Marshalltown-based McGregors Furniture has announced it is closing its Coralville location permanently. CREDIT MCGREGORS
McGregors Furniture is closing its Coralville location after 33 years in business.
In a letter mailed to customers, the small chain of Iowa furniture stores said "it is with a heavy heart that we have made the difficult decision to close the doors to our Coralville location forever."
The company plans to liquidate its entire inventory and close the 40,000-square-foot showroom at 2211 Second St.
"That location was just not working for us currently," said Erin McGregor, the company's president, adding that McGregors could potentially consider another store in the Corridor down the road. "We are always looking for new locations."
Although economic fallout from the pandemic has taken a toll on all retailers, Ms. McGregor said it was not the main reason for closing the Coralville store.
The 124-year old chain has served customers in both Iowa and Illinois over the years, but has scaled back operations in recent years, closing locations in Mason City in 2019 and in Fort Dodge in 2018. There are three remaining McGregors outlets in Marshalltown, Ottumwa and Waterloo.
McGregor Furniture Co. was founded in 1896 in Oskaloosa by James McGregor, Ms. McGregor's great-grandfather.
A preferred customer advance notice liquidation begins today and goes through Monday.
In the CBJ: CR's Almost Famous takes its treats to DM
Bill, Robyn, Sydney and Carter Rieckhoff, who launched Almost Famous Popcorn with a stand at NewBo City Market, are expanding the business to Des Moines. PHOTO ALMOST FAMOUS
It might have started as a humble stand in NewBo City Market eight years ago, but things are popping off for the young entrepreneurs behind Almost Famous - even in the middle of a pandemic.
In the span of one month, the Cedar Rapids-based popcorn company has expanded into the Des Moines market, collected $10,000 as a finalist in this year's statewide Main Street Open 4 Business competition and snagged a spot on the CBJ's 2020 Fastest Growing Companies list (see next week's issue).
Founders Sydney and Carter Rieckhoff, just 13 and 10 years old when they opened their market stand in 2012, are not done yet. With the help of parents Bill and Robyn Rieckhoff, the family hopes to make Almost Famous a major player across the Midwest, with locations in larger metros like Minneapolis and Chicago, while also positioning the company as the go-to online popcorn delivery service on a national level.
"We've seen incredible growth in so many ways," said Sydney Rieckhoff, now 22 and a recent graduate of Stanford University, who oversaw operations at Almost Famous remotely while completing her degree in international relations and spending her final semester in Madrid, Spain. "We'd like to become a place where when it's somebody's birthday or anniversary, Almost Famous is like 1-800-FLOWERS. People just think of us."
In many ways, Almost Famous has grown and matured alongside its founders, who grew up in an entrepreneurial family. At one point the Rieckhoffs had a family business cleaning bathrooms.
"Popcorn is a lot more fun," Ms. Rieckhoff joked, adding that when she and her sibling weren't helping out with family businesses, they were running lemonade stands and concocting other money-making enterprises.
When they heard NewBo City Market was interested in a popcorn and ice cream concession, they jumped on the opportunity after first pitching it to their parents, who agreed to oversee the fledgling startup.
"We [told market management], 'We know we're only 10 and 13, but we think we're more than capable of handling this,'" Ms. Rieckhoff recalled. Their presentation was evidently convincing, because they were given the concession, with Carter in charge of popcorn and Sydney of ice cream.
Read the full story in this week's print or digital editions of the CBJ.
Cedar Rapids business owners and neighbors continue to help each other out after last week's derecho storm left thousands without power. News partner KCRG-TV9 talked to one of those people, Willie Ray Fairley, owner of Willie Ray's Q Shack on Cedar Rapids' Northeast side. "I just got my food truck and was ready to start selling, but once the storm hit I thought there might be something better to do with the food," said Mr. Fairley, who instead of allowing food to go bad, cooked it up and distributed it to his neighbors. One week later, Mr. Fairley is still helping his neighbors, serving hundreds of hamburgers and hot dogs to long lines of grateful residents. Read the full story and watch the video here.
Allegra Marketing Print Mail in Coralville has been honored with an award from leading marketing, print and graphic communications franchise network, Alliance Franchise Brands.
The annual award recognizes excellence in sales and customer service and comes as Allegra is providing critical resources to help local businesses reopen safely and quickly as restrictions are lifted.
"We are all in this together, contributing to the reopening and comeback for our business community," Celeste Hutchinson, owner of Allegra, said in a release. "This recognition reminds us that no one does it alone. Our loyal customers are the ones we honor, and we share this award with them."
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Allegra quickly moved to support local businesses and continues to serve the community with creative and innovative indoor and outdoor signage solutions.
As Johnson County works to reopen amidst the lifting of local restrictions, Allegra has created resources for businesses, including reopening guidelines that offer a comprehensive checklist methodology. Allegra can also provide all necessary graphics and signs needed to reopen swiftly and easily, creating a safe environment for customers and employees.
Located at 411 Second Street, Suite C, Allegra serves the communications needs of small and medium-sized organizations - graphic design, printing, direct mail marketing, signs, banners and vehicle graphics.
Consulting: Buyers, already motivated, find fuel in SBA incentives
In this week's consulting spotlight, Scott Bushkie of Cornerstone Business Services discusses U.S. Small Business Administration initiatives to promote business acquisitions.
SBA relief efforts are incentivizing buyers to move ahead with business acquisitions. Per the SBA website, "the SBA will pay six months of principal, interest, and any associated fees that borrowers owe for all current ... as well as new 7(a), 504, and microloans disbursed prior to September 27, 2020."
This is a massive incentive. The SBA is covering loan payments for six months. What's more, they're taking care of the loan fees for you.
On a loan of $5 million, SBA fees could be about $138,125 or more. That's free money for buyers who get their loan issued before the Sept. 27 deadline. As an added incentive, SBA lenders have the authority to defer loan payments for six months. Some buyers could acquire a new business and have a full year of payment-free operations ahead.
SBA incentives are one reason buyers are looking to acquire businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Here's what's driving three main buyer groups:
Individual buyers: As a prime utilizer of SBA loans, individual buyers will take advantage of these incentives. In light in recent layoffs, individuals may be motivated to take control of their own destiny.
Strategic buyers: These existing businesses are looking long-term. They know how competitive the market was a couple of months ago, and they aren't going to let a temporary dip in operations deter their growth plans.
Private equity: These firms have deep coffers and have a limited time frame to act. They need to create returns for their investors and they do that by buying businesses.
In the recent Market Pulse survey from IBBA and M&A Source, we found that of the small and medium businesses for sale, about 35% had closed, 40% were operating at partial capacity, 4% had benefited, and 21% remained unaffected by COVID-19.
Even if sales drop, there's value in demonstrating your business was in any way essential. Alternately, non-essential businesses that can pivot to an online or contactless business model will also be attractive.
Buyer demand is still there. As for valuations, that will depend on the nature of your business and the structure of the deal. But know this: Most business sales are calculated as a multiple of adjusted cash flow or EBITDA. It's typical to make adjustments for one-time expenses and unusual events. Buyers and lenders may apply the same "normalizing" adjustments to your financials, especially if you can recover quickly.
But to get full value, you may need to share the risk. Buyers may ask for more seller financing or earn out in the months ahead.
CBJ Book of Lists 2021
It's time to review and update your information for the upcoming 2021 Book of Lists. Surveys are being sent out the month of August so check your email. After completing, email back to
Experts say small businesses need to "erase their white boards and start over" in a year when nothing looks to be returning to normal anytime soon, according to Yahoo Finance.
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Short-Term Event Planner
Aug. 25
COVID-19 Manufacturing Roundtable, by Iowa State CIRAS, 7:30 a.m., online. This roundtable will provide updates on COVID-19, share best practices and host expert speakers. Free. To register, visit bit.ly/3goiINP.
Aug. 26
1 Million Cups, by 1MC Cedar Rapids, 8:15 a.m., online. Join for community connections and presentations by entrepreneurs, established companies, experts and more. Free. For more information, visit facebook.com/1MCICR.
1 Million Cups, by 1MC Iowa City, 9 a.m., online. Join for community connections and presentations by entrepreneurs, established companies, experts and more. Free. For more information, visit facebook.com/1MillionCupsIC.
Aug. 27
Remote Leaders' Online Roundtable, by Executive Coach Jennifer Zach, 10-10:30 a.m., online. Touch base with other leaders leading remote teams, exchange resources, and share best practices. Free. To join, visit bit.ly/3j5gXqm.
Power of No: Taking Back Your Life and Your Priorities, by Kirkwood Corporate Training, 1 p.m., online. Learn how to set boundaries for yourself, gain more time and energy for the things you love and create a more balanced life with positive energy. Facilitated byBrooke Fitzgerald, of The Restoration Project. Free. To register, visit bit.ly/3g3EuWW.
Headlines from KCRG-TV9
These news items are provided by KCRG-TV9
President Donald Trump is expected to sign an individual disaster declaration for Iowans today, according to Gov. Kim Reynolds. "We've talked to the White House, it has left FEMA. It is now at the White House," Reynolds said at a press conference. The declaraton will help people get money to help with repairs, food loss, and more following last week's derecho. The president had already signed off on funds to help cities, counties, and businesses.
Reynolds also said the Iowa National Guard still has 11 crews out across the state, and have so far cleared debris from 327 city blocks. She stressed restoring power continues to be a priority. "A lot of progress has been made, but there's still quite a bit of work left to do," she said. "MidAmerican Energy has restored almost 100% of storm damaged outages in their area and has even deployed crews to support Alliant Energy's recovery efforts in Linn County and elsewhere." Reynolds also said 14 school districts have reported damage, and she'll update her disaster proclamation on Friday because of it. It will allow schools to move their primary education plans to remote learning for districts impacted by the derecho.
The University of Iowa will be starting classes in just a few days, and most of those will be taught online. The university said all classes that have more than 50 people will be taught virtually and most of the undergraduate classes would also be online. Students and staff can apply to have alternate learning when they return, but some students and staff said they don't feel safe. On Wednesday, about 100 people marched to the UI President's home in Iowa City asking for all learning to be done online. "My partner and I are worried that we would not have the access to everything we need, and it might end up in death," said grad student Raquel Wood. Wood has asthma, which is an underlying condition for COVID-19. For school, she goes into classrooms and helps young students with language and literacy. She said it's a very hands-on type of learning. "A lot of students are worried about being out in public and being in multiple public schools with kids," she said. "They don't feel like their voices are being heard." Read the full story here.
These news items are provided by KCRG-TV9
Your KCRG-TV9 First Alert Forecast
Plan on another nice one with highs into the mid-80s this afternoon. Humidity will once again remain low. As high pressure moves to the east in the coming days, the slow warmup will continue and highs in the upper 80s are likely this weekend. Some spots may also hit 90. Rain chances remain very low in this pattern, but if something does flare up, it still looks to be later Saturday into Saturday night.
McGregors to close Coralville store after 33 years in business 
