Spotlight - Page 13 of 14 - Providence Business News

LOCAL FLAVOR: Roger Lapierre is the founder, owner and key principal of Li’l General convenience stores. Lapierre started with one store in 1970 in Woonsocket and has evolved the business to six franchise locations throughout northern Rhode Island. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Local convenience store brand has staying power

Entrepreneurship 10/15/2021

The first night he came home after opening his first Li’l General store, having invested much of his money in the venture as a...

SCOURING THE GLOBE: Cousins Liana Buonanno and Paul Fede, co-owners of Gooseneck Vineyards, work with farmers in six countries to source the grapes for their classic, budget-friendly wines, which they sell in their North Kingstown vineyard shop. PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Duo seeks best grapes to make classic, budget-friendly wines

Entrepreneurship 01/22/2021

From the hills of the Treviso in Italy to the stony Wairau Valley river flats in Marlborough, New Zealand, Liana Buonanno and Paul Fede...

BUSINESS IS BOOMING: Rob Cagnetta, owner of Heritage Restoration Inc. in Providence, and Marguerite Keyes, finishing specialist, work on restoring some windows. Cagnetta said Heritage is as busy as ever despite the COVID-19 pandemic because people are home more and discovering things they don’t like or that need to be fixed. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Residential restorations keep long-running contractor busy

Entrepreneurship 01/08/2021

If it still works, keep it. If it doesn’t work, fix it. That’s the principle behind historic preservation of family homes and other residential...

DECORATIONS IN DEMAND: While those hard-hit by the COVID-19 pandemic may be scaling back their holiday displays this year, Chris Beneduce, owner of Impressions Holiday Lighting and Decor in Warwick, says many people have expressed continued interest in decorating this season. / PBN PHOTO/ELIZABETH GRAHAM

Serial entrepreneur enjoys making spirits bright for clients each year

Business Services 12/18/2020

Chris Beneduce by no means identifies as a Christmas fanatic. But as owner of Holiday Impressions Lighting and Decor, he spends the last two months...

UNIQUE RIDE: Matthew Haynes, owner of La Gondola Providence Inc., loves to share his knowledge of and passion for Venice and Venetian culture and history with his passengers while guiding them along the Providence and Woonasquatucket rivers. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

La Gondola Providence adds Venetian flavor

Art & Culture 07/24/2020

Matthew Haynes does not have a drop of Italian in his blood. But that hasn’t deterred him from donning the persona of a Venetian...

ORDER PREP: Crave Food Systems Corp. is a platform that connects local farms, artisans and other vendors to consumers. CEO Matt Tortora, left, with Lisa Kellogg, vendor lead, and Andy Tran, operations specialist, checks out some of the Knead Donuts orders that are ready for delivery. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Crave reimagines the food system

Entrepreneurship 07/17/2020

Matt Tortora can remember as a young boy standing on a stool at his grandmother’s kitchen counter so he could watch her cook for...

UP IN ARMS: Despite an anticipated 40% increase in annual sales due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Dean Chapman, owner of gun stores Pheasant Ridge Inc. in Seekonk and River Street Tactical Inc. in Woonsocket, was not happy when he was forced to close his Seekonk store after initial stay-at-home orders in Massachusetts did not deem gun stores as essential businesses. / PBN PHOTO/NANCY LAVIN

Pandemic triggers a boom for Seekonk gun store

Coronavirus 07/03/2020

A gun can’t kill a virus, but that hasn’t stopped customers from swarming Pheasant Ridge Inc. amid the new coronavirus. In his 30-plus years in...

BRANCHING OUT: Kinder Industries owner Phillip Kinder displays the face shield and mask that his company recently started producing for health care workers and commercial orders. In the background, head seamstress Misuk Toppa cuts strips for enclosure panels that are going to Regata Place in Newport. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Kinder Industries shielded from a shutdown

Coronavirus 06/19/2020

For two weeks after the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in Rhode Island, the phone stopped ringing at Kinder Industries Inc. in Bristol. The manufacturer of...

RESPONSIBLE CHANGE: The staff at Loft LLC, an industrial design company, has recently pivoted its work to designing and building contactless COVID-19 testing trailers for use by the R.I. National Guard. From left, Jeanette Numbers, co-founder; Nari Shin, designer/textile expert; and Scott Noh, product design. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Loft is designed for innovation

Coronavirus 06/12/2020

Jeanette Numbers was the rare kind of teenager who knew exactly what she wanted to do professionally. Realizing her interest in industrial design – originally...