By Ellen Vander Linden

With Super Bowl LII coming to Minneapolis, we are witnessing the numerous plans and activities surrounding the big event. IABC Minnesota board member Paul Omodt has a front row seat to observe the opportunities that reach beyond the football field.

Hillary Feder, owner of Hillary’s Gifts, was selected as a qualified diverse and underused Minnesota business to compete for contracts generated by the Super Bowl. She viewed the opportunity as a way to shine a positive light on Minnesota. Hillary’s team focused on creative and thoughtful ways to invite, welcome and thank Super Bowl guests.

She hoped to leverage the opportunity to be something bigger and stayed true to herself and what she knows well. Hillary’s vision was to engage other Minnesota-based businesses as long-term partners and to ensure it would support her clients well beyond game day. This involved tapping local partners Faribault Woolen Mills, Shakopee-based Badger Hill Brewery and Minnesota artist Mark Herman.

Read more about her strategy in How an entrepreneur transformed a Super Bowl opportunity into a growth strategy, Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal, contributed by Paul Omodt.

Paul Omodt serves on the board of IABC Minnesota as Vice President of Finance. He is the Owner and Principal of Omodt and Associates, Critical Communications.

Hillary Feder is owner of Hillary’s Gifts based in Hopkins, Minnesota.