Husband and Wife Team win 2012 Entrepreneur Award

Wednesday, April 18, The Muskegon Lakeshore Chamber of Commerce awarded a Muskegon Lakeshore couple with the 2012 Outstanding Entrepreneur Award. Garry and Charlotte Olson, owners of Lakeshore Document Services, were awarded at the Annual Entrepreneur Award Luncheon at Watermark 920.

ABOUT THE OLSONS:
Garry and Charlotte Olson opened Lakeshore Document Services in 1995. They have since expanded services to include document shredding, film conversion, and internet-based file management. They have also developed digital document software for the libraries and museums that is now being marketed nationwide.  In the past five years, they have doubled the size of their workforce and increased revenue by 75%. In 2011 alone, they recycled 1.5 million pounds of shredded paper and achieved a document storage box count of over 100,000 containers. The company currently has clients all over the state, and is expanding into Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin.

The Olsons work with companies to become more productive and efficient, while using fewer resources. Their “Scan-On-Demand” services have lowered costs for their customers and are environmentally-friendly. Community means a lot to this husband and wife team.  Over the years they have served on boards for Visiting Nurses, Friends of Hackley Library and their church.  They have also volunteered for Junior Achievement and Love, INC, as well as coached Mona Shores hockey, and worked with the school’s band and choir programs.  

ABOUT THE AWARD:
The Chamber received nominations from the community for the 2012 Entrepreneur Award, and a selection committee comprised of past award recipients chose this year’s winner. Other finalists for the 2012 award include Jason Piasecki for Revel; and Orville Crain, Matt Jacobs and Jeff Kempker for Klever Innovations. The candidates were evaluated using criteria, including growth in sales, innovation, staying power, employee relations, respect for the environment, response to adversity, and contributions to the community.

YOUNG ENTREPRENEUR AWARD:
Along with awarding an established entrepreneur, the Chamber also announced the winner of the 2012 Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. The 2012 winner is Nick Taylor, a senior from Holton High School and financial management/accounting student at the Muskegon Area Career Tech Center (MACTC).  His business concept is Heart, a sports training facility for young athletes looking to enhance their skills in baseball, soccer, or wrestling. He will receive a total of $1,000 in scholarship money from Next IT, Klever Innovations, and the Muskegon Inventors Network. 

This is the third annual Young Entrepreneur Award given to a high school student of the Muskegon Area Career Tech Center. Each student had to develop a credible business plan, meet with a business counselor, and present their proposed business to community leaders and entrepreneurs. The other 2012 finalists include Oakridge senior, Torey Melton and Muskegon Heights senior, Damarrius Houston.

ABOUT THE EVENT:
Roughly 200 people attended the 2012 Entrepreneur Award luncheon at Watermark 920, which featured a keynote presentation from Jon Sorber, Executive Vice President and one of the original ‘two men’ from Two Men and a Truck International. Sorber started the company while he was still in high school with his brother, Brig Sorber. The company that began in Grand Rapids Michigan has blossomed into one of the largest moving companies in the country with approximately 1,300 trucks on the road and 220 franchise locations world-wide. The story he shared with the audience was of his family’s triumphs and tragedies as the national brand was built.