tampabay.com
At the Clearwater headquarters of syrup manufacturer Monin, beverage innovation manager Julia Melucci told a group of 11th graders about how she got her start at the company.It dates back to her high school days when she attended a similar business leadership program. Her class visited the company headquarters.It helped her build relationships and problem solve for her current job: developing drinks that go on menus for national chains like Outback Steakhouse or Chick-fil-A, she said.At the demo…
about 1 month ago
tampabay.com
After a slow summer for many local businesses, King State cofounder Tim McTague said the Tampa cafe and bar was eager for the return of customers in the fall and winter.But when September arrived, so did construction that closed the Floribraska Avenue block in front of King State’s doors.The business posted on social media saying customers were confused on if the cafe was open due to the road closures. Some said they worried they could be breaking the law to hop around construction that’s expect…
3 months ago
tampabay.com
St. Petersburg is one of the “up and up” spots in the U.S. this year, according to Tripadvisor.The travel site named the Sunshine City as the No. 2 trending destination in the nation for 2024, Tripadvisor announced Tuesday.St. Petersburg is famous for its sunshine, 244 miles of coastline on Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Among the highlights featured by Tripadvisor was Ft. De Soto Park, the Pinellas Trail, Sunken Gardens and baseball games at Tropicana Field.Tripadvisor said St. Petersburg wa…
4 months ago
tampabay.com
A Pennsylvania manufacturer attempted to break up a $3-billion deal combining two large public companies from Florida’s Gulf Coast.In December, Tampa-based global door manufacturer Masonite International Corp. announced it reached an agreement to buy door, garage and window company PGT Innovations. The sale would boost Masonite’s profile as one of the nation’s top door and window manufacturers and combine their revenues to a total of $4 billion.But at the beginning of the year, another rival Mit…
4 months ago
tampabay.com
Clearwater boat company MarineMax announced Monday it will acquire William Tenders USA, a boat distributer and retailer, for an undisclosed price.The acquisition is set to close at the end of March, according to a media release. The deal would help MarineMax expand its superyacht business, the company said.William Jet Tenders is a U.K.-based company that manufactures tenders or smaller boats that service luxury yachts. MarineMax would acquire the North American operations, based out of Pompano B…
4 months ago
tampabay.com
Tampa executive Ed Buckley, CEO of FitOn Health, was in New York City Thursday morning along with leaders of some of the nation’s top fitness and wellness companies to help ring Nasdaq’s opening bell, which marks the opening of the stock market.Nasdaq had fitness industry publication Athletech News founder and CEO Edward Hertman ring Thursday’s bell, a tradition spotlighting impactful companies and industries across the country. Nasdaq celebrated “Wellness Week” to highlight health-based organiz…
4 months ago
tampabay.com
Tampa Bay was Zillow’s top housing market of 2022 . But then last year, it fell off the real estate firm’s annual list of the 10 hottest real estate metropolitans.This year, Tampa Bay is back — but barely.Tampa Bay was named the 10th hottest market in the nation for 2024, Zillow announced Thursday. Tampa and Orlando were the only Florida cities on the list, with Orlando at ninth place.Last year’s ranking included Miami and Jacksonville , both of which fell off the list this year.Affordability wa…
4 months ago
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When shoppers come across advertisements online, the shape of a button that reads “Shop now” or “Add to cart” can make a difference.Online consumers are “significantly” more likely to click on an ad with a curvy design than those with sharp features, according to a University of South Florida study published this month.While physical stores can use scents and touch to help create an experience that converts to sales, online shopping is heavily reliant on visual cues, according to the study. Ther…
4 months ago
tampabay.com
Tampa’s Masonite International Corp. — a global interior and exterior door manufacturer — is set to acquire a rival Gulf Coast company for $3 billion.The company announced Monday that it’ll buy PGT Innovations, a Venice-based producer of weather-resistant doors, garages and windows. The $3 billion sale would be financed with cash and Masonite shares, the announcement said.The deal will combine two of the region’s largest public companies .Masonite is the 7th largest on the state’s Gulf Coast, ac…
4 months ago
tampabay.com
The former winter home of August A. Busch Jr. — the company president who helped turn Anheuser-Busch into the largest beer company in the world — has been demolished.All that’s left on the St. Pete Beach property on Pass a Grille Way is a private marina and a patch of dirt where three homes built in the 1950s once stood.Local records show the owner of the property applied for a permit to demolish the structures in January. The estate was bought by a company tied to Tampa angel investor Steven Ma…
4 months ago
tampabay.com
A new drive-thru chain founded in Tampa is expanding across the region.Greenlane — which specializes in salads and wraps — opened its first location earlier this year in South Tampa. Next year, it aims to open two more in Tampa and St. Petersburg.“Yes, we’re a salad brand. But we’re not your average rabbit food,” reads the company’s website.The chain was created to fill a gap in the drive-thru market that’s saturated with cheap, greasy food, said Greenlane’s chief operating officer and co-founde…
5 months ago
tampabay.com
Last year, Tampa Bay’s post-pandemic economy boost showed signs of slowing.In 2022, the region was a national leader in inflation spikes. The Federal Reserve raised interest rates to decelerate the rapid rise in prices. The housing market began to cool . Brick and mortar businesses reported less traffic in stores.Tampa Bay’s gross domestic product — a measurement of economic performance by totaling the value of goods and services — did slow last year compared to 2021, federal data released Thurs…
5 months ago
tampabay.com
At St. Petersburg’s Shopapalooza, customers packed inside the tent for vendor Gnome Sweet Gnome.The $45 handmade gnomes were selling fast. Forget elf on the shelf.There were Santa Clause gnomes. Hanukkah gnomes. Easter bunny gnomes. St. Patrick’s Day gnomes and Valentine’s Day gnomes. There were non-holiday versions of the mythical creatures too, like cowboy gnome, pig gnome, sports fan gnome and a ... Guy Fieri gnome?With each purchase, owner of Gnome Sweet Gnome Ellen Noble and her husband Tim…
5 months ago
tampabay.com
A small business in the Wesley Chapel shipping container mall Krate at the Grove is closing.All Good Things Gifts announced Monday that it would close its storefront due to an unexpected downturn in sales this summer.Owners of the gift shop, known for its Tampa-themed items, said it had to dip into its savings to cover operational costs such as rent and payroll, which was becoming more unsustainable.“In the wake of a challenging summer of slow sales, we decided to take our exit and close the sto…
5 months ago
tampabay.com
Last month, three former assistant department managers from different states filed a federal lawsuit against Publix claiming Florida’s largest grocer did not pay them for overtime work.Now, department managers can also join the collective action suit.An amended complaint filed Tuesday in Tampa’s federal court added hourly managers from store departments like bakery, deli, meat, produce, seafood and grocery.They face many of the same problems that assistant department managers experienced , the l…
5 months ago
tampabay.com
Lakeland-based grocer Publix Super Markets announced new leadership on Monday.Current CEO Todd Jones will transition to become the executive chairperson of Publix’s board of directors as its current chairperson, Ed Crenshaw, will move on to chairperson emeritus, according to the announcement.The current president, Kevin Murphy, will take over as CEO. Senior Vice President John Goff will be the company’s new president.They all start their new positions on Jan. 1.The rising leaders will take over…
5 months ago
tampabay.com
A lot of food can end up in the trash if it’s not bought by customers that day.One app expanding across Florida is trying to change that for restaurants, cafes and other food-driven businesses.Too Good to Go, a Denmark-based company, launched its app in the Tampa Bay area this week. Local businesses like Valkyrie Doughnuts, La Segunda, Pete’s Bagels and DalMoros Fresh Pasta To Go have signed up on the app to offer “surprise bags” of their products.These bags of leftover products can sell at heav…
5 months ago
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Business has started picking up for Betty’s Shop after the worst summer owner Liz Calver can recall in a decade.“It was a lot quieter. Even just the foot traffic on the streets and the car traffic on the roads, on Gulf Boulevard, was less than half of what it should have been,” Calver said about business in July.October improved with the start of wedding season for the St. Pete Beach boutique — but it’s still slower than past years. As Calver prepares for the holiday shopping season, she hopes t…
5 months ago
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Chick-fil-A is starting to deliver food by drone in the Tampa Bay area — so far only from one location within Hillsborough County.A Brandon-Valrico Chick-fil-A restaurant announced Monday on Facebook that it now has drone delivery service to locations within a 1.2-mile radius.The drone delivery fee is free for a limited time, according to the social media post. The restaurant partnered with DroneUp, a Virginia Beach-based company that also launched service with a Tampa Walmart store nearly a yea…
5 months ago
tampabay.com
It seems that St. Petersburg’s small business festival Shopapalooza gets bigger every year. And this year is expected to be no different.Shopapalooza will return to St. Petersburg’s Vinoy Park on the weekend after Thanksgiving with more than 350 small businesses. The free public event will be held on Nov. 25-26 between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m.The event to kick off the holiday shopping season and celebrate Small Business Saturday will span 11.3 acres, said Shopapalooza’s founder Ester Venouziou.“These…
6 months ago
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It’s been more than 2½ years since developers first filed plans for a grocery store that looks remarkably similar to an Amazon Fresh in Safety Harbor.Since then, Amazon leaders announced it would shift its strategy on the supermarket brand famous for allowing customers to walk out of the store without having to pay at a cash register.Could the mystery surrounding the future of this Safety Harbor retail space lead to a “zombie store” within Tampa Bay?Reports from across the country have detailed…
6 months ago
