CBIA BizCast

CBIA’s BizCast team speaks with Nicholas Gondek and Emily Turcan from Adia about the company’s focus on additive manufacturing. Gondek is the director of additive manufacturing and Turcan is a strategic account manager. Formerly known as ACT 3D Equipment and Services, the team rebranded to Adia earlier this summer. The team helps large and small companies throughout various industries develop 3D printing solutions.

CBIA’s BizCast team speaks with Paul Savas, vice president of Comcast Business for the western New England region about what the company is doing to support small businesses. Savas said they launched Comcast RISE in 2020 as part of a Comcast $100 million commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

CBIA’s BizCast team speaks with Robinson + Cole LLP managing partner Rhonda Tobin about the firm’s plans to move its downtown Hartford office to a new location in the city. The firm announced it would be moving to One State Street, known as the Hartford Steam Boiler building, last month. “Our top mission is to deliver outstanding client service, and the way that we do that is to recruit and retain the best talent,” Tobin said.

CBIA’s BizCast team speaks with Michael Weinstock, M&T Bank’s Hartford regional president about the new initiatives the bank has implemented to support small businesses across Connecticut. “We’re committed to Connecticut because we believe it is a good place to live, to work, and a prime location for businesses to thrive,” Weinstock said.

CBIA's Bizcast team went to Pathways Academy in West Hartford where student interns presented projects to business clients, including Travelers and Hartford Healthcare.

CBIA’s BizCast team speaks with Keith Bishop, a fifth-generation owner and CEO of Bishop’s Orchards in Guilford. Bishop’s family started the farm in 1871, growing vegetables and producing dairy. It has since grown into a destination. The farm offers everything from apple and pumpkin picking, to wine tasting, and other entertainment. Bishop and his three children work full-time to help run the family business. “I’m very proud of the family and where we have come,” Bishop said. He said they have been adapting to the times, including the lingering pandemic challenges. Overall, he said farming in Connecticut is more costly than other areas of the country, especially with the regulations. “There are a lot of good sound policies, but carrying them out as individual businesses costs money,” Bishop said. The CBIA BizCast is made possible through the generous support of Google. Please rate, review, and subscribe to the BizCast wherever you get your podcasts—we appreciate your support! If you have a story to tell, contact Amanda Marlow.

CBIA BizCast host Ali Warshavsky speaks with Sentry Commercial co-founder and president Mark Duclos about post COVID-19 trends in leasing large office and industrial spaces. Duclos said remote and hybrid work environments changed what large corporations needed for space. He said landlords of larger buildings now have to evaluate if they can rent out a full space to a single company, need to divide it up for several, or even knock a building down. However, because of the e-commerce boom during the pandemic, Duclos said he saw large corporations seeking out more land in Connecticut and industrial spaces. “Land rich towns that are well located centrally are going to do well and certainly Windsor was one of those, South Windsor, East Windsor, and Enfield more specifically than East Windsor,” said Duclos. The CBIA BizCast is made possible through the generous support of Google. Please rate, review, and subscribe to the BizCast wherever you get your podcasts—we appreciate your support! If you have a story to tell, contact Ali Warshavsky.

CBIA BizCast host Ali Warshavsky speaks with Oma’s Pride president and CEO Capri Brighenti and her son Adam DeJulius, the company’s COO. Brighenti said her grandmother, an entrepreneurial spirit, started the business in 1950 when she began selling eggs from the family’s Avon farm. Miller’s Food expanded to include the Oma’s Pride pet food brand in 2001. Keeping it in the family, DeJulius took over as COO three years ago. “You know in your heart the work that gives you meaning,” DeJulius said. “I knew in a way that this was always pulling at me. “There were some serendipitous happenings that brought this together. “Mom and I have always worked well together and saw things mostly through the same light and have the same drive which is unique.” The CBIA BizCast is made possible through the generous support of Google. Please rate, review, and subscribe to the BizCast wherever you get your podcasts—we appreciate your support! If you have a story to tell, contact Ali Warshavsky.

CBIA BizCast host Ali Warshavsky speaks with Bead Industries CEO Jill Mayer about the challenges of running a business in the post-pandemic world. Among those challenges is getting women back to the workplace, an issue with particular resonance at family run Bead, where women make up 60% of the workforce. As a mother, Mayer understands how tough it is to return to work after maternity leave and wanted to make it easier for employees at the company's Milford and Cheshire locations. Bead employees bring in their newborns for the first few weeks and are able to designate volunteers to watch their baby when they have a meeting. “It was my sister and I bringing in our babies which made us realize what an important transition it is for women in the workplace, especially first time moms,” Mayer said. The CBIA BizCast is made possible through the generous support of Google. Please rate, review, and subscribe to the BizCast wherever you get your podcasts—we appreciate your support! If you have a story to tell, contact Ali Warshavsky.

CBIA BizCast host Ali Warshavsky speaks with Candace Freedenberg, founder and chair of the woman-owned social enterprise Untapped Potential. Freedenberg says the organization works to remove barriers and create necessary stepping stones for women to get back into the workforce. “I looked at this as an economic opportunity,” said Freedenberg. “Whenever you have stagnated talent, a skilled workforce, and those with education and experience that are not able to add to the labor market, it’s untapped human capital.” Launched in 2015, Untapped Potential was this year named Woman-Owned Business of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The CBIA BizCast is made possible through the generous support of Google. Please rate, review, and subscribe to the BizCast wherever you get your podcasts—we appreciate your support! If you have a story to tell, contact Ali Warshavsky.