WVU alumni operate thriving businesses on Morgantown’s busiest street

Home to a rich culture of West Virginia living, a strong commitment to Mountaineer pride and a close-knit University community, many West Virginia University alumni have chosen to plant their roots and grow their small businesses in the heart of downtown Morgantown: High Street.

Named by Forbes Magazine as the "Seventh Best Small Place for Business and Careers," many alum have put their degrees to the test in one of the best small business economies in the country – each with their own stories to tell.

 

SBASECAMP

SBASECAMP is a coworking collaborative that provides office space for small business owners to launch their businesses.

"SBASECAMP is a place for small business owners to come and start up their companies," said Jim Matuga, owner of SBASECAMP. "We have nonprofits, video producers, web designers, graphic designers and attorneys. We have a community culture where like-minded people come together to work."

Matuga said coworking is a relatively new phenomenon that originated in 2006 in San Francisco.

"What coworking is is a new wave of workers who don’t want to be confined to a cubicle. Those who work at home miss the human interaction, now they don’t have to go to work at a Panera or Starbucks. They are here to work - not to goof around," he said. "Coworking means working side-by-side. None of us actually work together. We all have our own companies – an eclectic mix of people. But, because we all come here to work, it’s almost like we do work together."

As a 1988 Advertising graduate from the Perley Isaac Reed School of Journalism, Matuga said the knowledge and experience in media-related topics he gained at WVU prepared him for the workforce.

"My experience at WVU – it got me interested in media," he said. "Social media is always changing, though, so it’s about being adaptive."

For more information visit www.facebook.com/SBASECAMP.

 

Arrow Gift Shoppe

Barbara Bott Joseph began her business as a phone store with her husband following his graduation in 1982. After a few years of selling phones, Joseph said she started adding WVU, West Virginia and Morgantown items to her store.

"As the years went by, our phone selection started getting smaller and our collection of gifts started getting bigger," Joseph said. "We’re one of the only places that you can find Don Knotts items; we have a lot of WVU flags, license plates and shot glasses. We sell West Virginia items like Blue Smoke Sauces, Coal items and postcards, and we sell some Morgantown-unique items, as well."

Joseph said as WVU begins its inaugural season in the Big 12 athletic conference, she is proud to offer the community an eclectic mix of WVU memorabilia

"As we join the Big 12, it’s going to be interesting to see how the year goes for us," she said.

Joseph said she believes the secret to running a successful small business is finding a hole, or a need in the community, and filling it.

"I’ve always liked West Virginia items, and I’ve learned that to be able to sell something and do it well, you need to find a niche that isn’t being filled and fill it. That’s what I did; it’s a trial-and-error process, though," she said. "It’s about finding your niche and expanding it.

Joseph said Arrow Gifts has launched a full retail website, and she is constantly seeking new items to add to her collection.

For more information visit http://arrowgiftshoppe.com/info.html.

 

Arts Monongahela

For Jeannie Kuhn, executive director of Arts Monongahela, the University’s relationship with the city has always played an integral part in her business.

"I’m proud to say that I graduated from WVU with a Masters in Fine Arts, and I’m living comfortably in the same town," she said. "I’m really excited about the University’s relationship with the town. We have the dean of the Creative Arts College and various professors on our board; that’s something that hasn’t happened anywhere before."

Arts Mon is a nonprofit organization that aims to directly engage citizens and local artists by offering fine arts experiences, Kuhn said.

"We’re kind of like the epicenter for the Arts in Morgantown," she said. "We have a lot of different exhibits - a little bit of everything. I’m happiest if I can collaborate them all together."

Kuhn said she is also excited to provide local artists with an opportunity to showcase their work – an opportunity that was not available before Arts Mon.

"I always wanted to be an artist, but I never had a place to show my work. I think that’s a common thing for a lot of artists," she said. "A lot of times us artists tend to live in the island that is our studio. A space like Arts Mon is something that has never happened before in Morgantown."

Arts Monongahela hosts monthly arts collaborative meetings, presents educational workshops and facilitates partnerships between the business community, citizens, individual artists, arts organizations and educational institutions.

For more information visit http://artsmon.org/index.html.

 

Coni & Franc

As a boutique that specializes in dressing women for all stages of life, co-owner of Coni & Franc Connie Merandi said she takes pride in the trust and relationships she and her husband have built with their customers throughout the years.

"We have had more families support us from day one," she said. "We know our customers, and they’ve put their trust in us to dress them for years."

Merandi said she attributes her close relationships with her customers to her determination to fulfill needs within the community.

"Over the years, we have continued to change with whatever the community needed," she said. "If something is impossible I’ll tell the customer, but nine out of 10 times, we’ll go beyond the call of duty to meet their needs. We are very positive people."

For 32 years Merandi and her husband have owned various businesses in downtown Morgantown. In those years, Merandi said the two have experienced various ups and downs - including losing their entire stock from smoke damage and being forced out of their building and onto the street.

Merandi, a 1982 Fashion Merchandising and Design student, said despite the challenges she and her husband faced, her time at WVU prepared her to take on everything owning a business entails.

"My education at WVU was a wonderful opportunity. My instructors taught me everything I needed to know. I graduated from college and within six months was opening my own business," she said. "I learned in every class I took, but I was hungry for the knowledge."

Merandi said she makes an effort to be active with the University and WVU community to show her gratitude for every opportunity the University gave her.

"We always have various students come in and do work with us. We have fashion students, journalism students and business students come and work with us. It’s my way of saying ‘thank you’ to the University for my education."

Coni & Franc provides formal wear for women for all occasions. For more information, visit http://www.coniandfranc.com/.

 

Chico’s Fat Burritos

Todd Perry, a former WVU Parks and Recreation student, got his inspiration from the authentic Mexican taquerias he ate at while living in California.

"I thought it was something missing from this town. I thought about that forever," he said.

Perry attributes his success with Chico’s to the love of cooking he gained from watching his mother and his time in California.

He said he strives to push boundaries for the people in West Virginia through his food.

"My goal is to get people to spread their horizons through food," he said. "The people in this state are almost sheltered; they don’t get out of West Virginia much. I wanted to do bring something to Morgantown that wasn’t already there."

Perry said he hopes Chico’s Fat will set an example and encourage the city and state to change their practices.

"We really urge everyone to go green. We’ve made the switch and encourage Morgantown and West Virginia to pick up the pace."

For more information visit www.chicosfat.com.

 

Tailpipes