Allison Kaplan

Minneapolis

Editor-in-Chief at Twin Cities Business

Editor in Chief @tcbmag + StartMN. Host of By All Means podcast + Shop Girls @mytalk1071. Co-founder https://t.co/2OhnNtzXnv. Supreme multitasker. Boy mom.

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Articles

On Our Radar: Highlight Reel

1 week ago | tcbmag.com | Allison Kaplan

With the explosion of women’s sports and fringe sports like pickleball and rugby, the leaders of two Minneapolis creative agencies saw an opportunity to approach sports partnerships in new and more customized ways. That led Media Bridge CEO Tracy Call and Griffin Archer CEO Ellie Anderson to launch Highlight Reel, a new sports marketing agency that aims to deliver “deeper connections,” say the founders, who also maintain their separate companies.
Scaling a Franchise: Chuck Runyon + Melanie Richards

2 weeks ago | tcbmag.com | Allison Kaplan

Scaling a Franchise: Chuck Runyon + Melanie Richards Episode 140In our first Mentor Series pairing, Chuck Runyon, co-founder of Anytime Fitness, the world's largest fitness franchise chain, and its parent company Purpose Brands (formerly Self Esteem Brands), which includes Orangetheory Fitness, Waxing the City, and several other franchise businesses talks about transitioning out the CEO role to board chair.
Patina founders sell Twin Cities gift store chain after 32 years

2 weeks ago | minnpost.com | Allison Kaplan

Over the course of 32 years, local gift store chain Patina has survived copycats, fires, riots, a pandemic, and Amazon. And now, founders Rick Haase and Christine Ward have ensured their popular Twin Cities shops will endure beyond their retirement.
Uptown Fights for its Future

2 weeks ago | tcbmag.com | Allison Kaplan

Small business owners in Uptown are banding together in effort to create an Uptown Business Improvement District—much like the Minneapolis Downtown Improvement District— that would allow them to raise funds for capital improvements, security, and other initiatives to revive the troubled neighborhood.
Decoy Handbags and Mentorship

2 weeks ago | tcbmag.com | Allison Kaplan

It’s almost time for our annual TCB Talks: Women in Leadership event on April 15, and one of the questions that often comes up in conversations with successful women is how they juggle the demands of career and personal life.
Patina Founders Sell Local Gift Store Chain After 32 Years

2 weeks ago | tcbmag.com | Allison Kaplan

Over the course of 32 years, local gift store chain Patina has survived copycats, fires, riots, a pandemic, and Amazon. And now, founders Rick Haase and Christine Ward have ensured their popular Twin Cities shops will endure beyond their retirement.
Proozy Acquires Larger Online Discount Brand Zulily for $5M

1 month ago | tcbmag.com | Allison Kaplan

Proozy, the Eagan-based online retailer known for offering daily deals on brand-name apparel and accessories, is acquiring Zulily, once a much larger player in discount e-commerce. Proozy founder and CEO Jeremy Segal said he paid $5 million for a majority stake in Zulily, an e-commerce platform with roughly 131 million customers, compared to Proozy’s 3 million. The Zulily site is currently down while the transfer takes place.
Saturday Night Live Sketch Drives Sales of "Little Red Glasses"

1 month ago | tcbmag.com | Allison Kaplan

The order raised eyebrows at Eyebobs headquarters in Minneapolis last week: six pair of red reading glasses to be rush delivered to 30 Rock in New York—home of NBC Studios and Saturday Night Live. Employees of the eyewear brand eagerly tuned in last Saturday night, unsure what to expect.
Faribault Mill Cuts Prices on Blankets

1 month ago | tcbmag.com | Allison Kaplan

Amid tariffs and wild swings in the stock market, iconic Minnesota manufacturer Faribault Mill made a bold statement Wednesday, announcing permanent price reductions of as much as $100 on many of its most popular blanket styles. The textile mill, which dates back to 1865, is one of the last vertically integrated plants of its kind to turn raw wool into blankets using mix of equipment both new and a century old. Many of its large wool or cotton blankets retail for upwards of $400.
When a Dream Melts, Go Bigger

1 month ago | tcbmag.com | Allison Kaplan

Robbie Harrell thrives on taking big swings. His company, Minnesota Ice, took off during the 2018 Super Bowl in Minneapolis; at the time he barely had a savings account, but he flew in ice carvers to deliver more than 200 sculptures for the downtown festivities. Today, Minnesota Ice is a $10 million operation based in St. Paul with a team of 50 to 70 employees (fluctuating seasonally), specializing in ice sculptures, cocktail ice cubes, and the bagged ice you buy at gas stations.