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County business awards set for Tuesday

By Rolf Boone | The Olympian • Published March 27, 2009

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GRAND MOUND – The Thurston County Economic Development Council will announce its 2009 business-recognition awards at its annual meeting Tuesday at Great Wolf Lodge.

The two-hour event will highlight South Sound businesses, and four will receive awards.

If Charlie's Safari wins in the new-business category, it will be the third award received by the business since it opened in May, co-owner Kurt Kageler said Thursday.

The business, next to the Martin Village Stadium 16 movie theater in Lacey, also was recognized by the Lacey Chamber of Commerce and North Thurston Public Schools, he said.

Kageler, a former adjunct professor of business at Saint Martin's University, said that although he has had a positive first year, it has been a learning experience.

"In a tough economy, we are paying our bills and putting money aside," he said.

In the past year, Charlie's Safari has increased its staff to 40 from 25, Kageler said.

Express Employment Professionals owner Reid Bates said Thursday he was thrilled to receive a small-business-award nomination. Bates, a former Chicago-based Weyerhaeuser executive, bought the Olympia and Aberdeen offices of Express Employment in summer 2007. Last year, the Olympia office placed 667 people into jobs with 161 employers throughout the county, Bates said.

Express Employment, too, has had to adjust to the slower economy, he said.

When the economy slows, temporary employment tends to be affected first, but when the economy rebounds, they can be rehired before employers make decisions about full-time employment, Bates said. Demand for highly skilled labor, such as for accounting and health care, has remained strong, and seasonal light-industrial work is starting to pick up, he said.

Among last year's EDC winners were Russell Family & Cosmetic Dentistry of Tumwater, Old Town Bicycle of Olympia and Heritage Bank of Olympia.

Rolf Boone covers business for The Olympian. He can be reached at 360-754-5403 or rboone@theolympian.com.