November 8, 2017 at 4:31 p.m.
Going beyond gaming
Lac du Flambeau Business Development Corporation looks to new economic opportunities
Going beyond gaming
By By Evan J. Pretzer-
To the average American, economic activity on Native American lands across the country is often defined by one thing: casinos and the related services which usually do surround them.
After a key Supreme Court decision in the mid-1970s, reservations around the United States began opening businesses which offered gambling services to residents of the respective areas, and those willing to commute to spend a few dollars.
As a result, a new stereotype was born.
Though these businesses often provide crucial revenue and forms of employment to indigenous individuals across the country, portrayals in popular media programs like "Family Guy" and "South Park" often depict the gaming centers as one of the only things worth mentioning or which matters to a tribe, and make it difficult to see other opportunities in Native American lands.
The Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians is looking to change this.
In 2012, the group launched its business development corporation as a means of forging, acquiring or partnering in non-gaming economic ventures which would ultimately bring revenue back to the tribal council's general fund.
In an interview with The Lakeland Times, key organization staff sat down and shared some essential facts and their hopes for the future.
By the numbers
According to interim CEO Randy Soulier, since the formation of the corporation, business has been "explosive."
Initially, the company had only one employee at launch (interim COO and lending director Melissa Doud), but has since expanded to more than 90 employees. Among its current holdings are a construction company, a retail center, a business magazine and a call center which works with Aflac Inc.
Like the entity which spawned it, LdF Construction is also doing well and has bold ambitions, officials said.
"Construction-wise, in four years' time (the enterprise launched in 2013) we've had really fast growth," LdF Construction president Robert J.M. Elm said. "Right now, we do around 10 projects per year and are hoping for an 8(a) classification from the (United States) Small Business Administration (SBA)."
According to the SBA's website, the 8(a) designation is for business entities controlled by minority individuals.
If awarded the categorization, the LdF BDC and LdF Construction by extension would be given preference over a nine-year basis for various government contracts totaling up to more than $10 million in the combined goods and services ($4 million ceiling) and manufacturing sectors (total ceiling of $6.5 million).
"If we get it, we'd easily be the only organization in northern Wisconsin which has the certification," Soulier said.
What's next?
Though much of the current businesses within the development corporation are in the traditional brick and mortar realms, the group also is keenly eyeing the digital sphere.
With the Appleton-based Book World book store chain closing its doors due to the rise of e-commerce and the Cook Inlet Tribal Council of Alaska starting a games development company in 2012 (Upper One Games), the signs of a new economy are increasingly more present in our daily lives. According to Soulier, the tribe is ready for it.
"We haven't had a lot of discussion about the digital realm, but presently we do have some e-commerce functions," he said. "In our call center, everything is done digitally, you'll obviously have some interaction with an agent, but everything is done online."
Outside of support services, the area also has 96 strand fibre cable running throughout its boundaries. In the future, the tribe hopes to either improve its existing lines and use them as a base for other technology services to grow on, or craft something new in order to make the old cable network redundant.
"The sky's the limit," Soulier said.
To learn more about the Lac du Flambeau Business Development Corporation, visit ldfbdc.com.
Evan J. Pretzer may be reached via email at [email protected].
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