Local entrepreneur not too busy to get Cleary business degree

The Next Big Ad Medium: Podcasts
Let us help kick start your New Year's Resolution with some new fitness equipment.

A local entrepreneur has achieved a measure of distinction in the world of commerce by starting three businesses and developing a business plan for a fourth.

Patrick Wyman, who lives just outside Brighton in Hamburg Township, founded Freedom Corp. in 1990 and Freedom Dental Co. in 1999. The 48-year old Wyman is chairman of the board and CEO of the companies, which have offices in Brighton, Grand Rapids and Traverse City.

"We are small in terms of the global economy but have a niche market,'' Wyman says.

A December graduate of Cleary University, Wyman was honored for his business acumen with the 2006 Cleary University Trustee Entrepreneurial Award at winter commencement exercises Dec. 10 in Ypsilanti.

His most recent effort is "Fruitrition,'' a plan to place vending machines that dispense fresh fruit in offices, schools and college campuses.

However, Wyman is in the process of selling the business plan for Fruitrition to a group of investors.

Fruitrition was in its embryonic stage, with Wyman having placed several vending machines in test markets, when he was approached by the investor group.

"They were really excited about the plan,'' he says.

Pending completion of the deal, the group will purchase the contracts that give Wyman the rights for placement of fruit vending machines in several states. Since his umbrella company, Freedom Corp., deals in medical supplies, Wyman decided it would be in the firm's best interests to stay in its chosen field.

"Our intent was to make (Fruitrition) the next division of our company, but it's not in our long-term strategy,'' Wyman says. "I saw it as a need being unmet, with the schools pulling all of their soda vending machines out.''

Cleary Dean of Students Donna Franklin likes the fact that the hard-working Wyman formed three new businesses, and yet saw the need to get his degree. "In addition to having been successful in business, he needed that degree for career advancement,'' Franklin says.

Wyman was recognized as the student whose new product or business venture was judged as the best of those submitted. He was nominated by several faculty members for his "outstanding work, leadership and involvement in the classroom.''

"One of the things I loved that he said to me was he learned (new) skills in the classroom,'' Franklin says. "That really impressed me and validated what we do.''

Wyman is married to Lynn Wyman, and Franklin says she was impressed with the fact that both Wymans enrolled at Cleary at the same time, each graduating with degrees in business management. They have three children who are enrolled in the Brighton Area Schools.

"We've been very blessed, being in this community,'' says Wyman, who has been active in church and community recreational programs.

The President's Award, the other major award presented at the ceremonies, went to James M. Smith Jr. of Lansing, manager of IT services at Ogihara America Corp. in Howell. The President's Award is given for demonstrating "teamwork, scholarship, communication and presentation skills and an application of the course work into the business world.''

Tom Tolen can be reached at ttolen@livingstoncommunitynews.com or at 810-844-2009.

Diet's Carma
How a Funky Ice Cream Truck Can Change Your Business

Is This Contract Valid?

6 steps to creating a super startup
Get rid of acne! Participate now for a year supply of skin products.

Have you ever considered suing someone for not holding up their end of a bargain? Or were you the one being sued? Whether you're in business or not, you probably encounter contracts almost every day. However, few people understand what it takes to make a contract valid.

A contract is basically an agreement to do or not to do something. Saying a contract is valid means it's legally binding and enforceable. The point of a contract is to clearly outline an agreement so the "object" is accomplished while preventing disputes or litigation. Any lawyer will tell you that a lawsuit is a very inefficient and expensive way to resolve contract disputes, and it also means you lose control over the issue being disputed since a judge or jury will be making the decisions instead.

It's important to know not all contracts have to be in writing. In California, for instance, certain agreements can be oral and still be legally enforceable. Either way, a contract must include the following: parties capable of contracting, consent of the parties, a lawful object, and consideration.

• Parties. Anyone can enter into a contract, except minors, certain felons and people of unsound mind. The contract must identify who the parties are; usually names are sufficient, but sometimes addresses or titles may be used. In sales agreements, for example, in addition to names, "seller" and "buyer" are sometimes used to further describe the parties.
  
  
• Consent. A valid contract also requires the parties' consent, which must be free, mutual and communicated to each other. Consent is not free when obtained through duress, menace, fraud, undue influence or mistake. Books have been written about the complexities of those factors. Obviously, a person who signs a contract because there's a gun pointed at his head hasn't consented to the agreement and can rescind it. All cases, of course, are not that clear-cut, and the law must applied to each individual case.
  
  Also, consent isn't mutual unless the parties agree on the same thing in the same sense. This is often referred to as a "meeting of the minds." Generally, there's an offer and an acceptance communicated by the parties.
  
  
• Object. The thing being agreed to is also known as the object or subject. It must be lawful, possible and definite. A court, for example, will not enforce a contract to perform an illegal act. Drug deals often go wrong, but a person who pays for drugs that aren't delivered can't seek the help of a court in getting the money back.
  
  
• Consideration. All contracts require consideration, meaning each party must gain something. It may be something that is or isn't done or given. When a party agrees to do something (paint your house) or to not do something (not sell their house to anyone else for 30 days) they must gain something. Generally, if I say I'll paint your house, and you haven't promised me anything in return, you can't sue me for not showing up because I haven't received any consideration. Volumes have been written about this aspect of contracts as well.

Certain contracts aren't valid unless in writing. Generally, they deal with real property, certain debts, money exceeding a certain amount, or objects that won't be performed within one year or within the promisor's lifetime. Naturally, the exceptions can be as broad as the rules. When the agreement doesn't have to be in writing, all the other elements of a valid contract still have to be fulfilled.

The bottom line is that while parties generally come to transactions in good faith, a well written contract is the best protection should a dispute arise. In a perfect world, you should contact an attorney before drawing up or entering into any contract. But for the sake of time and money, you could have an attorney simply review your deal in some cases. And if the amount is small--such as a $100 loan--and the contract is simple, then a review by a local legal aid will probably suffice. The smaller the amount involved and the simpler the contract, the less you need an attorney. Use common sense to guide you.

Jeffrey Steinberger is a veteran trial attorney and the founder and senior partner of The Law Offices of Jeffrey W. Steinberger, a Professional Corporation in Beverly Hills, California. He is also a renowned celebrity attorney, TV legal commentator and analyst, federally appointed S.E.C. arbitrator and professor of law.

Useful Diet's Tips
Generate Ad Revenue With Your Website

Upstart Aims to Soup Up

Garden Office
Daily Healthy Tips

From The Wall Street Journal Online

Instant ramen noodles, long hawked as a cheap, quick food for college kids and others with lean budgets, are going gourmet.

Last fall, Union Foods Newcorp. of Irvine, Calif., launched several ramen-noodle products, including Gourmet Snack Noodles Soup and Mamma Mia microwaveable noodles, that are low in sodium, have no monosodium glutamate and no trans fats. The company also is pushing new noodle lines infused with vegetables, as well as ones with spices and sauces that appeal to different ethnic tastes.

Union Foods, one of the smallest players in the ramen-noodle market with an estimated 5% market share according to the company, is betting that its souped-up noodles will differentiate its offerings and help it better compete with larger rivals, Nissin Foods (USA) Co. and Maruchan Inc., at a time when growth has stagnated in the dried-soup foods category.

The company is hoping to lure, among others, people who once feasted on ramen noodles in their youth but are now looking for a healthier alternative. To that end, Union Foods hopes to eventually use its healthier -- and more expensive -- products to shift away from lower-cost retailers and into higher-end stores like those of Whole Foods Markets Inc., which specialize in more healthful fare.

"There's been such a view that ramen is really low-end stuff, and we don't believe that our products should be in that low-end market," says Victor Sim, chief executive of Solafide Inc., a private-equity firm that acquired Union Foods in June 2005.

As Union Foods' experience shows, small companies can find it difficult to compete in a niche market when their products become commoditized and the industry is dominated by one or two large, low-cost producers. And while launching a new product line is a way for companies to differentiate themselves, the move is fraught with uncertainty. In tweaking its products and marketing message to make an impact on the industry -- and make a profit -- Union Foods will have to walk the fine line of capitalizing on its traditions while promoting what's new.

"I think the challenge...is finding a balance in retaining taste and retaining affinity to your consumers and offering them a better product and making them feel better about their choices," says Debra Joester, president and chief executive of Joester Loria Group, a New York-based licensing and branding firm. She says the name change to snack noodles with no reference to ramen could alienate some consumers.

Quick and Cheap

Instant ramen noodles -- which typically come in a cup or a square package that costs 10 cents to 50 cents a pop -- is well entrenched as a cheap, quick meal: just add hot water, some packaged ingredients and let it sit for three minutes. But it's also known for being chock-full of savory but unhealthful ingredients, such as trans fats, sodium and monosodium glutamate, or MSG.

The U.S. is the world's fourth-largest consumer of ramen noodles, with 3.9 billion packages sold in 2005, according to the Japan-based International Ramen Manufacturers Association. China is No. 1. But U.S. ramen sales have been sliding due to the explosive growth of ready-to-serve soups that are more convenient for consumers.

In comparison to those ready-to-serve and condensed soups, sales also have been hurt by ramen noodles' "limited palette" of popular flavors -- beef, chicken and shrimp -- according to a report by Mintel International Group, a consumer research firm. Until recently, instant ramen noodles hadn't changed significantly since they were created in Japan in 1958 by Momofuku Ando, the recently deceased founder and chairman of Nissin Food Products Ltd., a market leader in the ramen category.

At Union Foods, though, big change is under way -- which the company hopes will boost sales. The company says it broke even last year, with revenue of $20 million to $25 million. Mr. Sim expects 2007 revenue to climb to $25 million to $30 million, with $5 million to $10 million in profit.

In addition to taking the unhealthy ingredients out of its noodles, Union Foods is putting good stuff into a more diversified line of products. For instance, it's injecting noodles with vegetables like spinach and beets. It offers a line of "picante," or spicy, noodles called Enchilosa, and came out in October with a higher-end product called Fiesta that comes in a biodegradable container, not the traditional Styrofoam. Both target Hispanic consumers.

Union Foods also launched in December an Asian-market product called Dae Jang Gum, which uses a spice based on kimchi, a traditional Korean dish of spicy pickled vegetables such as napa cabbage. And its new Mamma Mia Spinach Noodles with Alfredo Sauce is packaged in a biodegradable cornstarch and paper container.

All this new goodness is going to cost consumers, though: $2.50 to $2.99 each, compared with 10 to 50 cents for its original ramen noodles, which the company still sells.

Small Steps

Mr. Sim says his ultimate goal is to attract interest from high-end food retailers like Whole Foods of Austin, Texas, and Trader Joe's Co., Monrovia, Calif. He says the company is in the early stages of sending them samples.

But a healthier approach alone may not be enough to garner the attention of these stores. The fact that Union Foods had never had a product to appeal to them will make it much harder to persuade those stores to carry the new ramen line.

So far, Union Foods has made some inroads in the healthy market. Mark Trotter, chief executive of YoNaturals Inc., a San Diego-based maker of vending machines that serve healthy items, plans to soon put the new ramen noodles in his hot-meals vending machines where people have access to microwaves and hot water, including corporate campuses.

For now, though, Union Foods is banking on traditional outlets to drive business. In November, the 7-Eleven Inc. chain of convenience stores began selling the Gourmet Snack Noodles and Enchilosa lines. The Fiesta line and Mamma Mia Mac Cheese should be available by June.

Union Foods isn't alone in its healthful push, however. Late last year, Nissin Foods (USA) of Gardena, Calif., introduced its Noodle Soup premium product featuring air-dried pasta with large chunks of vegetables such as broccoli, carrots and celery. It also added a Souper Meal, a larger version of Nissin's popular Cup of Noodles, with thicker noodles and richer broth, and Chow Mein, a Chinese-style stir-fried noodles microwaveable package. Prices range from 99 cents to $1.49.

"Everybody's been hungry for something new," says Matt Talle, national sales manager at Nissin Foods (USA).

SEO Basics - Good Link, Bad Link
Landing Media Placement for Your Product
Top 25 Personal Finance Myths