For Paul and Alison Augustinack, business ownership began with an unexpected opportunity. While working in real estate in the fall of 2024, Paul learned that the Vintage Golf Club in Staples was available for purchase.<\/p>\n
Within approximately eight weeks, the couple moved from considering the idea to closing on the business. Rather than starting from scratch, they acquired an established operation with facilities, employees, members and a recognized role in the community.<\/p>\n
The Vintage is an 18-hole championship public golf course that follows the Crow Wing River through hardwood and pine forests, offering scenic river views, multiple practice areas and a full-sized driving range.<\/p>\n
Purchasing an existing business gave Paul and Alison a strong foundation, but it still required them to learn quickly and make thoughtful decisions. Nearly the entire staff remained through the transition, providing valuable operational knowledge and continuity. Instead of immediately changing everything, the new owners focused on understanding the business, strengthening its operations and investing in improvements that would benefit customers.<\/p>\n
Those improvements have included an irrigation well, a new fleet of golf carts and expanded inventory for the pro shop.<\/p>\n
The next generation takes its turn<\/p>\n
Paul and Alison are building on the course\u2019s existing strengths while creating new opportunities for growth. The Vintage has expanded its tournament activity, increased its focus on public play and begun developing weddings and other events as additional revenue streams.<\/p>\n
The club now promotes itself as a venue for banquets, birthday and graduation parties, charity fundraisers, group golf outings and weddings. Their vision is for the Vintage to become more than a golf course, serving as a gathering place where people can connect, celebrate and spend time together.<\/p>\n
That commitment to community is especially meaningful when viewed through the course\u2019s nearly century-long history. The Vintage first opened as a 9-hole course in 1929 and was later redesigned and expanded into the 18-hole public course that exists today. Each generation has left its mark, from those who first established the course to the owners, employees, members and community supporters who strengthened and preserved it over the decades. Now, Paul and Alison represent the next chapter: Gen Z ownership owners bringing fresh energy and new ideas while respecting the traditions and relationships that have made the Vintage a Staples institution.<\/p>\n
A strong course for business in Wadena County<\/p>\n
Wadena County offers a strong environment for entrepreneurs like Paul and Alison: those who want to purchase and grow a business in a community where relationships matter. Small business owners benefit from a more manageable cost of entry, loyal local customers and community leaders who are willing to make connections and help solve problems.<\/p>\n
Organizations such as the Economic Alliance, the economic development corporation serving the county, provide hands-on support and local knowledge, helping entrepreneurs identify opportunities and navigate the realities of ownership.<\/p>\n
For Paul and Alison, Wadena County has provided the right setting to build on the history of the Vintage while creating new opportunities for the business and the Staples community.<\/p>\n
The North Central Small Business Development Center is proud to support Wadena County entrepreneurs though its satellite partnership with the Economic Alliance. That partnership is strengthened by the Economic Alliance\u2019s Executive Director Alison Medeck, who also serves as North Central SBDC consultant. Through this work, she helps connect local business owners with practical guidance, training and broader development resources.<\/p>\n
Paul and Alison regularly participate in North Central SBDC events such as Entrepreneurs on Tap and Marketing Mornings, where they gain new ideas, build relationships with other business owners and stay connected to local resources. They have worked with consultants Tyler Wittwer and Pam Thomsen on Paid Leave requirements, financial management and cash-flow planning. Those conversations have provided practical guidance for navigating day-to-day challenges and making informed decisions as the business grows.<\/p>\n
About the North Central SBDC<\/p>\n
The North Central Small Business Development Center is hosted at Central Lakes College and provides no-cost, confidential business consulting, training, and resources to entrepreneurs and small business owners across an 11-county region. The North Central SBDC supports clients at all stages of business, from idea development to growth and transition. To learn more and register for consulting, visit www.northcentralsbdc.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For Paul and Alison Augustinack, business ownership began with an unexpected opportunity. While working in real estate in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":45504,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[55,2094,17858,44,747,7107,17856,17857,17855],"class_list":["post-45503","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","tag-community","tag-economy","tag-entrepreneurship","tag-golf","tag-golf-course","tag-minnesota","tag-ownership","tag-wadena-county","tag-walker-pilot"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45503","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45503"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45503\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45504"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45503"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45503"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/golf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45503"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}