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Category Archives: Business
Learn How to Sell Online
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E3 Ranch Opens Store in Fort Scott
A neon sign on National Avenue tells of a new business opening in downtown Fort Scott, E3 Meat Co.
A Bourbon County business, E3 Ranch, opened the store at 13 S. National on October 1.
The store will sell E3 Meats, E3 K-9 Treats and Bones, Otterbox products, and E3 Merchandise, according to Kasey Gross, whose title is chief of staff for the business.
Adam and Jennifer LaRoche and Jake Gross are the owners of the store.
“Founded by retired MLB ballplayer Adam LaRoche and his family, the E3 Ranch is located in Fort Scott, Kansas,” according to its website. “Our devotion to sustainable and humane practices leads to the highest quality beef in America. E3 Certified black and red Angus cattle are grass-fed, grain-finished, given ample room to roam and never subjected to antibiotics, steroids, or added hormones. This responsible, holistic approach is rooted in our pledge to be good stewards of the land and animals under our care.”
Hours are: closed on Sundays, Mondays and Tuesdays, open Wednesday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
To learn more about the company: https://e3ranch.com/
Dollar Tree Is Open
The parking lot of Dollar Tree, on south Hwy.69 in Fort Scott was full on Sunday.
Hours for the newly opened store are Monday through Saturday 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sundays.
Union Station: Affordable Groceries Are Coming to Uniontown
Union Station owners Dane and Ronni Clayton will be expanding their offerings as a result of SPARK funding.
SPARK stands for Strengthening People and Revitalizing Kansas and is a task force charged with leading Kansas forward in recovery from the effects of COVID-19. Committees on the SPARK task force, along with the Kansas Office of Recovery are responsible for the statewide distribution of the U.S Coronavirus Relief Fund, according to https://covid.ks.gov/spark-recovery-office/
The convenience store, located at 684 Maple Road, Uniontown, KS, at the corner of Hwy 3 and Maple Road, will be offering grocery items and locally produced meats in the near future.
The Claytons are creating climate-controlled storage outside of the main building, to free up space for additional coolers and shelving inside the convenience store, Ronni Clayton said. ” The increased product space will be used for discounted grocery items as well as locally produced meats.”
“We had already purchased the little building, now we need to set it up to be climate controlled (insulate, heat/cool, etc.),” Clayton said. “Thank goodness Dane is an HVAC-R tech!”
This convenience store in western Bourbon County will provide access to affordable grocery items, something not usually seen at a convenience store.
“It isn’t always possible or feasible for members of our community to pay the higher costs of traditional convenience store items, nor is it always easy to get to ‘town’ to get said basic items,” Clayton said. “Our goal is to provide easier access to and more affordable grocery items.”
Clayton said she understands the SPARK Grant money has to be spent by the end of the year and so they are starting immediately with the first step of getting outside, climate-controlled storage for the store.
The store has been selling milk, eggs, etc. already.
“We always disliked the high prices of common grocery items, but struggled to find a solution,” Clayton said. “A fellow small business owner, Kelly Perry of Perry’s Pork Rinds, introduced us to a local business that acquires discount grocery items and a plan was formed. (Kelly) is a great resource. SPARK funding has made it possible.”
Downtown Meet and Greet: All Things Downtown
The next meeting to converse on all things downtown is Oct. 6 at Sharky’s Pub and Grub, 16 N. National Avenue.
The Fort Scott Downtown Quarterly Meet and Greet was started on January 11, 2011, by the Chamber of Commerce.
“These informal, quarterly meetings are hosted by the Chamber for downtown business owners, representatives and community members to network and share ideas on events, promotions and anything related to downtown,” Fort Scott Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Lindsay Madison said.
Those who are downtown business owners or building owners are invited, along with anyone with an interest in downtown Fort Scott, Madison said.
The group meets the first Tuesday of each quarter in the year: January, April, July, October from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m., unless otherwise announced. The event is hosted by different downtown locations.
“The Oct. 6 meeting will be hosted by Sharky’s Pub and Grub for everyone to see their recent renovation,” Madison said.
Madison listed the following as on the agenda for the Oct. 6 meeting:
- “We are reviewing plans for the Halloween and Christmas Parades, decisions have not been made yet.
- The Holiday Open House will be held Thursday, November 12th from 5-8 pm where stores are open with drawings, refreshments, and great finds for holiday gifts and decor.
- The Chamber and CVB have designed a Mystery Mug Drawing Shopping Card where visitors pick up a discount card at the Chamber or other participating location and spend at least $5 in four locations and return the card for a monthly drawing for a Fort Scott mug with a mystery gift inside. We have always had a discount card for visiting groups, but are looking to more widely provide these discount cards to visitors to encourage shopping in our local businesses.
- New businessess downtown in the last quarter are Hound Nutrition, G-N-R Healthy Living, E3 Ranch Store.
- Downtown has been blessed to have a great amount of private investment injected over the last couple of years to preserve and renovate multiple historic properties. Yes, there are still opportunities for improvement, but significant progress is being made.”
Quarterly Downtown Meet and Greet Oct. 6
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New Grocery Store In Downtown Fort Scott Is Coming
A new grocery store in downtown Fort Scott is on the horizon.
This project is a result of the Strengthening People and Revitalizing Kansas (SPARK) program.
The SPARK Taskforce is charged with leading Kansas forward in recovery from the far-reaching effects of COVID-19, according to the website https://covid.ks.gov/spark-recovery-office/
The Kansas SPARK Committee approved the final pieces of the Bourbon County Spark Plan on Sept. 25.
This Kress Building repurposing addresses access to food, which was one of the issues identified for the SPARK program.
” BAJA Investments, LLC submitted an application which will result in the rehabilitation of the Kress Building located at 17 S Main Street in downtown Fort Scott, into a grocery store,” Bill Michaud, the developer of the project and owner of BAJA Investments, LLC, said.
Featured at the future store will be locally produced co-op food and salad bar/deli, he said.
Additionally, a new resource center to support the needs of the community through COVID-19 pandemic recovery will be located in the rehabilitated Kress Building.
“Prior to the grocery store opening, a collaboration of local community resource agencies will open the BWERC (pronounced B-WORK) which is an acronym for the Bourbon County Workforce and Entrepreneurship Resouce Center,” said Michaud. “This is an exciting collaboration between Kansas Works, (a division of Network Kansas that supports Workforce Development), the SBDC at Pitt State (Small Business Development Center), Fort Scott Community College, and the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce including the E-Community program — all that together with being coordinated and supported by Bourbon County Economic Development.”
Any inquiries regarding the B-WERC facility services may be directed to Bourbon County Economic Development Director, Jody Hoener at 620.215.5725 or by email at [email protected]
Food Co-op, Deli Meat/Cheese and Salad Bar
“The idea of a downtown grocery store certainly wasn’t an original idea,” Michaud said. “I think there has been discussion of this since the Dollar General moved out of downtown many years ago. I think it’s one of those things that people didn’t realize how convenient it was to have until it was gone.”
“The many issues that have arisen out of the COVID pandemic pushed this need to the forefront and access to healthy food was a stated point of emphasis under the SPARK program,” he said.
“One feature we are planning is the food co-op for locally grown produce and other food products,” he said. “We are going to provide a local outlet for as many ‘produced in Bourbon County’ products as possible.”
“We hope to become a resource to connect local producers with the market of consumers and restaurants who are looking for fresh, locally grown products,” Michaud said.
“Secondly we are offering to partner with CHC/SEK so that they may expand the food delivery service that they offer to the homebound, elderly and other underserved populations in Crawford County, into Fort Scott,” he said. “The new store will provide storage for donated food items for delivery and supplement the needs of the clientele by making additional food items available.”
The pandemic has caused some nationwide unemployment, which leads to increased food insecurities, some driven by lack of transportation, Michaud noted.
“So adding to the food supply downtown and in northwest Fort Scott will help address that need for residents of that part of town,” he said. “In recent years, the increased downtown housing development has further increased the need for a downtown grocery store.”
“That increase in residential housing, the lack of food supply to residents west of 69 highway and the great opportunity for partnerships to support local produce and other small businesses make this an investment in our community and in our downtown … a project I thought was worth pursuing,” Michaud said.
What’s Happening in Fort Scott
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Health Insurance Plan Being Formulated For Small Business Owners in Bourbon County
Many small businesses do not have the ability to offer health insurance to their employees, some have the ability but would like to look at other options.
The Fort Scott Chamber of Commerce has been working on a plan to help that situation.
An association health plan through the Chamber is being formulated to help members to be able to offer Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance to their employees.
“Our hope is that this will be beneficial to particularly smaller mom and pop, locally owned businesses who are not otherwise able to obtain or offer health insurance as an employee benefit which would also help recruit and retain employees,”Chamber Executive Director Lindsay Madison said. “A business just needs to have one full-time employee and one part-time employee, at a minimum, to be able to participate in the plan.”
“We currently have 44 potential contracts represented by those who have completed the survey (see the survey link below),” she said. “We need at least 50 to move forward with putting together plans and pricing.”
“If your business is at all interested in this type of health insurance offering or at least seeing what plans and rates will be offered,
please complete the survey link below as soon as possible,” Madison said.
“If the employer already has employee info on a spreadsheet, they can submit that,” Madison said.
The survey was first sent out to Chamber members in May, she said.
“We would like people to send as soon as possible, by Sept. 30. Companies can still come on board beyond that date, but we need a cut-off date.”
Click here:
The Chamber is formulating this plan through member and local insurance representative Don Doherty of
Northwestern Mutual Life, RPS Benefits, Inc.
“Information on the attached (below) is what the employer will need to complete on the survey, so they could have their employees complete this form, or provide this information in an Excel format to Blue Cross Blue Shield. They would send the information directly to Donna Pashman of BCBS of KS, email [email protected],” Madison said.
“If businesses are already on BCBS and have interest in seeing what the Chamber plans and pricing will be, they can email Donna and simply reference the Fort Scott Chamber Plan, Business Name, and current BCBS member number,” she said.
The survey link is also currently on the Chamber website fortscott.com under the Events tab.
Price Chopper Building Still On The Market
There has been some recent activity at the former Price Chopper Supermarket on South Main.
Equipment in the store has been taken out.
“We have been working on taking all of the equipment out to remodel a store in Overland Park,” said Barry Queen, the owner.
The store closing was devastating to the Fort Scott community and Queen.
“It closed in January of 2019 after just being open a little over a year because business was really soft, compared to projections.”
“I hate it, I’ve had a lakehouse at lake Ft. Scott for 20 years and love the community,” he said.
“It is owned by Associated Wholesale Grocers,” Queen said. “I am on a 20-year lease and still paying rent/taxes/insurance/utilities/etc…(I would) love it if you can help us sell it and get me out of the rent.”
The commercial building, located at 2322 S. Main, is for sale or lease, with the owners willing to split into smaller parcels, according to information provided by Jody Hoener, Bourbon County’s Economic Director. If the purchaser is retail, there is a TIF/CID in place that will transfer to the new owner. If not a retailer, the purchase price can be negotiated without incentive.
The 39, 425 square foot building is on 4.5 acres. There is carve out pad site availability.
The building was fully renovated in 2017.
Queen’s phone number is 913-220-2515.
Click below for the announcement of the closing in January 2019:
FORT SCOTT PRICE CHOPPER TO CLOSE DOORS
Click below for photos of the store opening in Dec. 2017:
SPARK Bourbon County Update
The Strengthening People and Revitalizing Kansas (SPARK) Taskforce is charged with leading Kansas forward in recovery from the far-reaching effects of COVID-19.
The SPARK Executive and Steering Committees, in conjunction with the Office of Recovery team, are responsible for the statewide distribution of the Coronavirus Relief Fund.
The following is an update from Jody Hoenor, Bourbon County Economic Development Director:
The Bourbon County SPARK Program has reached a number of milestones to this date. All applications have been reviewed in each of the established categories. In addition, a Business/Not for Profit grant program has been completed. The Bourbon County Commission has tentatively approved applications after a vetting process.
The Kansas Office of Recovery has reviewed the plan and has requested additional information. A Technical Assistance Advisor has also been assigned to the County as part of the approval process.
It is the goal of the Commissioners to have full approval of the County Plan no later than September 25, 2020. At that time all recipients will be notified of their award along with a Memorandum of Agreement which articulates the terms and conditions of the awards. Checks will be issued by the County upon receipt of the Agreements.