Conference on Rural and Small Business Development Draws Hundreds in Central Nebraska

Three part series on the MarketPlace Conference. Watch for the others coming soon. The MarketPlace Conference is an event that stems from the Center for Rural Affairs, whose goal is to “establish strong rural communities, social and economic justice, environmental stewardship, and genuine opportunity for all while engaging people in decisions that affect the quality of their [...]

Video: Joining the Family Business – Succession and Re-Invention

Dave Specht, coordinator of the family business programs at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), facilitated the Succession and Re-invention track at the 2012 Nebraska Summit on Entrepreneurship. This first track focused on those joining the family business (or not) and what those on the panel have learned through that process. Betsy Branscombe, Speedway Motors, Inc. J.P. Rhea, [...]

Student Run Grocery Store Still in the Works for Cody Residents

A grocery store in a small town is hard to come by, and for many small towns across Nebraska, there’s always the risk of having to travel several unnecessary miles just to get groceries. The food industry is a thriving market that stretches across the U.S. with stores such as Walmart, Safeway, and Hy-Vee. Rural areas [...]

First Rural Organic Grocery Store starts up in Central Nebraska

This is part of a series of articles over the next month focusing on one of Nebraska’s key entrepreneurial areas: the food industry. Check back frequently as we explore local food producers, restaurants and the growers. First Rural Organic Grocery Store is having its grand opening celebration June 24-26, 2011. Be sure to drop by if you [...]

NCTA Entrepreneurship Programs Reach Adult Students, Main Streets

In a previous post, Nebraska Entrepreneur looked at two Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture – Curtis (NCTA) programs that help young people establish businesses in rural Nebraska: the 100 Beef Cow Ownership Advantage Program and the 100 Acre Advantage Program. In this post, Nebraska Entrepreneur reports on two additional NCTA programs that teach the “art of [...]

Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture Teaches Rural Entrepreneurship

The University of Nebraska’s Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture  - Curtis (NCTA) wants young people to make their living in rural Nebraska and offers unique programs to help them succeed. “We teach entrepreneurship across our entire curriculum,” said Weldon Sleight, Ph.D., dean of NCTA. Entrepreneurial skills can help rural residents to establish and maintain both agricultural [...]

Web Site Promotes South Platte Area Rural Entrepreneurs

When sisters Betty Sayers and Nancy Herhahn graduated from Holdredge High School, educators and parents told them they could be more successful if they left Nebraska. And so they did. Herhahn worked as a real estate company executive, living in Chicago and then San Diego. Sayers taught at a community college in Belcourt, N.D., then [...]

MarketPlace Offers Rural Entrepreneurs Support, Information, Networking and More

Rural entrepreneurs get support, encouragement, practical information, ideas and networking opportunities at the annual Center for Rural Affairs (CFRA) MarketPlace event. More than 525 people registered to attend the fourth Nebraskan event on February 23 and 24, 2010 at the Ramada Inn Convention Center in Kearney. The event is making a difference, said Kathie Starkweather, [...]

Pastabilities Unlimited Bringing “Smiles” to Customers’ Faces

Although the millennium census posits the population of Firth, Nebraska, as a few people short of 570, David and Betsy Ashman have a found a way to put what’s a small town even by Midwest standards on the map. Their Sorrisos line of pasta sauce has been garnering culinary accolades and delighting palates for well [...]