The Wisconsin chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth held the final round of its annual ACG Cup competition on Saturday.
The ACG Cup is a national competition that pits teams of MBA students against each other in evaluating a merger and acquisition case study.
The Wisconsin contest included preliminary rounds at Marquette University, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and University of Wisconsin-Madison. The winning team from each school competed in the final round at the Milwaukee Athletic Club on Saturday.
Each team evaluated a theoretical transaction in which two owners of a company wished to sell their equity stakes in the business and presented its recommendations to four judges.
The judges were Steve Booth, director of investment banking at Robert W. Baird & Co., Dan Eder, owner of Mayville Products Corp., Mark Witt, a shareholder at Godfrey & Kahn S.C. and Greg Marcus, president and CEO of Marcus Corp.
Joe Dahl, Pero Jovasevic and Tyler Carlson, the team from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, presented first at competition. They explained the estimated value of the selling company, their recommendation for the structure of a minority ownership, advice on potential bidding, an exit strategy for the departing owners and an evaluation of investment alternatives.
This is the second year the team has competed in the ACG Cup, Dahl said. He’s interested in it because he hopes to own a business himself someday.
“Initially it was just an opportunity to compete against other schools,” Dahl said, but he’s seen other benefits. “The relationships you build are huge.”
This is the fourth year the Wisconsin chapter has hosted an ACG Cup, said Chris Nolte of Marcus Investments LLC.
“It’s our public outreach. M&A is a fundamental skill in building businesses,” Nolte said. “I would anticipate that as the economy starts to heat up, that people will start to see value in this competition.”
It’s also an opportunity for ACG members to find new talent and hire competitors once they graduate, he said.
University of Wisconsin-Madison’s team won the 2012 ACG Cup and a $5,000 prize.

Thomas Bolger, chief executive officer of Johnson Financial Group and Racine-based Johnson Bank, and Helen Johnson-Leipold, chairman of the board, announced that the previously announced Johnson family investment of $235 million in the company has been approved by the Federal Reserve Bank.
With the additional investment, the bank’s capital ratios will be above the Fed’s well-capitalized threshold.
“This commitment by the family ensures that we will remain independent, privately-owned and focused on meeting the needs of our local customers and communities for the long term.” said Johnson-Leipold. “As we continue to enhance our services and delivery and the banking landscape continues to change, we see tremendous opportunity ahead.”
Johnson Bank occupies a unique position as a privately-held, family-owned company headquartered in Wisconsin.
“Businesses and customers are looking for a strong, local bank that will take the time to understand their unique needs and build a lifelong relationship,” Bolger said. “This investment allows us to help our customers succeed and contribute to the growth of our communities.”

U.S. Bank and The Brewery Works, Inc., the developers of downtown Milwaukee’s Schlitz Park office complex, announced that they have closed on financing for the renovation of the project’s signature RiverCenter Building and three other office buildings on the Schlitz Park campus.
U.S. Bank is providing two loans totaling $45 million. About $15 million is for new construction for the first two phases of the $30 million Schlitz Park redevelopment project, announced last year, and the remaining $30 million is for refinancing, said Schlitz Park co-owner and developer Gary Grunau.
The work financed by the U.S. Bank loans includes renovations to the 500,000-square-foot RiverCenter Building and renovation of the two Bottlehouse buildings on the campus.
Overall, the Schlitz Park renovation includes remodeling 350,000 square-feet of office space and common areas, adding fitness and conference centers and other tenant amenities, including parks and green spaces. Developers of the project will pursue US Green Building Council LEED EB (Existing Building) certification for all renovated buildings.
“As Milwaukee’s largest bank, we are thrilled to be such a big part of this signature economic development project,” said Steve McGuire, Wisconsin market manager for commercial real estate at U.S. Bank. “We have a long history of investment in this community and despite a tough economy, we’ve not pulled back on that commitment.”
“U.S. Bank is an important partner in our efforts to re-energize downtown development, recruitment and employment by creating an office community that meets the needs to today's blended work and lifestyles,” said Grunau. “The bank shares our vision for a vibrant downtown diverse in talent and services.  Their funding demonstrates their optimism, confidence and belief in a new future for downtown Milwaukee and the surrounding area.”

Eva’s Bridal Center in Oak Creek recently received a Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) Small Business Guarantee (SBG) on a loan totaling $100,000.
Proceeds from the loan will be put toward purchasing of software and inventory, funding site improvements, permanent working capital, and securing low-cost financing to support existing operations.
Eva’s Bridal Center is expecting to create three full time positions and retain nine more through the WHEDA SBG.
“Supporting Wisconsin’s small businesses is critical to putting our economy on the right track,” said WHEDA Executive Director Wyman Winston.  “WHEDA is committed to connecting Wisconsin’s small businesses to available financial resources, so they can create jobs.  We are delighted one of our many small business products can help Eva’s Bridal Center continue to thrive as they have done for the past 66 years.”
Eva’s first opened its doors as a custom made dress shop on Historic Mitchell Street on Milwaukee’s near south-side in January 1946. For decades, the popular shop was the largest destination for brides on Mitchell Street that featured a number of similar salons. Eva’s moved into its current location in Oak Creek near Milwaukee’s Mitchell International Airport in February 2005 and has more than doubled in size.

MillerCoors division acquires cider company
Tenth and Blake Beer Company, craft-and-import division of MillerCoors, has acquired Crispin Cider Company, giving it a significant presence in the beer industry's fastest-growing category.
Minneapolis-based Crispin sold its first cases on St. Crispin's Day, Oct. 25, 2008. The company grew approximately 200 percent in 2011, outpacing the overall cider category's 26 percent growth during the same period, and is already the No. 3 producer of cider in the United States.
"Our vision is to accelerate our portfolio expansion within the world's most exciting beer market. With cider's explosion in the U.S., we were looking at the best way to participate in that growth," said Tenth and Blake president and chief executive officer Tom Cardella. "As we explored the category, Crispin stood out, not only because they were the most progressive and innovative producer, but also because we shared great personal chemistry. In addition to the best cider portfolio in the business, we love their energy, creativity and unsurpassed innovation capability. They make us an even better company right away."
The Tenth and Blake family of breweries includes Blue Moon Brewing Co. at the Sandlot in Denver, Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. in Chippewa Falls, Wis., 10th Street Brewery in Milwaukee, AC Golden in Golden, Colorado, Birra Peroni in Rome and Pilsner Urquell in Pilsen, Czech Republic. Tenth and Blake beers include Blue Moon Belgian White, Leinenkugel's Honey Weiss, George Killian's Irish Red, Batch 19, Henry Weinhard's IPA, Colorado Native, Pilsner Urquell, Peroni Nastro Azzurro and Grolsch.
The new deal includes Crispin's affiliate, Fox Barrel Cider Company.
"We're thrilled to be part of the Tenth and Blake family," said Joe Heron, Crispin's CEO. "We've always had very ambitious plans, and we're proud of what we're achieving with great products and an unrivaled creativity that mirrors the inspirational American craft-beer ethos. Tenth and Blake provides us the capability to scale up at the same pace as our increasingly accelerating demand in the U.S. and beyond."
Crispin will be run as an independent division of Tenth and Blake.
"We'll continue to create our ciders in our Colfax cidery, and we'll maintain our own unique go-to-market execution," Heron said.

Regal Beloit acquires Milwaukee Gear Company
Regal Beloit Corp. announced it has acquired Milwaukee Gear Company, a manufacturer of highly engineered gearing components for oil and gas applications as well as a wide variety of other commercial and industrial applications.
The acquisition price was $80 million, subject to customary working capital adjustments, and was paid in cash.
Milwaukee Gear is expected to add approximately $60 million in revenue for the remainder of fiscal 2012. The acquisition is expected to add 3 to 6 cents to Regal Beloit’s diluted earnings per share in 2012, including the impact of purchase accounting adjustments and transaction costs, and 12 to 16 cents to diluted earnings per share in 2013. Results of operations will be reported in the Mechanical segment.
Milwaukee Gear operates a plant in Milwaukee at 150 North Port Washington Road.
"Milwaukee Gear is a very well-managed business with an excellent reputation resulting from its application engineering excellence and its high precision manufacturing processes," said Mark Gliebe, chairman and chief executive officer of Regal Beloit. "The business will be a great fit within our Mechanical segment, allowing us to offer customers a larger range of gearing solutions while diversifying our end markets.”
Additional details of the transaction will be provided during Regal Beloit’s previously announced fourth quarter and fiscal year earnings conference call on Tuesday Feb. 7 at 9 a.m. Central time.

Generac acquires Georgia manufacturer
The growth continues for Generac Holdings Inc. a Waukesha-based designer and manufacturer of generators and other engine powered products, which announced that one of its subsidiaries has acquired substantially all of the assets and certain liabilities of Gen-Tran Corp., a leading transfer switch and portable generator accessory manufacturer located in Alpharetta, Ga.
Gen-Tran’s product offering fits strategically between Generac’s existing portable generator and home standby product offering, providing a broader set of solutions for consumers and allowing the combined companies to capture additional accessory sales.
Steve Goran, vice president of business development for Generac, said, “Adding Gen-Tran products to our offering will better position our portable products as safe, reliable backup solutions while complementing our fully automatic home standby solutions. By merchandising our products together across broadened distribution channels, we believe we can capture incremental sales opportunities through a more informed consumer, further building on our position as the leader in residential backup power”
Gen-Tran president Jack Mandula will continue to manage Gen-Tran’s operations in Alpharetta. Gen-Tran’s current management team and staff have joined Generac upon closing and will help lead the integration of the company’s products and operations.
Mandula said, “As we transition under Generac’s ownership, we will continue to provide high-quality products and support to our customers. We are excited to be a part of a well-resourced company whose broad product offering and distribution channels offer tremendous opportunities for our products and customers.”

Quad/Graphics acquires Dallas printer
Quad/Graphics Inc. of Sussex has purchased Dallas-based Williamson Printing Corp., a full-service commercial and specialty products printer specializing in short- to medium-run catalogs, case-bound books, direct mail and other promotional products.
The acquisition expands the Quad/Graphics’ growing U.S. network of commercial and specialty print facilities to the Dallas-Fort Worth area, home to one of the largest concentrations of corporate headquarters in the United States.
“Williamson is an exceptional printing company with a long list of regional and national clients,” said Joel Quadracci, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Quad/Graphics. “It has a superior reputation for quality, service and innovation, and its experience and success in growing its commercial and specialty printing business will complement our own growth plans for that segment.”
Williamson’s two Dallas facilities will join Quad/Graphics’ Commercial & Specialty group, which also operates facilities in Burlington, Menomonee Falls and New Berlin, Wis.; Enfield, Conn.; and Leominster, Mass. The group provides publishers, marketers and retailers with specialized print products and services, including specialty books, catalogs and directories; marketing collateral; print-on-demand custom publications; specialty binding; and mailing and fulfillment.
Craig Faust, president of Quad/Graphics’ Commercial & Specialty group, said Williamson is part of an ongoing plan to grow commercial and specialty printing services: “Through strategic investments in technology and capabilities, we’re building a more complete, innovative and cost-effective platform for our clients while maintaining the high level of personal interaction and service they expect.”
Jesse Williamson, president of Williamson Printing, said Quad/Graphics’ financial strength and stability plus a mutual commitment to innovation and service excellence will produce a winning combination.
“We’re both innovative printers at heart, and we’re passionate about print’s crucial role in today’s multimedia landscape. The combined QuadWilliamson brand will create more value and more solutions for more clients,” said Williamson, who will continue in his leadership role with QuadWilliamson. His brother, Jerry Williamson, chairman and CEO of Williamson Printing, will serve as an advisor before retiring in the near future.

River Run Computers acquires TechQuility
Glendale-based River Run Computers Inc. announced it has purchased TechQuility, an IT firm in Mequon.
The acquisition expands River Run’s abilities to provide service for small businesses, improve market share and increase sales channels.
 The TechQuility acquisition adds engineering resources and improves advanced remote monitoring services for its customers.  Tim Ward, founder and chief executive officer for TechQuility, brings leadership and sales expertise for IT strategic planning, networking management and metric reporting to River Run.
The new group will provide on-site network management to small- and medium-sized businesses that require technology to manage and grow their businesses.
“The River Run acquisition will provide TechQuility clients more in-depth technical resources,” Ward said.  “Help-desk support services, available 24/7, are something our clients will now be able to enjoy.”
River Run Computers has experienced growth on the IT on-site management services side of its business and continues to invest in business operations.
“Small- and medium-sized businesses need cost-effective, flexible service solutions to keep their networks up and running,” said Paul Riedl Jr., CEO of River Run Computers.  “Tim Ward and his team from TechQuility bring over 20 years of certified networking experience, and we are excited to add them and their clients to our service organization.

Menasha Packaging acquires Chicago company
Menasha Packaging Company LLC has acquired The Strive Group of Chicago.
Both companies are family-owned and privately held. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
According to Mike Waite, president of Menasha Packaging, “The acquisition of Strive will enhance our merchandising supply chain model and strengthen our geographic coverage. Customers are increasingly turning to companies that can manage their entire merchandising process and the addition of Strive to Menasha Packaging will improve our offerings and strengthen our competitive position.”
The acquisition makes Menasha the largest independent in-store promotional solutions provider to retailers and CPGs in the United States.
“The Strive acquisition broadens our market penetration and the ability to provide more products and services to our customers,” said Jim Kotek, president and chief executive officer of Menasha Corp. “We believe there is an excellent strategic fit between the companies; we both are Midwest-based, family-owned companies with strong cultures and values.”
Menasha Corp. is the parent of Menasha Packaging, ORBIS Corp. and LeveragePoint Media.
Both Menasha Packaging and Strive focus on the food, household and personal care markets and provide significant design, manufacturing, fulfillment and logistics expertise to their customers.

Neenah Paper acquires Wausau division
Neenah Paper announced it has purchased the branded premium paper portion of Wausau's Fine Paper division.
"The acquisition of Wausau brands strengthens the breadth of our existing Fine Paper business with added scale in the marketplace, prospects for growth in new channels such as retail, and the opportunity to provide our customers with better service," said Julie Schertell, president of Neenah Fine Paper. "Astrobrights is the market leading brand in the bright, vivid color segment of our market. We are excited to add this strong brand to our portfolio, as well as the complimentary textures in the Royal brand family. I'm very pleased with our customers' responses following our initial announcement, as well as the support we have received from the Wausau organization throughout the initial transition phase. As of today, we are taking orders on our new brands and we're well-positioned for a smooth transition with our customers."
Neenah's primary focus in the coming months will be the effort to integrate the acquired division.
Neenah Paper is headquartered in Alpharetta, Ga., and operates a plant in Neenah, Wis.

Fiserv projects continued growth
Fiserv Inc., a Brookfield-based provider of financial services technology solutions, reported fourth quarter net income of $143 million, or $1.01 per share, up from $116 million, or 78 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.
The company’s quarterly revenue grew to $1.2 billion from $1.1 billion a year earlier.
"Revenue growth in the quarter was at its highest level in more than three years leading to our 26th consecutive year of double-digit adjusted EPS growth," said Jeffery Yabuki, president and chief executive officer of Fiserv. "Our market leading solutions have us well positioned to capitalize on important trends in the financial services industry."
Fiserv expects 2012 adjusted revenue growth to be in a range of 4 to 6 percent and adjusted internal revenue growth to be in a range of 3.0 to 4.5 percent. The company also expects 2012 adjusted earnings per share to be in a range of $5.04 to $5.20, which represents growth of 10 to 14 percent over $4.58 in 2011.
"Two consecutive years of strong sales along with the introduction of new, highly valued solutions, have us well positioned to deliver additional client value and enhance growth," Yabuki said.

ZBB Energy Corp. to sell more stock shares
ZBB Energy Corp., a Menomonee Falls-based developer of intelligent, renewable energy power platforms, announced that it has entered into a securities purchase agreement for a registered direct offering with several investors to sell a total of 4.2 million shares of common stock for gross proceeds of $3.0 million.
The shares will be sold for a per share purchase price of 71 cents. MDB Capital Group LLC acted as the placement agent for this offering.
ZBB also entered into a stock purchase agreement with certain members of its board of directors, officers and advisors providing for the sale of a total of 206,250 shares of common stock for a price per share equal to 80 cents, which was the closing price of the company's common stock on Jan. 30.
Eric Apfelbach, chief executive officer of ZBB Energy Corp., said, "This financing not only strengthens our balance sheet, but also continues to demonstrate our ability to attract fundamental investors and raise money with attractive terms. The participation from directors and management is a reflection of the belief in the mission."
The transactions are expected to close on or about Feb. 7, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

Earnings rise for Modine
Modine Manufacturing Company, a Racine-based provider of thermal management technology and solutions, reported fiscal third quarter net earnings of $8.3 million, or 18 cents per share, up from $5.6 million, or 12 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.
The company’s quarterly sales grew to $373 million from $360 million a year earlier.
"We had another solid quarter, with a $7.1 million or 77 percent improvement in earnings from operations," said Modine president and chief executive officer Thomas Burke. "Our net earnings were negatively impacted by $2.1 million of foreign exchange losses and a $2.2 million asset write-off. Despite these impacts, our earnings per share increased 50 percent. Also during the quarter, we began to see softening in the European truck and premium automotive markets, and our Asian customers began working down inventory levels in the construction equipment market. These factors, combined with the foreign exchange losses, are prompting us to lower full year fiscal 2012 guidance for revenue growth and earnings per share."

ManpowerGroup reports robust quarter
ManpowerGroup reported fourth quarter net earnings of $63.6 million, or 78 cents per share, up from a net loss of $350.4 million, or $4.29 per share, in the same period a year ago.
The Milwaukee company’s revenues for the quarter totaled $5.5 billion, an increase of 5 percent from the year earlier period.
Included in the current year fourth quarter results is a reorganization charge, primarily related to office consolidations and severance costs, of $20.5 million. Net earnings in the quarter were not significantly impacted by changes in foreign currencies.
The prior year fourth quarter results included a goodwill and intangible asset impairment charge of $4.70 per diluted share and a reorganization charge of 25 cents per diluted share.
"We had a strong fourth quarter performance," said Jeffrey Joerres, ManpowerGroup chairman and chief executive officer. "The team executed well both operationally and strategically - we were able to achieve a 29 percent increase in underlying operating profit for the fourth quarter and 61 percent for the year, while substantially moving forward our strategic drivers. Our Solutions business continued to gain momentum as our clients are valuing our portfolio of offerings. Asia continued to lead the pack in revenue and profitability growth.”
Looking ahead, Joerres said, “We are cautiously optimistic about the first quarter, given the economic back drop, but any sizable disruption in Europe would affect our performance. We are anticipating the first quarter of 2012 diluted earnings per share to be in the range of 30 cents to 38 cents with an unfavorable currency impact of 2 cents per share."

Oak Creek plants spark Wisconsin Energy earnings
Wisconsin Energy Corp. reported fourth quarter net income of $116.0 million, or 50 cents per share, down from $125.9 million, or 53 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.
The company’s quarterly revenues grew to $1.11 billion from $1.09 billion a year earlier.
For the full year 2011, the firm’s revenues rose to $4.49 billion, up from $4.20 billion in 2010.
A major factor contributing to the year’s strong performance was income from the company’s Power the Future plan. Earnings from Power the Future assets increased by 18 cents a share, driven by investment in the second new generating unit at the company’s Oak Creek site. The second expansion unit at Oak Creek began commercial service in January 2011.
For the year, consumption of electricity by large commercial and industrial customers grew slightly – by 0.3 percent – while electricity use by small commercial and industrial customers was down by 0.3 percent.  Residential electricity use declined by 1.8 percent from the prior year because of milder summer weather.
“Our sales to large commercial and industrial customers came in better than forecast,” said Gale Klappa, chairman, president, and chief executive of Wisconsin Energy. “We expected a decline in sales because of known plant closings in the region.  As the year progressed, however, we saw strength in several sectors – including iron ore mining, specialty steel, industrial machinery, and printing and publishing.”
At the end of December, the company was serving 2,267 more electric customers and 3,748 more natural gas customers than a year ago.
“By virtually every meaningful measure, 2011 was an exceptional year for Wisconsin Energy,” Klappa said.  “We achieved milestones in customer satisfaction, employee safety, and network reliability.  We delivered solid earnings growth and made significant progress toward a dividend payout that is more competitive with our peers.”
The company also announced that Susan Martin has been appointed executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary of Wisconsin Energy Corp., effective March 1.
Martin, 59, who currently serves as vice president, corporate secretary and associate general counsel, will succeed James Fleming, who has served as executive vice president and general counsel since 2006. Fleming has announced his intention to retire at the end of March. He will assist Martin with the transition until the date of his retirement.
Martin has served in her current role since 2007 and has been the lead counsel on environmental matters and on issues related to the company's power generation business. She joined We Energies in 2000 as an attorney and was appointed law director of We Generation in 2006. Prior to joining We Energies, Martin was associated with the law firm of Foley & Lardner LLP in Milwaukee.
"Susan brings to her new position a depth of experience and an excellent understanding of our business," Klappa said. "She has been a key advisor during the execution of our Power the Future plan, and her addition to our senior team continues our tradition of recognizing strong and effective leadership."
Fleming, 66, joined Wisconsin Energy in 2006 from Southern Company, where he had served as associate general counsel for eight years.
"Jim has been an integral part of Wisconsin Energy's success, helping to guide our company through a series of challenging and complex issues. His insight, work ethic and team spirit have made him an exceptional general counsel. We wish him well as he begins his much-deserved retirement," said Klappa.

Kohl’s raises earnings guidance
Menomonee Falls-based Kohl's Corp. reported that its comparable store sales increased 0.6 percent in January compared to the same month a year ago.
Kevin Mansell, Kohl's chairman, president and chief executive officer, said, "January's sales were in-line with our expectations. I am pleased to report that we achieved our goal of $1 billion in E-Commerce revenues in fiscal 2011. The E-Commerce business was a key contributor to our fiscal 2011 sales performance and we plan to build on its momentum in 2012. Additionally, strong expense management during the quarter contributed to better-than-expected profitability."
As a result of its January performance, the company is increasing its fourth quarter diluted earnings per share guidance from $1.70 - $1.73 to $1.79 - $1.80 and its fiscal 2011 guidance from $4.20 - $4.23 per diluted share to $4.29 - $4.30 per diluted share.
The company operates 1,127 stores in 49 states, compared with 1,089 stores at the same time last year.
Other retailers reporting national comparable store sales for January included: Saks Inc., up 10.5 percent; The Limited, up 9.0 percent; Costco, up 8.0 percent; Target Corp., up 4.3 percent; Macy’s Inc., up 2.4 percent; Bon-Ton Stores Inc., down 3.5 percent; and The Gap, down 4.0 percent.

Snap-on caps robust year
Snap-on Inc. reported fourth quarter net earnings of $74.3 million, or $1.27 per share, up from $57.9 million, or 99 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.
The Kenosha tool manufacturer’s quarterly sales grew to $736.6 million from $696.9 million a year earlier.
The company’s full year 2011 sales of $2.85 billion increased 9.0 percent from prior year levels. Full year 2011 net earnings were $276.3 million, or $4.71 per diluted share.
"Our fourth quarter results extend our ongoing trend of year-over-year increases in sales and earnings," said Nick Pinchuk, Snap-on chairman and chief executive officer. "We believe they once again offer clear testimony to the continued advancements we're making along our defined runways for coherent growth, which are those strategic areas of importance we have identified as being decisive to our future: enhancing the franchise network, expanding in the vehicle repair garage, extending into critical industries, and building in emerging markets. We further believe our fourth quarter and full year 2011 performance underscores our commitment to the Snap-on Value Creation Processes, which has enabled us to further navigate our runways for improvement in the crucial areas of safety, quality, customer connection, innovation and rapid continuous improvement (RCI) and has fueled our ongoing trend of increasing profitability. Finally, our encouraging results for both the fourth quarter and full year of 2011 reflect significant effort and achievement across our entire company; I thank all our franchisees and associates worldwide for their dedication to Snap-on and for their ongoing contributions and commitment to our team."

Johnson Outdoors compensates for drop in military sales
Racine-based Johnson Outdoors Inc. reported a fiscal first quarter net loss of $2.9 million, or 30 cents per share, compared with a net loss of $1.2 million, or 13 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.
Among the factors that produced the net loss were non-recurring costs and charges totaling $1.1 million related to restructuring of European operations and an asset write-off associated with the transfer of the company's historic Old Town Canoe facility to the city of Old Town, Maine.
The company’s announced revenue grew 2 percent to more than $80 million during the quarter, despite a 66-percent drop in year-over-year military tent sales.
"Steady recovery of outdoor recreational markets remains central to continued progress against our strategic plan to ensure sustained profitability. Current economic conditions in key regions present a mixed picture of expectations for outdoor markets the remainder of the year. In North America and Asia, initial indicators are favorable for ongoing recovery, while uncertainty continues throughout Europe, particularly in southern European markets," said Helen Johnson-Leipold, chairman and chief executive officer. "While it is too early to predict how the year will go, our focus remains on sustaining marketplace momentum, gaining additional share and strengthening operations."

Banking

• Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions 
• Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
• Wisconsin Bankers Association 
• Community Bankers of Wisconsin
• Wisconsin Mortgage Bankers Association
• American Bankers Association
• Bankers Association for Finance and Trade
• Commercial Finance Association 
• Risk Management Association

Mergers & Acquisitions

• Association for Corporate Growth 
• International Business Brokers Association 
• Midwest Business Brokers and Intermediaries

Wealth Management/Financial/Retirement Planning

• Financial Planning Association
• Financial Planning Association of Southern Wisconsin
• Investment Management Consultants Association
• National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA)

Other 

• Society of Financial Service Providers
• Small Business Administration
• State public awareness campaign
• Wisconsin Credit Union League
• CFA Institute
• CFA Society of Milwaukee
• Wisconsin Angel Network
• Wisconsin Institute of CPAs