Monday's Afternoon Update
Seminole Tribe's Hard Rock gambling empire going global quickly
The Seminole Indian Tribe and its Hard Rock Casino empire (2009 revenues of $2 billion and growing) is expanding rapidly, far beyond the I-4 Hard Rock gambling site just east of Tampa. The tribe now own more than a dozen hotels in four states and seven countries, and more than 130 Hard Rock Cafes worldwide, including two in Las Vegas. The tribe owns all of the Hard rock's gaming operations except in Las Vegas, but even that may be changing. New Hard Rock hotels are under construction in Dubai, Mexico, Hungary and the United Arab Emirates. Read more in a column by Robert Trigaux (Tampa Bay Times).
» More about the Seminole's gaming empire at the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
» Related: Miccosukee tribe says members owe $26M to IRS
Entrepreneurs: FloridaSmallBusiness.com is ready to help
Florida Trend's FloridaSmallBusiness.com is all refreshed for 2012 and ready to help your business flourish in the Sunshine State. 
At the website, you'll find articles that feature Florida entrepreneurs who survived the downturn and are in fact, growing their businesses. They'll tell you how they did it. Also at the site, you'll find the Small Business Toolbox. The Toolbox features suggested business plans, gives tips on what forms, permits and licenses you'll need, and links to important state agencies. Every week, new columns from Ron Stein and Jerry Osteryoung will help you with practical advice and information.
» Go to FloridaSmallBusiness.com
?Ron Stein Column ? When a deal is lost, most people will look back at why it happened. All too often they come to the wrong conclusions. For instance, they’ll find out that the winning competitor had a lower price and believe that was why they lost the deal. Yet, more than likely, the real reason had little to do with who could do the job most cheaply...
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Developers want state marshland at Skyway's south end for hotel, condo project
The owners of some swampy property at the southern end of the Sunshine Skyway bridge want to build a development there that would include a hotel, offices, shops, homes, a marine mammal rescue center and "Tahiti-style overwater bungalows." But there's a catch. To make it work, the landowners say, they need state officials to agree to a deal. The developers say they would give the state nearly 998 acres if the state will hand over just 77 acres. More at the Tampa Bay Times.
Small Biz Advice
Is customer service that important?
"Quality in a service or product is not what you put into it. It is what the client or customer gets out of it." ~Peter Drucker
Sometimes - but very infrequently - customer service does not have to be very good if there is something extraordinary to make up for its absence. However, I would still prefer to have great customer service along with top quality products or services... » Continued
Full column from Jerry Osteryoung is here.
Legal issues halt condo sales at Boynton's Promenade
Sales of condo units at the massive Promenade in downtown Boynton Beach could be put on hold indefinitely because of pending litigation.
Fidelity National Title Group, which includes Chicago Title and Commonwealth Land Title, sent a Jan. 30 letter to all Florida offices, warning them they are not to "close or process any title insurance transactions without prior written approval of the Underwriting Department." More at the Palm Beach Post.
Out of the Box: A real Florida valentine
 One of Team Sandtastic's sand sculptures [Photo: www.TeamSandtastic.com] |
What says love more than a pile of sand? Or a present you order by the ton? These are the offerings of a Florida company that was just named one of "America's Most Romantic Companies" by Business News Daily. Team Sandtastic, based out of Sarasota, will come to a beach near you and carve your heart's delight. They'll also bring sand to your office, your house, anywhere it's needed. A recent romantic sculpture in Miami resulted in a couple getting engaged. "We brought the (Eiffel) tower to him on South Beach in Miami," owner and sculptor Mark Mason told BusinessNewsDaily. "We carved it with a likeness of the two of them at the base, and she said yes."