When Kelsey and Stacy Marshall had an idea more than a decade ago that combined their love of good coffee with their passion for sustainability, they encountered one roadblock after another. Several banks turned them down for loans, even after a few iterations of their business plan.

But the couple persevered. With a $10,000 investment from Stacy’s parents (who’d always had a modest income) and a 100-square-foot cottage they built on their Bainbridge Island property, Grounds for Change was born. read more »

When Melissa Beers saw the new Uptown Gig Harbor shopping center several years ago, she eyed the shops located right next to the Galaxy Theater and thought they would make a great place for a bakery. And although she’s had the dream for one in the back of her mind for years, she didn’t think much of it at the time. But last year, when the opportunity presented itself for one of those same spaces, Beers decided to finally take a plunge. read more »

Experts on leadership have said that one of the characteristics that sets authentic leaders apart is having authentic followers, people who follow them not because of the job title but because these leaders inspire and motivate them. For an organization, whether it’s for-profit, nonprofit or in the public sector, having motivated staff, both paid and volunteer, is key to success. read more »

While many homeowners have scaled down their budgets for custom home products in the past few years, one company that hasn’t been affected by the trend is Real Carriage Door Co. The family-owned business, which manufactures custom doors and hardware right in Gig Harbor, has been steadily expanding.

Not only has the company moved to a much larger space in 2007 read more »

Gig Harbor will add one more attraction to its portfolio in November, when Heritage Distilling Co. opens its doors. Long before opening, the business had already attracted some buzz, thanks in large part to its unique business model.

The distillery not only produces handcrafted, small-batch premium spirits, but also gives customers the opportunity to do the same. Through a program called My Batch, connoisseurs can choose a pre-approved recipe, run a micro-still and help bottle their own product. read more »

Leslee Pate is a third-generation farmer who has been farming in North Kitsap for about 10 years. With a background in natural foods wholesale and retail as well as marketing, Pate said saw a disconnect between local producers and consumers. What started as an idea of a co-op to help bridge the gap grew into The Food Shed, a nascent Kingston business that combines farming read more »

Just as the Shop.org Annual Summit has grown in strength and popularity over the past 10 years — increasing tenfold from just 400 attendees in 2002 to over 4,000 in 2012 - the online retail industry has boomed as well. E-commerce has grown from a $40 billion dollar industry in 2002 to an anticipated $225 billion dollar industry in 2012.

These figures were part of National Retail Federation president and CEO Matthew Shay’s opening remarks before thousands of digital retailers in Denver on Sept. 18. read more »

Mason County Public Utility District No. 3 has begun using in-house talent to create videos to educate and inform its customers on issues ranging from energy conservation to rates and outage information.

The first such video, about setting the safe temperature on a water heater, was posted last week on the PUD 3 website and on the PUD’s YouTube channe

Justin Holzgrove, the district’s conservation manager, said “the conservation department hopes that simple, how-to videos and demonstrations will teach customers how to make small adjustments to their home’s energy usage and reduce their monthly utility bill.” read more »

The official ground breaking took place Friday at Kitsap Mall, outside of Kohl’s.

Mike Hale, president, expects to be open for business July 4th. “We think that great beer and nice food go together like a horse and carriage and look forward to convincing others to leave the wine behind,” said Hale.

The 7,869-square-foot restaurant will be located at the north end of the center next to Kohl’s. In preparation for the construction of the restaurant, two current retailers moved to new locations. read more »