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St. Louis Business & Technology News
"When you think Saint Louis, think Saint Louis Front Page," a weekly publication covering the news and events in the greater St. Louis area. 
How To Reach Us:St. Louis Front Page P.O. Box 1354 St. Louis, MO 63188 Voice: 314-771-0200 Fax: 314-771-0300 To submit news, contact: editor@slfp.com To advertise, contact: advertising@slfp.com |
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Two St. Louis-Based Companies Named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 National Award Winners ST. LOUIS, MO (PRNewswire-FirstCall), November 20, 2007 - Michael V. Roberts, co-founder, chairman and chief executive officer, and Steven C. Roberts, co-founder, president and chief operating officer of Roberts Hotels Group have been named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 national award winners in the Emerging Category. The business partners and brothers were recognized for expanding Roberts Hotels Group from a single hotel in 2003 to nearly a dozen properties in the Midwest and South in less than five years. Michael V. and Steven C. Roberts were honored as the national winners in the Emerging Category at a gala in Palm Springs. Awards were given in nine additional categories. All Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year winners were selected by an independent panel of judges from approximately 400 regional award recipients. The Roberts Hotels Group is a subsidiary of the Roberts Companies, also owned by the brothers. Over the last three decades they have developed more than 70 ventures, from consulting and construction management companies to highly successful broadcasting and wireless businesses. Hotel Venture Tied to Hometown Spirit Michael V. and Steven C. Roberts founded Roberts Hotels Group to purchase their first property, the historic Mayfair Hotel in downtown St. Louis. The 1917 St. Louis fixture was in disrepair and the brothers wanted to contribute to the revitalization of their hometown. It also created additional real estate opportunities. The refurbished Mayfair triggered other development in the area, including a 24-story condominium project connected to the hotel. The brothers have quickly grown the hotel division of their company. In less than five years, the Roberts Hotels Group has expanded to 11 properties in six states, following a similar pattern of taking over existing hotels and investing in the brothers' brand of personal management care. Most of the company's hotel properties were brand name hotels before becoming part of the Roberts Hotels Group. That strategy of working with larger, established hotel brands has propelled the company into the hospitality mainstream. Additional properties are already planned in St. Louis and Memphis. Michael V. Roberts is the chairman of the National Association of Black Hotel Owners and Operators, working to increase ownership by African Americans and help other emerging entrepreneurs. The Roberts brothers say their hotel group is as much a commitment to a community as an industry. Ronald J. Kruszewski, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF) was named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 national award winner in the Financial Services Category. Kruszewski was recognized for turning the company around, leading it from troubled times to become one of the nation's premier independent brokerage and investment banking firms and one of the largest domestic equity research franchises outside of Wall Street. Kruszewski was honored as the national winner in the Financial Services Category at a gala in Palm Springs. Awards were given in nine additional categories. All Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year winners were selected by an independent panel of judges from approximately 400 regional award recipients. From the Brink to Success Kruszewski was only 38 years old when he took over leadership of Stifel Financial Corp. At that time, the company was shrinking and faced significant litigation with the IRS. Because of those problems, the then 107 year old company was rumored to be for sale. Kruszewski rallied his staff with a clear focus and entrepreneurial spirit. He turned the organizational chart upside down, empowering associates and giving them an equity stake in the company. The strategy worked and the company began to thrive. Since 1997, Stifel Financial has had 11 straight years of record revenues - from $122.8 million to more than $800 million expected this year - and a nearly sixfold increase in the value of the company's stock. Founded in St. Louis in 1890, Stifel continues to grow and position itself for the future. In 2005 Kruszewski orchestrated the largest acquisition in the company's history, with the addition of the Legg Mason Capital Markets business from Citigroup, Inc. The transaction effectively doubled the company's size and increased its geographic footprint while adding new capabilities. In 2007, Stifel acquired Ryan Beck & Co, Inc., a regional brokerage firm based in New Jersey. That addition makes Stifel the 12th largest brokerage firm in the country. Kruszewski was the first in his family to go to college, graduating from Indiana University in 1981. His father worked three jobs to support the family and Kruszewski credits his parents with teaching him the value of hard work. Overall Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 National Winner Isaac Larian, the president and CEO of MGA Entertainment, was named the Overall Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 National Winner. Additional Entrepreneur Of The Year Category Award Winners -- Marc Benioff of San Francisco based Salesforce.com, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) was named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 national winner in the Technology Category. -- William Gay of W. W. Gay Mechanical Contractor, Inc. in Jacksonville, Florida was named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 national winner in the Real Estate, Hospitality & Construction Category. -- Harold Hamm of Continental Resources, Inc. (NYSE:CLR) in Enid, Oklahoma was named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 national winner in the Energy, Chemicals & Mining Category. -- Harold "Max" Messmer, Jr. of Robert Half International Inc. (NYSE:RHI) in Menlo Park, California was named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 national winner in the Services Category. -- Pamela B. Morris of CareSource Management Group in Dayton, Ohio was named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 national winner in the Health Sciences Category. -- Manu Shah of M S International, Inc. of Orange, California was named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 national winner in the Distribution, Manufacturing & Security Category. -- Michael Walrath of New York's Right Media was named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2007 national winner in the Media, Entertainment & Communications Category. Now in its 21st year, the awards recognize leaders and visionaries who demonstrate innovation, financial success and personal commitment as they create and build world-class businesses. Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are pleased to have Bank of America as the national presenting sponsor, as well as SAP America and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation as national sponsors.
ST. LOUIS, MO (PRNewswire-FirstCall), November 20, 2007 - St. Louis-based Sigma-Aldrich(TM), a life science and high technology company, recently gave a $1 million donation to the school. The donation, the third largest in Sigma-Aldrich history, comes in the form of product inventory and lab equipment that will be used by the university's medical school research teams. "Sigma-Aldrich's donation of valuable reagents, equipment and books to Saint Louis University is a generous gift from a local company that is a leader in the biomedical industry," said Jennifer Lodge, Ph.D., associate dean for research at Saint Louis University School of Medicine. "This gift could spur new research projects that otherwise couldn't have been started, or enhance ongoing projects within the Edward A. Doisy Research Center as well as the rest of the SLU research community." Saint Louis University will be naming the sixth floor of the new Doisy Research Center after Sigma-Aldrich. The $82 million facility will make it possible for SLU scientists to further research discoveries in five key areas: cancer, liver disease, heart/lung disease, aging and brain disease, and vaccine development for a variety of infectious diseases. "Like Father Biondi and Saint Louis University, we too are committed to enabling scientific discovery by providing valuable tools that researchers use to improve our collective quality of life," said Mike Hogan, Chief Financial Officer at Sigma-Aldrich. "We're delighted that our program coincides with the unveiling of SLU's great new facility and that it, in some small way, will help accelerate SLU's success through what we all hope will be breathtaking discoveries." In total, Sigma-Aldrich is making $6 million in inventory donations this year to 15 institutions around the world including: Hiram College, Hiram, Ohio; Illinois Math & Science Academy, Aurora, Ill.; Lindenwood University, St. Charles, Mo.; Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wis.; Midwestern University, Downers Grove, Ill.; the St. Louis Science Center; the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minn.; the University of Missouri-St. Louis, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Washington University in St. Louis; Technische Universitat Munchen, Munich, Germany; Universitat Marburg, Marburg, Germany; and Technische Universitat Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany.  
The Saint Louis Front Page is owned and maintained by the Moore Design Group for the sole purpose of disseminating news and information about the Metropolitan Saint Louis area. Text or graphics may not be copied, rewritten or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission. For more information, contact editor@slfp.com All rights reserved world wide © 1996 - 2008 Moore Design Group. |
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