An Idaho Minute

COEUR d'ALENE - There was a point in Mark Heckel's career where the company he was working for went through several mergers and he had 13 different bosses within four years.

Heckel was passionate about wanting to create something of his own and run his own business. He had the marketing and sales management skills, he said, and they gave him the confidence to fulfill his entrepreneurial dreams.

Upon relocating to Idaho, he purchased the Minute Press at 6491 E. Seltice Way in Post Falls. The business had started in the late '90s and had two previous owners who had built a respectable client base and created a good foundation before Heckel bought the company Jan. 1, 2003.

Heckel landed a large account early in his printing career which is still a valued customer today. This particular job had, and still has, a tight deadline. At that time the equipment didn't print fast enough so Heckel bought a cot and slept in the office on the nights this job came in to make sure the machine kept printing all night.

Minute Press now has faster, more reliable equipment with greater capacity and remote software that can be monitored offsite.

Minute Press serves local businesses that do not have expert print buyers or graphic designers on staff. It manages design needs, stores art files and manages customer databases.

Minute Press is fast, effective and can customization orders. Minute Press employees also go to customer locations to help strategize on orders when necessary.

"When the recession hit, it was like the spigot was shut off in respect to growth," Heckel said. "We became very serious about controlling costs. Being diligent about operating costs cannot be underestimated."

Heckel attributes his success to the coaches at the Idaho Small Business Development Center at the North Idaho College and the classes he attended.

"It was extremely helpful to be able to utilize the Idaho SBDC coaches who each have a different expertise and bring other perspectives to the table," he said. "They kept me focused on the big picture and also honed in on details that I had not spent enough time on."

Heckel said they listened to his goals and timelines.

"In a small company like Minute Press you lose that infrastructure component that large companies have," Heckel said.

"You end up wearing too many hats and doing everything on your own - even your weaker areas. Being able to bounce my business goals and strategies off seasoned veterans has allowed me to gain perspective and has proven invaluable."

Heckel said it's easy to create grand goals, but without an actual strategy on what and how to achieve them, you will not reach your goals.

Information: (208) 765-6258, www.cda.intlminutepress.com