A small business owner since 1990, Alan Furst knows what it takes to build a successful business.  And he knows how to create a strong team and develop a loyal customer base.  It’s the combination of these skills and experience that make him the perfect Growth Coach.  He’s been there, done it, and he’s done it exceptionally well.

Like many entrepreneurs, Alan is a “true bootstrapper.”  He finds a business that fits his skill set, his values and his passion, and then he works it.  He leverages his expertise in product development, marketing, public relations and communications, and his national and international experience.  His track record of excellence speaks for itself.

For fourteen years Alan owned a national creative design firm uniquely called Alan Furst, Inc., overseeing the delivery of high-end creative services specializing in printed media.  Building on his creativity and keen sense of customer needs and expectations, his top-notch team experienced double-  or triple -digit improvements in every benchmark measured.

Recognizing the excitement that comes from building a strong team, Alan bought a senior homecare franchise in 2004, Visiting Angels.  With an uncompromising commitment to and focus on his team and customers, Alan worked on building a brand and making the perfect connection between the community’s needs and his team’s strengths.  This experience confirmed for him that the greatest success as a business owner comes when you work on your business, not in your business.

The Growth Coach presented the next ideal opportunity.  After selling his franchise in 2009, Alan now works with community business owners who want to achieve greater success and find better balance in their personal lives.  Alan understands their stories.  He’s rubbed shoulders with them.  Their challenges strike a familiar chord.  Their achievements are noteworthy.

“It is my desire to develop relationships in the business community and help business owners discover meaningful success and a deeper overall joy in life.”

As an international traveler and humanitarian, Alan’s personal life has been a natural extension of his desire to help people.  Bilingual in Spanish and English, he has traveled extensively in Spain, North Africa, and Central Asia, and is proud of his Minnesota roots.  When he’s not helping someone create the business they always dreamed of, you’ll find him biking on the Minnesota trails or cooking in his Ham Lake kitchen.  Alan and his wife, Carolyn (another savvy and successful business owner!), are very active in their community and church. 

Alan’s thoughts on the Growth Coach program:

“What attracts me to the Growth Coach is the process.  It’s designed to bring out the best in a business owner.  By providing the opportunity for an owner to get away from the daily list of urgencies and then guiding his or her thought process through crucial concerns, I am able to help the owner find clarity of thought and create an achievable set of goals.  No wonder this process is guaranteed!  One workshop participant described it as ‘making success a low hanging fruit.’”