Author Archives: Eileen Mattei

Freelance writer Eileen Mattei was the editor of Valley Business Report for over 6 years. Her articles have appeared in Texas Highways, Texas Wildlife Association, Texas Parks & Wildlife and Texas Coop Power magazines as well as On Point: The Journal of Army History. The Harlingen resident is the author of five books: Valley Places, Valley Faces; At the Crossroads: Harlingen’s First 100 Years; and Leading the Way: McAllen’s First 100 Years, For the Good of My Patients: The History of Medicine in the Rio Grande Valley, and Quinta Mazatlán: A Visual Journey.

Genco stars in national ad

When a Genco Energy Services salesman realized a generator belonging to the oil-field-service company had disappeared overnight from a site near Encino, he notified the main office in McAllen.  President Murray Meggison, who started Genco in 1996, called Equipment Deport in Donna which had leased him the generator.  Equipped with a GPS unit, the missing generator was easily tracked to a Hidalgo warehouse and found that day at a freight…

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Suitably dressed for success

The rigid businessman’s dress code of 50 years ago — dark suits, hats, cuff links, long socks — has faded away.    Today business clothing for men and women seeks to convey tasteful, effortless style. The goal still is to look professional, confident and worthy of clients’ trust. Business attire is trending to natural shoulders, flexible collars and comfort, with greater leeway accepted in the creative fields and on Casual Fridays. …

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Tapping crowd funding and venture capital

A kitchen accident requiring emergency room stitches led Sam Shipp and his wife Jen to invent the Knife Glider, a tool designed to prevent injuries while using a sharp knife.   To raise money to develop and fine tune their kitchen accessory, Sam Shipp, who has an MBA, turned to non-traditional resources: crowd funding and venture capital funds. Shipp choose Indiegogo, an international crowd funding platform, to solicit $10,000 in contributions…

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Did you say party?

With the end of summer, the Rio Grande Valley’s big party season begins. Between birthday parties and baptismal celebrations, holidays, football blowouts and bridal showers, fall weekends fill up with convivial gatherings.  In fact, Halloween now reportedly ranks second behind Christmas for holiday-sales generation, with 34% attending or hosting a Halloween party (and spending on average $68 on costumes).  Whenever the urge to throw a party takes hold, local party…

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Cybersecurity requires vigilance

Be afraid.  Or even better, be afraid and alert.  You and your computers are vulnerable to cybercrime:  hacking and viruses, which lead to crashes and the loss of your data, sensitive information and money. If your computer is running slower than before, you probably have a virus, according to Victor Leal, owner of CyberNation. Even with reliable antivirus software from AVG, Norton or MacAfee, computer viruses along with malware, worms…

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A’Mazing success for Valley farmer

Donna farmer John Billman read a farm magazine story that changed his life.  “I was trying to find ways to bring more customers to my vegetable stand,” he said. The article on corn mazes intrigued him enough to call the family it profiled. “For the next two years, my farmer friends all said I was crazy, talking about mazes and that no one was going to pay money to go…

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Heading to the Happy Hunting Grounds

Hunting season seems to start in the Rio Grande Valley when brothers Justin and Chris Curl put on their annual Texas Hunters and Sportsman Expo.  While whitewing dove season officially opens in September, the three-day, mid-July expo ramps up the anticipation for hunters the way that Christmas decorations get kids excited for Santa Claus’ arrival. Hunters begin to prep their gear and consider upgrading to the newest products on the…

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Edge 3D: turning ideas into reality

For Chuck Kennedy, the hot new field of 3D printing is not that new. He has been in the industry for 20 years, going back to the days when the process was known as rapid prototyping. Originally an engineering technician for the earliest machines, Kennedy started his own equipment service company specializing in Polyjet ™3D printers in 2006.   In May 2012, Kennedy launched his EDGE PDM in Oregon and began…

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Cruising beyond Main Street

For your next company retreat or in-depth training, Chuck Olson said you should consider a setting that provides meals, accommodations, meeting rooms and off-hours activities, all for about $100 per day per person.   Cruises out of Galveston and Houston ports are plentiful and affordable from September to April, according to the owner of Chuck Olson Tours & Cruises. “Cruising is a great value for your money, an all-inclusive retreat. Right…

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Fruitful arrangements bring success

“What I enjoy is putting people to work and giving them the opportunity to feed their family.  That’s more gratifying to me than anything else,” Maurice Welton said.  Since 2007, he has opened four Edible Arrangements stores in the Valley. The store’s artfully cut fresh fruit baskets and bouquets have become a welcome addition to parties around the Valley. Welton is pleased that the demand for Edible Arrangements products keeps…

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