Since launching with one student just over a year ago, Total Elite Soccer Training founders Haris Hadzalic and Sanel Dzafik have opened their own facility in Coralville, and grown to 30 students. CREDIT TOTAL ELITE
When Haris Hadzalic and Sanel Dzafik launched
Total Elite Soccer Training a little over a year ago, they started with just one student in rented space at the North Liberty Community Center.
Today, thanks to word of mouth and a successful commercial that ran on FOX Sports during last year's World Cup, the area's only one-on-one soccer coaching service is training 30 elite players a week in its own fully turfed indoor training facility at
2000 James St. in Coralville.
"We saw a need and we've been growing day in and day out," said Mr. Hadzalic, a native of Bosnia, who moved to Iowa at age 13 and played soccer for Waterloo West, Mount Mercy University as well as professionally in Europe before launching Total Elite with fellow Bosnian immigrant, Mr. Dzafik.
"The commercial is when the business really took off," he said, adding the new business is on course to make "six figures" its first year. "By August, we realized that at the rate we were growing, there was not going to be enough rental time at the North Liberty rec center."
Mr. Hadzalic and his staff found the Coralville facility with the help of Urban Acres Real Estate, spent 100-hour weeks renovating and turfing the space, and officially opened the doors in November.
"This business was based on a dream," he said, adding that until now, the business has been part-time with both founders working full-time day jobs elsewhere. "Now we've grown so fast, one of us is going to need to go full-time."
Total Elite's approach focuses on individual player development, bearing in mind that every athlete is at a different stage in their development. Coaches consult with parents and players about their goals and put together individual programs catered to each specific player. Progress is tracked and adjustments made to the players regimen as needed.
"It's one-on-one training to help athletes reach their full potential," Mr. Hadlik said. "It's high intensity, high energy and we are training some of the top players."
Lora Dodd Brosseau at Lily and Rose Floral Studio. CREDIT MARION CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Iowa Master Florist Lora Dodd-Brosseau is bringing 37 years of floral design experience to her new business,
Lily and Rose Floral Studio, which held its ribbon-cutting this week.
Located in a converted 1920s craftsman-style house at 620 Seventh Ave.,
Lily and Rose Floral Studio will offer a unique shopping experience including original fresh flower designs, green and blooming plants and an array of gift items.
Ms. Dodd-Brosseau has spent the past 18 years teaching as a floral careers professor at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids. Prior to teaching she started in the industry working and in management at local floral shops.
"I love giving flowers, and who doesn't love receiving them?" Ms. Dodd-Brosseau said in a release. "It brings people joy and I get to be part of creating that experience every day."
In addition to being a full-service florist,
Lily and Rose Floral Studio will offer hands-on workshops on topics including floral design, interior plant care, European dish-gardens, terrariums, seasonal centerpieces and more.
"I'm really looking forward to sharing my knowledge and passion for plants and flowers with the area," she said.
Studio hours are 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday-Friday and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday.
Video: CR Restaurant Week comes at pivotal time this year
Business is always slower this time of year at area restaurants thanks to the expense of the holidays. This winter's weather has resulted in a further dip in diners, which is why Cedar Rapids restaurateurs are eagerly anticipating
Restaurant Week, a week of good food and friendly competition that kicks off Feb. 22. "It's a little bit feast to famine," local chef Chatyris "Ty'"Williams told CBS2/FOX 28 of the number of customers during the first of the year. "We're going to make it through, though." Read the full story and watch the video here.
According to the report, U.S. small business owners lost an average of $43,394 by foregoing a project or sales specifically due to issues created by insufficient cash flow.
"Cash flow is the lifeblood of success - small businesses and self-employed workers must constantly be aware of their cash flow status," study authors wrote. "And while money is the fuel that runs their business and next decision, it is also the reason they go out of business, it's the thing they lose sleep over."
Business owners reported the reason for their cash flow woes was not necessarily a lack of funds, but a
lack of available funds. Thirty-three percent of U.S. respondents said they had more than $20,000 in outstanding receivables with the average small business reporting $53,399 in outstanding receivables.
Two-thirds (66 percent) of business owners said
the time it takes the money to process after receiving a payment has the largest impact on their company's cash flow with the remaining 34 percent citing not getting paid by customers or clients within the terms of the payment system. The average wait for small business owners to get paid by clients is 29 days.
Among those who have had cash flow issues, 43 percent of small business owners frequently have been at risk of not being able to pay their employees by payday. Nearly a third have paid their employees late.
Intuit conducted the study with Wakefield Research, surveying 3,000 small business owners of companies with 0-100 employees in the U.S., UK, Australia, Canada and India.
Consulting: Are you making an impact with your PR campaign?
In this week's consulting spotlight, Betsy McCloskey of Plaid Swan Inc.explains how to measure the success of your public relations campaign.
Measuring success has long been the Achilles' heel of public relations. While it is true that it's hard to correlate PR efforts directly to sales results, that doesn't mean you can't measure success.
Why is it important to measure PR? Measurement provides a clear picture of performance and allows you to show the results of PR campaigns to your boss and/or clients. In addition, having a clear understanding of PR efforts provides a better road map for future planning and budgeting.
Before you can measure results, it is important to know what success looks like and to take the time to outline your goals. Identifying the target audience is also a key part of the of upfront work. All the great PR in the world doesn't mean anything if your target audience doesn't see it.
AVE vs. Barcelona Principles
In the past, the Advertising Value Equivalency (AVE) has been the standard for measuring the success of a PR campaign. If you received media in a publication, you would compare that space to the cost of a paid ad and that would give the AVE to quantify success.
Things have changed: PR and advertising are very different and the industry has come to realize it is hard to make an apples-to-apples comparison. Many in the industry feel that the Barcelona Principles - a set of seven voluntary guidelines established by the PR industry - provide a core framework for a universal standard of measurement. One of the Barcelona Principles is, "AVEs are not the value of communications."
Overall, the Barcelona Principles focus on setting goals, looking at outcomes versus outputs, using both quantitative and qualitative measurements, incorporating social media and taking a holistic approach to evaluation.
Forward the FREE, weekly CBJ on Small Business newsletter to your friends and colleagues, and share the feeling of being informed! Use our fast, one-minute subscription to the CBJ's newsletters
here, or check out our other subscription options
here.
Six Keys to a Winning Team, by SCORE of East Central Iowa, 6:30-8 p.m., Linn Area Credit Union, 3375 Seventh Ave., Marion. Explore strategies for building and fostering teamwork at your business. Free. To register, visit
scorecr.org.
Feb. 8
Health Care Summit, by the Corridor Business Journal, 7:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Cedar Rapids Marriott, 1200 Collins Road NE. This event will examine national health policy issues and refocus them to the regional level through speakers and panel discussions. Topics include total worker health, the opioid epidemic and insurance plan design. For more information, visit
corridorbusiness.com/events.
Feb. 11
Coralville Roundtable, by Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce, noon-1 p.m., Texas Roadhouse, 2520 Corridor Way, Coralville. Roundtables are social lunches over the noon hour. All are invited to network, keep up to date with chamber and community events and frequent a member restaurant or business. Free. Contact Emily at (319) 337-9637 or
info@iowacityarea.com with questions.
Realtor and Developer Summit, by Terry Lockridge & Dunn and Pugh Hagan Prahm PLC, 2:30-4:45 p.m., The Hotel at Kirkwood Center, 7725 Kirkwood Blvd. SW, Cedar Rapids. This program will cover topics of interest to Realtors, real estate developers and others in the field, including tax updates, opportunity zones, closing checklists, case law updates and more. A reception will follow after the program. Cost: Free for non-Realtors, $15 fee for Realtor CE certificate processing. For more information, contact Jody at
jthies@tld-inc.com or call (319) 364-2945.
Feb. 12
Hiawatha Business Summit, by Hiawatha Economic Development Corp., city of Hiawatha and Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, 8-9 a.m., Hiawatha Community Center, 101 Emmons St., Hiawatha. This morning event includes networking and a short program by the Small Business Administration (SBA) on how businesses can best use their services. Seating is limited, free for Economic Alliance members. To register, visit
bit.ly/2TAtLrF.
Resilience First Aid, by the National Resilience Institute and Linn County, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Mount Mercy CRST International Graduate Center, 1650 Matterhorn Drive NE, Cedar Rapids. This training session, featuring internationally renowned author and researcher Lisa Cherry, will provide an overview of how trauma impacts human development and will facilitate personal resilience development, including self-awareness and vulnerability practices. Cost: Free for Linn County residents, $25 for others. To register, visit
bit.ly/2Sc1qeO.
Fundraising & Your Board: Building a Culture of Philanthropy, by Association of Fundraising Professionals, Eastern Iowa Chapter, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Hills Bank & Trust, 3905 Blairs Ferry Road NE, Cedar Rapids. Learn some best practices of board involvement in fundraising and how to grow the culture of philanthropy. Cost: Free for members, $25 for non-members. For more, visit
conta.cc/2HS740Q.
Business Lunch Roundtable, by SCORE of East Central Iowa, noon-1 p.m., Granite City Food & Brewery, 4755 First Ave. NE, Cedar Rapids. A business topic will be discussed along with networking opportunities. Free. To register, visit
scorecr.org.
Business Startup Basics, by SCORE of East Central Iowa and Kirkwood Community College, 6-8 p.m., Kirkwood Linn County Regional Center, 1770 Boyson Road, Hiawatha. This three-night series will explore the basic steps in starting a business. This night will cover legal concerns and building a web presence. Cost: $59, covers all three nights. To register, visit
scorecr.org.
Headlines from CBS2/FOX 28
These news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28
The man suspected of taking a cat from its home and torturing it is in police custody.
Chad Toney, 30, turned himself into authorities at 9:30 a.m. today and was charged with third-degree burglary. He also had a warrant out for his arrest for driving while barred. Mr. Toney was wanted for allegedly stealing a cat from a home in Blairstown on Feb 1, torturing it and sending photos and videos of it to the owner's sister. The cat's owner, Spencer Kimm, spoke to CBS2/FOX28 News exclusively after he was reunited with his cat, Gladys. Mr. Kimm said he believes the man responsible is Mr. Toney, who he believed was using the cat as a way to get Mr. Kimm's sister to talk to him. Mr. Kimm asked him to give the cat back, but after he refused, he said he'd post about it on social media. The Benton County Sheriff's Office told CBS2/FOX28 News that Mr. Toney will also be charged with animal abuse.
On his last day of radiation treatment for
a rare brain tumor, Tate Schaefer got a big surprise from his classmates at Mary Welsh Elementary: a song.
Music teacher Mary Wetjen - along with help from students and friends of Tate - wrote a "TaterTough" anthem for the 11-year-old that the Williamsburg community has rallied behind for weeks - and debuted it during Wednesday's Raider Rockstar Assembly. It's the latest example of support for the Schaefer family through Tate's fight. They were guests of Los Angeles Rams guard Austin Blythe (a former Williamsburg Raider and Iowa Hawkeye) during Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta.
These news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28
CBS2 Chief Meteorologist Terry Swails' Weather First Forecast
Another winter storm will move through eastern Iowa today bringing a wintry mix and snow. Behind it, a blast of arctic air will start the weekend.
A strong winter storm will move through the area today and bring a mix of rain, freezing rain, sleet and snow. Untreated roads and sidewalks will become very slick. Temperatures will be dropping through the day and winds will pick up. Wind gusts will be around 30 to 40 mph at times. That will lead to some blowing snow and send wind chills near zero into the afternoon.
Coralville soccer school kicks up big time in its first year 
