they learned about SAP enterprise applications.

The participants learned about the SAP ecosystem skill sets that their students will need to be competitive in a global job market where many companies are utilizing SAP systems. SAP is a market leader in enterprise resource planning. More than 300,000 companies in 190,000 countries use SAP enterprise application software systems — including 87 percent of the Forbes 2000 companies.

The ultimate Project Propel goals are to enable HBCUs to empower their students with the knowledge of the latest SAP technologies and to prepare them with the critical skills that are in demand among companies in the SAP ecosystem.

returningKalmar Nyckel returns to Wilmington Riverfront

The historic Kalmar Nyckel made its return to Dravo Plaza on the Wilmington Riverfront on June 25. Kalmar Nyckel is a re-creation of the Dutch merchant ship that brought Swedish settlers to North America in the 1600s.

The ship will take passengers on river cruises and pirate-themed sails on Wilmington’s Christina River through July 10. Passengers of the river cruises are invited to work alongside the crew as well as to simply enjoy the views.

kudos The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Delaware Chapter Announces the 2016 Man & Woman of the Year

Donald J. Detweiler and Cecile L. Roth were named the Man & Woman of the Year by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Delaware Chapter.

Ten candidates competed in Delaware’s seventh annual Man & Woman of the Year campaign and raised $412,000 for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) in just 10 weeks.

Detweiler, of Pepper Hamilton LLP, raised $34,059, and Roth, of MSW Travel, raised $83,063.

The runners-up, Erev Tubb, M.D., and Anne Kacmarcik-Johnson, together raised over $105,700.

Both Roth and Kacmarcik-Johnson raised more than $50,000 and will be able to attach their fund-raising efforts to an LLS-funded research portfolio to honor the individuals who inspired them to run.

The grand finale celebration was held on June 11 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Wilmington. In addition to the announcement of the Man & Woman of the Year, the citizenship award was presented to Melanie O’Connor, of EDSI, and Roth for excellence in volunteerism, community involvement, and mission integration throughout the campaign.

biz pic DANA hosts annual conference

From left: Michael Kumer, Hildy Gottlieb, Paul Stock, executive vice president of DANA Excellence Academy, Justin Pollock, Susan Detwiler, (front) Sheila Bravo, president and CEO of DANA.

More than 275 members of the state’s nonprofit community attended the Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement Annual conference at the Chase Center on the Riverfront.

Keynote speaker Hildy Gottlieb shared an innovative method of reshaping questions in order to bring out the best in people and situations as part of the event’s theme of “catalytic leadership.”




MARKET WATCHA sampling of what’s for sale in the First State

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OP ED COLUMNS We also welcome guest columns on topics of interest to our readers. Columns should be no longer than 500 words, and concern topics of interest to our readers.DIGITAL AND SOCIAL MEDIATWITTER:Follow us @debusinesstimesLINKEDIN:DelawareBusinessTimesFACEBOOK:www.facebook.com/delawarebusinesstimesSubscribe to afternoon newslettersDelawareBusinessTimes.com/news

Office buildingLocation: 222 N. DuPont Blvd., Smyrna

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Ground breaking at Mid-Town

Gov. Jack Markell and principals of Buccini/Pollin Group broke ground last month on The Residences at Mid-Town Park.

The $75 million multi-family project at 820 N. Orange St. will feature 200 apartments in two buildings, 12,000 square feet of retail space and a 511-space parking garage on the site of the former Mid-Town Parking Garage.

The project marks a major move west in the Central Business District, where redevelopment has mostly hugged Market Street. It also increases public parking in midtown.

The project will include a private street separating two apartment buildings. It will be named Burton Place in honor of former Wilmington councilman and civil rights leader Dutch Burton, who staged a sit-in at the Eagle Coffee Shop that was once located

in the Mid-Town parking structure.The Residences at Mid-Town Park

will feature a demonstration kitchen, a barbecue area, a screening room, a fitness area, an outdoor swimming pool and a dog-washing station.

“We are thrilled to finally be under way in this transformative project for Wilmington and its downtown. A project of this complexity could not be accomplished without extraordinary partners including HUD, the State of Delaware, the City of Wilmington, the Wilmington Parking Authority, NCALL, WSFS, and Barclays. We are truly grateful for all those who made today possible,” said Robert Buccini, co-president of Buccini/Pollin.

The parking garage is expected to be completed in winter 2017 with the apartments following in summer 2018. n










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