CEO Magazine

On the way to his third-floor office, Gary Ward steps with an even, determined pace across the star-patterned floor tiles of Jesse Hall. It’s 8 a.m., and he has just finished his morning workout. His day started three hours earlier as he…

John Ott is giving a new life to a Columbia building that housed an old funeral home. Located on the corner of Ninth and Walnut streets, Parker Funeral Home is being transformed into an events center with seating for 450 people and standing…

If eating healthfully is your primary goal, granola bars might not be the best choice. Most store-bought granola bars and so-called protein snack bars are sugar-loaded candy bars disguised as healthy snacks. Nevertheless, almost all my…

After searching through the entire store for T-shirts for Clara, her physical and fearless toddler, KOMU morning news anchor Megan Judy was frustrated: All of the shirts for girls featured princesses, unicorns and glitter, none of which…

The CEO and the president of one of the Midwest’s fastest growing ecommerce sites are sitting next to each other on a large couch in their south Columbia home. Business titles don’t fit Sam and Jesse Bodine well. After 13 years of marriage,…

Located in a chocolate-colored building on the corner of S. Fifth and Cherry Street, Flat Branch Home Loans blends inconspicuously into its surroundings. Anyone driving by would think they spotted just another local business in a restored…

Sitting on the sticky, white paper covering the exam table, about 200 patients are told they need brain surgery each year at University of Missouri Health Care. Whether it is benign or cancerous, brain tumors can be life-altering for the…

At face value, Columbia, Missouri, has the standard makeup of a true college town with education serving as its economic backbone. Contributing to this narrative are several factors, including a major public university belonging to one of…

One could argue that family-owned businesses, in tandem with the University of Missouri, built the foundation for the Columbia we know today. And according to eight leaders of local family-owned companies, their essential goal is to nurture…

Think of a business in the community that has had such a long-standing impact that it seems to have helped build local culture by its presence. Chances are, it’s what’s known as a legacy business. According to Dr. Rhonda Reger, M.…

If the title of this article has you wondering why we’re talking about the benefits of consuming aloe juice, you’re not alone. As a health professional, I am always skeptical about new food trends that may not have any scientific validity…

Legacy and family businesses are rare. They not only survive the ups and downs of business cycles, but they keep their doors open and customers keep coming in for lifetimes, sometimes for three or four generations. Three local legacy…

Nearly a dozen young businesspeople representing Columbia’s current entrepreneurial class sat down for the spring CEO Roundtable at the Broadway Hotel. Each is in the throes of developing, launching or day-to-day operation of a startup, and…

Joe Chee and Ben Brooks are co-owners of Ukatsu, a Columbia business that is not at all what it seems to be. The dozen large-screen computer stations lining the walls of their business at 1413 Grindstone Plaza Drive give it the appearance…

It takes just the right ingredients to make the 16 varieties of doughnuts on the menu of Harold’s Doughnuts. And it takes just the right combination of skills and personality traits to make a successful business out of the same dough.…

For those who are shopping for the person who already has everything, we’ve compiled a list of local gifts that might just help you out this holiday season. Or send this list to someone who might be trying to buy for you.

Have you ever tried an escape room? You know, the tiny rooms that groups of friends willingly lock themselves into in hopes of sniffing out clues, solving thought-provoking puzzles, and beating the hour-long clock in order to eventually…

There is no single profile that fits all female business owners. Why should there be? Business knows no gender. It’s a trait that springs from the mind, spirit and experience. The five women who are profiled in this issue of CEO do have one…