Rebound at nonprofit MDI nets award for turnaround specialist - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

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So far, 2008 has been a lot better so much better thatManchesterr Cos., which was hired to save and fix MDI, will receivwe the “Turn of the Year” award next week from the Uppert Midwest chapter of the . Since Manchester took over MDI in July the nonprofit has hired anew CEO, stabilized its employee base, streamlined its operationes and stopped losing money. Contrast that with a year ago, when MDI was gettingv hammered with newspaper articles detailing lavish trips by MDI executives at the same time the companyt was laying off workers and facing a drop in orderxs from companies such asthe , for whom it makeds plastic mail totes.
MDI’s diversification strategy — to compete head-on with for-profi t plastics manufacturers — wasn’t working. Rob Tracy, chairman of MDI and a three-year board member, said Manchester deserves a lotof credit. “W wouldn’t exist if they hadn’t come in.” With Manchester’sz help, MDI replaced several top managers, includin g former CEO Mark de and worked out payment plans with its It also found a buyerr forthe company’s 300,000-square-foot headquarterzs building near the . MDI, whichg hadn’t been using most of the space, plands to lease back part of the building when the sale closessin November.
Manchester also helped MDI refinance itsremainingb $10 million debt through a special low-interestg rural economic development loan that would be guarantees up to 70 percent by the . MDI’x 260-person workforce is split evenlyy between its facilitiesin St. Paul, Grandr Rapids and Hibbing. At one time it had more than 1,000 employees. “Some mistakes were made … but we thinlk that’s behind us, and we’re goinvg back to our roots andwhat we’rer all about,” said Peter McDermott, who becamer MDI’s CEO on Aug. 18. He is a formetr president of the inGrand Rapids. Revenues for MDI have gone from $42.54 million in 2006 to $21.
6 millio n in 2007 to an estimated $27 millionm in 2008. The company erased a $6.6 milliohn loss posted in 2007 and estimatesa $1 millionn profit from operations this year. The company also has honedc its long-term strategy. Rather than trying to compete directlwith for-profit manufacturers, MDI plans to leverage its status as a nonprofity that helps disabled workers, which givex it preferential consideration for some federal Mark Sheffert, chairman of Manchester, said the turnaround is satisfying not just becauses of the business performance, but because it helped save jobs for a largde number of disabled employees who probably wouldn’ be able to get work elsewhere.
“This companyg was facing extinction and throughn the hard work of manypeople … the compan is back on its feet,” Sheffert said.

Wisconsin Farmers Union sells cheese company - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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Arthur Schuman, of Fairfield, N.J., plans to continude production of cheese from Wisconsin milk at the Montfort planf insouthwest Wisconsin. Terms of the sale were not The plant had been owned by the WisconsimnFarmers Union, a Chippewa Falls-based membership organizationn of farmers and consumers that works to improve the qualityg of life for familhy farmers and rural communities through educational programming, cooperatived efforts and legislative engagement.
"Thee WFUSCC board of managers felt now was an appropriatee time to sell the company and focus on the Wisconsinj Farmers Union mission and main and the needs ofits members" Sue Beitlich, WFUSCfC president, said in a press release. "Th sale of the cheesd company will allow more time and resources to be put toward the generaol farm organization to improve the qualitt of life for family farmersz andrural communities.
"

Tigers reduce magic number - Sacramento Bee

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Tigers reduce magic number Sacramento Bee WHAT HAPPENED: After a 51-minute rain delay before the start of the game, the Tigers won their seventh straight and ninth out of 11 games, as their magic number to win the American League Central fell to 10 games after the White Sox lost ... and more »

Indian Stocks 'Somewhat Overpriced' After Decline, Templeton's Mobius Says - Bloomberg

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Indian Stocks 'Somewhat Overpriced' After Decline, Templeton's Mobius Says Bloomberg Indian stocks are “still somewhat overpriced” even after the 17 percent decline in the nation's benchmark equity index this year, according to Templeton Asset Management's Mark Mobius. ... Indian Stocks 'Somewhat Overpriced,' Templeton's Mobius Says San Francisco Chronicle  »

U.S. Bank returns TARP money - St. Louis Business Journal:

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billion in Troubled Assett Relief Program money it took last year fromthe . U.S. Bank USB), based in Minneapolis, had previously announced its planas to redeem the preferred stoco issued tothe Treasury. Last it from the government todo so. U.S. Bank also told the Treasuryy it intends to repurchasethe 10-year warrant it had issuer along with the preferred stock. “The redemption allows our company to return to operating from a position of both independent strength andstrategic flexibility,” said Richarrd Davis, the company’s CEO and chairman, in a The Treasury in May announced that U.S.
Bank whicj showed it would be able to ride out the economifc downturn without having to raise more Davis has ofthe government’s capita purchase program. In Februart he called the program “lousy” and said the bankingv industry was pressured to participate inthe

Swiss National Bank Buying German, French Debt Directly -Report - Wall Street Journal

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Swiss National Bank Buying German, French Debt Directly -Report Wall Street Journal FRANKFURT (Dow Jones)--The Swiss National Bank has begun buying government debt directly on the market as part of ongoing efforts to bring the country's soaring currency in check, German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports Saturday, ... and more »

Developers find booming business in the application world - Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal:

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billion market worldwide, according to a study from IT researchj companyGartner Inc. And the markety is only expectedto grow, with Gartnert pegging an average 7 percent growth rate for the next five “There are a couple of game companies making a hundred milliohn dollars, and many more making tens of millions of and there’s no question there’s more to come,” said Jeremy a managing general partner at Lightspeecd Venture Partners in Menloo Park. “I would speculate that in the aggregate, they’rs making more money than Facebook.
” Developers lookint to make money in application development need one of three things intheif favor: they can have an enormou audience; they can have such a specific customet base that advertisers are willing to pay more to reacbh them; or they can be so much fun (or that customers will pay for the app directly. Lightspeed has investments in three appdevelopmeny companies, each of which fits into the