Joel Bauer and Tim Burg have ambitious growth plans for Midsota Manufacturing, which builds commercial and retail trailers. The most obvious manifestation of those plans is their new 30,000 square foot sandblasting, paint, and finishing facility that was completed in the midst of the early March snowstorm.  And in the remodel of the welding facility that is currently underway. And in the new office space, also purchased and occupied during the snowstorm. 
 
The two men have owned the company together since 2008. Back then they produced about 600 trailers per year with 18 employees.  Today the company produces 2,600 trailers per year and has 110 employees.
 
After weathering the recession – by cutting hours, not employees – Midsota has experienced steady growth.  In addition to expanding their retail and service space, and adding a cold storage warehouse, Midsota added a 50,000 square foot manufacturing facility in 2014.  “I never thought we’d fill it,” Burg said, “but now, three years later, we were busting at the seams.”
 
Bauer and Burg are always on the lookout for the next new thing in trailer design.  Their goal, according to Bauer, is to arrive at their annual national trailer tradeshow with something new every year.  “We pride ourselves on staying on the cutting edge,” he said.

 

Dan Pearson’s selection as the Business Central Mark of Excellence: Entrepreneurial Success Award recipient recognizes PleasureLand RV Center’s growth under his leadership.  The Entrepreneurial Success Award is given to an individual who took over leadership of a company when it was small, based on Small Business Administration guidelines, and has since grown to be a large company.
 
PleasureLand was started in 1971 as part of Plaza Buick, owned by Dan’s father Vern.  In 1975, Vern ended the Buick franchise to focus on RV sales. Dan took over the dealership in 1982 with fewer than 20 employees selling 400-450 units annually.  Today the company is in the largest RV dealership in the Upper Midwest with 200 fulltime staff at seven locations in four communities, selling 3,000 units per year.
 
Among the many changes he has seen in the industry, Pearson identifies the current change in demographics to be among the most striking.  “The average age of our buyers is 38 years old.  It used to be 55,” he said.  That change is having an impact on the entire industry from the type of RVs sold, to the amenities that are included.
 
Success is about more than the bottom line, according to Pearson.  He believes in corporate citizenship and puts his time and money behind his ideals, supporting a wide variety of philanthropic projects. He has a particular focus on supporting local law enforcement from providing RVs as onsite headquarters for investigations to funding medication disposal drop-boxes at Stearns County police stations.