Wintrust, a Chicago-based financial services company and family of com­munity banks, opened its first bank branch in Naples less than two years ago, and has already built a significant presence in the region to cater to its seasonal clients. Widely recognized in the Midwest. Wintrust operates more than 180... Read more

A pair of entrepreneurial builders have scored some impressive wins across Southwest Florida in just two years. In 2018 industry veterans Chris Curran and Bruce Young launched Curran Young Construction with technology at the heart of the operation, giving them an edge over less nimble competitors. The combination of... Read more

From the outside, you might believe industrial parks are boring. Indeed, many appear to be filled with plain-vanilla distribution buildings whose most eye-catching features are loading docks. But if that’s your perception of industrial parks, you haven’t met John McGarvey. Through his commercial building companies, McGarvey Development Co. and... Read more

When Al Miller started Wildcat Renovation in 2013, he used all his savings to launch the Fort Myers-based company and hire 15 employees. It was a huge risk starting from scratch with so many people. “I had enough money to run for six weeks,” says Miller. “There was no... Read more

about to hit the marina industry and a pair of Southwest Florida entrepreneurs are the first to ride it. Robert Brown, founder and CEO of GCM Contracting Solutions, and Todd Carroll, a longtime hotelier and commercial property owner, have teamed up to build Gulf Star Marina, which is poised... Read more

Few entrepreneurs in recent memory have had as great an impact on Southwest Florida as the Hoffmann family. Over the past six years, the family has acquired a half-billion dollars’ worth of real estate and operating businesses from Marco Island to Estero. The string of rapid-fire, high-profile acquisitions ranged... Read more

In 2016, Marc Devisse was attending a golf tournament organized by the Bonita Springs Chamber of Commerce when the group’s president suggested that Devisse run for city council. Despite his lack of political experience, Devisse jumped into the race, campaigning nonstop around town even as he was growing the... Read more

When David Crowther drew up plans for a new roofing company in 2009, his living room was his office, his timing less than ideal. It was the height of the recession and the longtime roofer had split from his family’s roofing business. Regardless of the challenges, Crowther was determined... Read more

One of the keys to Cougar’s  success is the company’s  investment in technology. When Ron Schmitt started the  company’s Fort Myers operations  in 1981, he began with a $400  handheld gas saw that sprayed  dust and slurry. Today, Cougar team  members operate $50,000 concrete  saws that are Bluetooth-enabled  with... Read more

When Ron Schmitt pulled into Fort Myers in 1981, the assets of Cougar Cutting were the Buick he was driving and a concrete saw in the trailer he was pulling. “I couldn’t afford a truck,” chuckles Schmitt, who expanded the business from Michigan with his wife Shari, and his... Read more