Pika Energy’s president putting new spin on power
Ben Polito is a Georgetown native and a co-founder of Pika Energy, which makes and sells home renewable-energy systems that use wind turbines, solar panels or both. The three-year-old company hopes to...
View ArticleTwo guys looking for fun work make gelato, avoid fiasco
Josh Davis and Bruno Tropeano started Gelato Fiasco in 2007, two years after they co-founded a real estate development venture but decided to end it because, as Davis said, “we were in the middle of...
View ArticleVIA Agency employs creativity to compete nationally
Leeann Leahy was hired as the VIA Agency’s president and general manager last fall and was named one of 24 “Women to Watch” by Advertising Age magazine last month. After working at agencies in New...
View ArticleSummers on a skiff led to very big things
John and Brendan Ready started Ready Seafood in 2006 in Portland, after the two had completed college and spent a couple of years lobstering full time. John Ready entered a business plan competition at...
View ArticleTime in trenches key to WEX leader’s success
Michael Dubyak has been with WEX for 27 years, working in a range of positions in marketing, sales, business development and customer service. From August 1998 to April 2013, Dubyak, 62, served as...
View ArticleNumbers man is trying to make health costs add up
PORTLAND – Bill Caron is the president and CEO of MaineHealth, Maine’s largest health care delivery network. It has nine member hospitals — plus NorDx labs and other entities — with combined annual...
View ArticleCo-owners’ yin and yang make a good pizza
Mike Keon, a former commercial fisherman originally from Lowell, Mass., and Anthony Allen, who grew up in Nantucket, Mass., started Otto Pizza on Congress Street in Portland in 2009. Their pizza —...
View ArticlePlanet Dog co-CEO sees a mission to give back
Colleen McCracken recently joined Planet Dog, the Westbrook-based maker of dog toys and treats, as co-chief executive officer, along with Stephanie Volo. Prior to joining Planet Dog, McCracken held...
View ArticleCEO protects pet health with affordable drugs
Jean Hoffman started Putney in 2006 to help fill a void in the production of generic pet medication. The company quickly become a leader in the field and has continued to grow, being named to Inc....
View ArticleGot lots of devices? Bill Allard helps provide the juice
Bill Allard is a principal with the engineering firm of Burns & McDonnell, which is based in Kansas City, Mo., and this fall marked the opening of its Portland office. Nationwide, the company has...
View ArticleCamden Harbour Inn owner’s attention to detail pays
Raymond Brunyanszki is originally from the Netherlands and came to the U.S. nearly seven years ago to buy the Camden Harbour Inn with his partner, Oscar Verest. They renovated the inn and this year, it...
View ArticleBow Street Market focuses on customers, local food
Adam and Sheila Nappi bought Bow Street Market in Freeport from Adam Nappi’s parents in 2002. The elder Nappis had purchased the market in 1974. Nappi said that during the time he and his wife have...
View ArticleCashStar CEO wraps gifting challenges with fun
Ben Kaplan is about to experience his first Black Friday as president and CEO of Portland-based digital gifting firm CashStar Inc. Kaplan joined the company in August as chief operating officer and...
View ArticleFamily’s question inspires Maine lobster processor
Kyle Murdock, 24, attended Worcester Polytechnic Institute before dropping out to start Sea Hag Seafood in 2010, a lobster processing company in St. George. In October, Murdock was named one of eight...
View ArticleLong hours, trusty recipe work to grow Frosty’s Donuts
Shelby and Nels Omdal, both 35, bought Frosty’s Donuts in Brunswick two years ago, taking over from the couple who opened the store in 1965. The business has expanded, with two more shops in Freeport...
View ArticlePat Scully faces a new role and challenge as Bernstein Shur’s new CEO
Pat Scully is taking over as law firm Bernstein Shur’s chief executive officer at the beginning of 2014. He graduated from Dartmouth and the University of Maine School of Law, and has been with...
View ArticleNew downtown chief envisions resurgent Congress Street
Steve Hewins started his own travel agency in his apartment after graduating from college, and then moved to Commercial Street in 1982. After 24 years, he sold the agency to AAA Northern New England...
View ArticleHarold Clossey builds on Maine Development Foundation’s vision
Harold Clossey, president and chief executive officer of the Maine Development Foundation, was born and raised in Washington County. He was director of the Sunrise County Economic Development Council...
View ArticleHis home sales record is through the roof
David Banks, who founded RE/MAX By the Bay in Portland 20 years ago, sold more than $109 million worth of real estate last year, believed to be the first time an individual has eclipsed the $100...
View ArticlePortland ambassador helps consumers buy local
Thalassa Raasch is the ambassador for Portland Buy Local, an organization that encourages consumers to patronize locally owned businesses, rather than large national chains. On Wednesday the...
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