The Happy Maladies want YOU to write their next album
The project is titled “MUST LOVE CATS,” and it will be an album of five compositions.
Cincinnati
Latest in Cincinnati
Video Cincinnati Timelapse by Roadtrippers
What makes Cincinnati so great? Check out this video by Roadtrippers and see for yourself. Video courtesy of Roadtrippers
Local couple involved in community goes the entrepreneurial route
Eric and Holly Saddler recently purchased Molly Maid of West Chester. Before owning Molly Maid, Eric, a graduate of the Naval Acadamy, spent 11 years in the U.S. Navy. He then worked in pharmaceutical manufacturing. Holly has a degree in psychology, and before becoming a stay-at-home-mom to their four children—ages 17, 16, 13 and 10—she was a child psychologist. The Saddlers moved to West Chester in 2006, and have been passionate about getting their family involved in the community. They’re active in their church and their kids’ activities. With Molly Maid, they hope to bring lots of clean homes to the area and help out the local economy through job creation. Molly Maid was founded in 1979 in Canada, and began franchising in 1984. There are more than 450 Molly Maid franchises across the country, along with 180 locations in Canada, the U.K., Portugal and Japan. The West Chester location serves Mason, Middletown, Liberty Township and West Chester. As a business, Molly Maid has been rated “Best Value” among cleaning services in Good Housekeeping and has been included in Entrepreneur Magazine’s Franchise 500 for the last 10 years. Soapbox sat down with the Saddlers to talk about their passion for the community and their new business. Why did you want to own a Molly Maid franchise? ES: After spending time in the corporate world, we wanted to work for ourselves. We also wanted to find a business where we could spend more time together. We were looking for something in the community, and we wanted to own a type of business that was something people wanted, something that could improve their lives and something that could give them more family time. We were also looking for a business with a small team environment. What’s it like owning your own business? ES: We closed on the sale May 31, and we love it so far. What values have your brought to your business? ES: Leadership and being respectful to people. It’s important to have a work environment where people want to work and feel supported. We also believe in hard work and good, fair work, as well as doing things directly for people. Molly Maid has been a positive shift out of the corporate business world for me; in this job, we’re focused on the customer and politics are out of the way. HS: When we started looking for a franchise to purchase, we talked about owning a business that would give our kids an example to follow. We wanted them to see the benefits of having ownership in your own company and have them be more in touch with what it means to run a business. They’ve been helping out, and it’s been great for all of us. What organizations are you involved in in the community? HS: I’m involved in the ladies group and music ministry at our church, Saint Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church. ES: I’m on our church’s pastoral council and am involved with the teen youth group. I’m also active in Cub Scouts as a leader and pack committee chair. As a business, we’re also involved with the Ms. Molly Foundation. We give a portion of every clean to the foundation to support domestic violence shelters in the area. We want to grow and develop that as a franchise and get our entire staff involved. We don’t know what that will look like yet, but we know we want to be more involved. Why do you think it’s important to be involved in the community? ES: It comes back to the values we have from our faith perspective—we’re here to serve others. We have responsibilities to our families, communities and those around us. We looked at different franchises for business opportunities, and Molly Maid was right in town. We knew some of the existing customers and wanted to serve needs in our area. Follow Caitlin on Twitter
With grant money, Cincinnati Children’s pushes for tech innovation
Cincinnati Children's has invested about $500,000 in six ideas through its Innovation Fund. Read the rest of the story here.
It’s Restaurant Week in Cincinnati
About 30 downtown restaurants are participating in Cincinnati's fifth restaurant week. Read the full story here.
Ohio’s Gay Marriage Court Victory Could Spawn New Lawsuits
Two gay Cincinnati men who successfully sued to get their out-of-state marriage recognized in Ohio are at the forefront of what supporters and experts believe will be a rush of similar lawsuits. Read the full story here.
HCDC launches Business Retention Council with 30K Duke Energy grant
The Hamilton County Development Company is tapping local Hamilton County authorities to identify and aid businesses that are ripe for growth or in danger of leaving the area. With a $30,000 grant from the Duke Energy Foundation, HCDC launched a Business Retention Council. The Council allows HCDC to take a more proactive approach to business growth and retention, says HCDC President David Main. The Council is comprised of economic development and other officials from most of Hamilton County's cities and suburbs. It held its first meeting this month. "We are putting together a list of businesses we feel have the potential for expansion or may be at risk of leaving," Main says. "We want these business to stay in their communities. We hate reading in the papers that businesses left or went out of business when we could have done something about it." HCDC is a 30-year-old nonprofit business development agency. The Norwood-based organization runs a business incubator, and is a small business lender. HCDC has reached out to businesses in the past, but the Duke grant will allow for a more formal business retention program. Retention efforts are crucial to the local economy, Main says. "Business expansion and retention tends to be overlooked, but it counts for 80 percent of job creation in any community," he says. "It's important to retain, and if possible, expand existing businesses." Besides connecting with businesses, the Council wants to create an "early warning" system to alert members of any Hamilton County business that is facing potential challenges. The Council wants to find a way to find businesses before they leave or shut down. Resources the Council could offer businesses include lending opportunities, business counseling, and marketing and sales support. The Council also wants to facilitate open communication with local government agencies. "We can't always make a difference, but we want to at least have the chance to do something if a business is considering leaving or in danger of closing," Main says. By Feoshia H. Davis Follow Feoshia on Twitter
What New York sees in Cincinnati
Leadership from the Partnership for New York City business coalition, the United Federation of Teachers and Trinity Wall Street Church have all journeyed to Cincinnati. Why? Read the full story here.
15 Gorgeous Photos of the old Cincinnati Library
As with all search engine-friendly headlines, this one from BuzzFeed says it all: 15 Gorgeous Photos of the old Cincinnati Library. See the images and cutlines here.
Betting on Bold Fusion
Do nice guys finish first? The ninth Bold Fusion explores the possibilities of doing well by doing good, complete with a keynote by New York Times bestselling author and Wharton Business School professor Adam Grant.
Video Cincinnati Timelapse by Roadtrippers
What makes Cincinnati so great? Check out this video by Roadtrippers and see for yourself. Video courtesy of Roadtrippers
Local couple involved in community goes the entrepreneurial route
Eric and Holly Saddler recently purchased Molly Maid of West Chester. Before owning Molly Maid, Eric, a graduate of the Naval Acadamy, spent 11 years in the U.S. Navy. He then worked in pharmaceutical manufacturing. Holly has a degree in psychology, and before becoming a stay-at-home-mom to their four children—ages 17, 16, 13 and 10—she was a child psychologist. The Saddlers moved to West Chester in 2006, and have been passionate about getting their family involved in the community. They’re active in their church and their kids’ activities. With Molly Maid, they hope to bring lots of clean homes to the area and help out the local economy through job creation. Molly Maid was founded in 1979 in Canada, and began franchising in 1984. There are more than 450 Molly Maid franchises across the country, along with 180 locations in Canada, the U.K., Portugal and Japan. The West Chester location serves Mason, Middletown, Liberty Township and West Chester. As a business, Molly Maid has been rated “Best Value” among cleaning services in Good Housekeeping and has been included in Entrepreneur Magazine’s Franchise 500 for the last 10 years. Soapbox sat down with the Saddlers to talk about their passion for the community and their new business. Why did you want to own a Molly Maid franchise? ES: After spending time in the corporate world, we wanted to work for ourselves. We also wanted to find a business where we could spend more time together. We were looking for something in the community, and we wanted to own a type of business that was something people wanted, something that could improve their lives and something that could give them more family time. We were also looking for a business with a small team environment. What’s it like owning your own business? ES: We closed on the sale May 31, and we love it so far. What values have your brought to your business? ES: Leadership and being respectful to people. It’s important to have a work environment where people want to work and feel supported. We also believe in hard work and good, fair work, as well as doing things directly for people. Molly Maid has been a positive shift out of the corporate business world for me; in this job, we’re focused on the customer and politics are out of the way. HS: When we started looking for a franchise to purchase, we talked about owning a business that would give our kids an example to follow. We wanted them to see the benefits of having ownership in your own company and have them be more in touch with what it means to run a business. They’ve been helping out, and it’s been great for all of us. What organizations are you involved in in the community? HS: I’m involved in the ladies group and music ministry at our church, Saint Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church. ES: I’m on our church’s pastoral council and am involved with the teen youth group. I’m also active in Cub Scouts as a leader and pack committee chair. As a business, we’re also involved with the Ms. Molly Foundation. We give a portion of every clean to the foundation to support domestic violence shelters in the area. We want to grow and develop that as a franchise and get our entire staff involved. We don’t know what that will look like yet, but we know we want to be more involved. Why do you think it’s important to be involved in the community? ES: It comes back to the values we have from our faith perspective—we’re here to serve others. We have responsibilities to our families, communities and those around us. We looked at different franchises for business opportunities, and Molly Maid was right in town. We knew some of the existing customers and wanted to serve needs in our area. Follow Caitlin on Twitter
With grant money, Cincinnati Children’s pushes for tech innovation
Cincinnati Children's has invested about $500,000 in six ideas through its Innovation Fund. Read the rest of the story here.
It’s Restaurant Week in Cincinnati
About 30 downtown restaurants are participating in Cincinnati's fifth restaurant week. Read the full story here.
Ohio’s Gay Marriage Court Victory Could Spawn New Lawsuits
Two gay Cincinnati men who successfully sued to get their out-of-state marriage recognized in Ohio are at the forefront of what supporters and experts believe will be a rush of similar lawsuits. Read the full story here.
HCDC launches Business Retention Council with 30K Duke Energy grant
The Hamilton County Development Company is tapping local Hamilton County authorities to identify and aid businesses that are ripe for growth or in danger of leaving the area. With a $30,000 grant from the Duke Energy Foundation, HCDC launched a Business Retention Council. The Council allows HCDC to take a more proactive approach to business growth and retention, says HCDC President David Main. The Council is comprised of economic development and other officials from most of Hamilton County's cities and suburbs. It held its first meeting this month. "We are putting together a list of businesses we feel have the potential for expansion or may be at risk of leaving," Main says. "We want these business to stay in their communities. We hate reading in the papers that businesses left or went out of business when we could have done something about it." HCDC is a 30-year-old nonprofit business development agency. The Norwood-based organization runs a business incubator, and is a small business lender. HCDC has reached out to businesses in the past, but the Duke grant will allow for a more formal business retention program. Retention efforts are crucial to the local economy, Main says. "Business expansion and retention tends to be overlooked, but it counts for 80 percent of job creation in any community," he says. "It's important to retain, and if possible, expand existing businesses." Besides connecting with businesses, the Council wants to create an "early warning" system to alert members of any Hamilton County business that is facing potential challenges. The Council wants to find a way to find businesses before they leave or shut down. Resources the Council could offer businesses include lending opportunities, business counseling, and marketing and sales support. The Council also wants to facilitate open communication with local government agencies. "We can't always make a difference, but we want to at least have the chance to do something if a business is considering leaving or in danger of closing," Main says. By Feoshia H. Davis Follow Feoshia on Twitter
What New York sees in Cincinnati
Leadership from the Partnership for New York City business coalition, the United Federation of Teachers and Trinity Wall Street Church have all journeyed to Cincinnati. Why? Read the full story here.
15 Gorgeous Photos of the old Cincinnati Library
As with all search engine-friendly headlines, this one from BuzzFeed says it all: 15 Gorgeous Photos of the old Cincinnati Library. See the images and cutlines here.
Betting on Bold Fusion
Do nice guys finish first? The ninth Bold Fusion explores the possibilities of doing well by doing good, complete with a keynote by New York Times bestselling author and Wharton Business School professor Adam Grant.
