The Pottawatomie County Economic Development Corporation and the Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce continue to work with NetWork Kansas as an E-Community partner. As part of this collaboration, entrepreneurs and small businesses can leverage NetWork Kansas loan funds and training opportunities to help expand and grow their enterprises.
Statewide, NetWork Kansas has granted 873 loans totaling $28.4M as of January 2023. Loan recipients have included women- and minority-owned enterprises and represented restaurant, retail and manufacturing sectors.
Some of the latest recipients of these resources include Jeff and Jennifer Pishny of Classic Auto Wash and Kris Wetherington of Coldsteel Sluggers. We connected with the two Manhattan business owners so they could share how they’ve benefitted from the NetWork Kansas loan funds.
Classic Auto Wash is a family owned, local business. The facility has five manual car wash bays, two touchless automatic wash bays and three climate-controlled dog wash bays. With a focus on customer service and providing a clean, inviting place to take care of your car, we work continuously to improve equipment and facilities to provide an excellent customer wash experience. We also clean daily (usually twice a day on weekends). We have our business number easily accessible so customers can call us if they experience any issues. We want our customers to feel valued and to know that we will provide the best wash facility in the area.
The facility was built in 2007 and operated until early 2020. We bought it in July 2022 and opened in September 2022 after making updates and repairs to the dog bays and manual bays. Equipment for the two automatic wash bays needed to be replaced because the existing ones could not be repaired. Those two bays become operational in early 2023.
We used the E-Community loan to purchase the refurbished touchless automatic wash equipment. This resource was a critical piece of our business proposal. Although many customers like the manual wash bays, about half prefer the automatic bays.
During the purchase process, we found the Small Business Development Center, housed inside the Manhattan Chamber offices, to be incredibly helpful. They provided us with tools and guidance to create an informative business plan. Not only was this necessary for the financing process, but it gave us the data we need to make smart business decisions now and in the future. We have also made great connections with our neighbors, Howie's Recycling and Thomas Signs. The owners and employees of both businesses have been very supportive and offered assistance as we got this business up and running.
Classic Auto Wash is located at 925 Fort Riley Blvd. in Manhattan.
Our business is a baseball/softball training academy. We use trainers to instruct youth on becoming better players. From group lessons and private lessons to clinics, we provide all the training needed to enhance each player’s ability. We also offer 24/7 access to batting cages and training equipment for members who want to practice on their own, and teams can use the facility to train during the year. We are an authorized distributor for Rawlings, Easton and Bownet. We are dedicated to the sport for year-round players who want to have a future in baseball or softball at a higher level.
We established Coldsteel Sluggers in January 2022. We have grown since day one by adding five employees and improving the facility and equipment. We get great feedback from our students and their parents about how their player continues to improve with lessons.
The E-Community loan has helped with our expansion and upgrading of equipment. The funding has also given us the flexibility to get our name out there to the community. This loan came through at the right time for us to prepare for indoor winter team practices. Last winter, we turned away teams because we didn't have enough space. With the additional funding, we can now house more teams and players during the cold-weather months. The expansion allowed us to grow from 25 to 50 teams each week!
The connections started when I showed up at a Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours event. From there, I was able to get my name out into the community and get connected with the Small Business Development Center and the Pottawatomie County Economic Development Corporation. This region has been extremely helpful to our new business. We are excited to see it grow and see how we are impacting youth in a sport we love.
Coldsteel Sluggers is located at 8055 East Highway 24 near Manhattan.
Pottawatomie County Economic Development Corporation and the Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce also partner with Network Kansas on the GROWKS Loan Program, specifically loans targeted toward minority, women, economically-disadvantaged, rural and urban-distressed business owners. More information on the GROWKS programs can be found here.
If you operate a business that might benefit from a NetWork Kansas E-Community partner loan, or if you are considering a relocation to the Greater Manhattan region and want to learn more, please contact Daryn Soldan at daryn@manhattan.org or Jack Allston at jack@ecodevo.com.
