R.S. Taylor & Sons Brewery In Washington County To Open Tap Room In Saratoga Springs

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This sign welcomes people to R.S. Taylor & Sons Brewery in Salem.

By R.J. DeLuke

R.S. Taylor & Sons Brewery in Washington County hopes to open soon in Saratoga Springs a tap room for its farm-brewed products.

“We hope to be open by Memorial Day weekend,” said Rich Taylor, owner of the farm brewery business at 3602 County Road 30 in Salem.

The company currently operates a tap room on the farm property where people go to quaff the locally made product and occasionally listen to music. Under the farm brewery license, companies like R.S. Taylor & Sons are allowed to open up to five tap rooms. The one in Saratoga Springs will be the second. A third is being planned in the Albany area, Taylor said.

The 1,600-square-foot space is in Congress Plaza in downtown Saratoga Springs, in an end unit in the southern portion of the plaza. The space was formerly Bubbles Laundromat.

Renovations involve putting in a bar and tap service. “It shouldn’t take long to do what we need to do,” he said. The main issue is getting all the necessary operating permits.

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‘Freakopolis Geekery’ Is Haven For Comic Book Collectors And Players Of All Types Of Games

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Kids play old-fashion arcade games at the Freakopolis Geekery, a comic book and game store located at 120 Main St. in Whitehall. Games are a big draw to the store, owner Troy Rollins says.

By Liz Witbeck

Comic books and games have always been a part of Troy Rollins’ life. His childhood centered on enjoying games and comics with friends.

“We’d travel for hours to get to a cool game store,” said Rollins.

Now the time has come for Rollins to open up his own game store. He has been involved in independent software development and media production for the past 25 years.

The Freakopolis Geekery is a comic book and game store located at 120 Main St. in Whitehall.

Rollins operates the store with his sons, T.J. and Ian. Both went to SUNY Adirondack. He wanted to create a business that they could be involved in together as a family.

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Barkeater Chocolates Will Have Its Products In 72 Price Chopper Stores In Coming Months

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Deb Morris, a chocolatier and co-founder of Barkeater Chocolates in North Creek, employs eight people at her production facility and her products are widely distributed.

Barkeater Chocolates will soon have its gourmet chocolates, handcrafted in North Creek, available in a local grocery store chain.

The company announced March 2 that its products are being rolled out to 72 Price Chopper and Market 32 stores across New York state over the course of the next several months.

The 72 stores are offering Barkeater’s famous Barkeater Bars in five flavors, Grown Up Peanut Butter Cups, a locally sourced all-natural crunchy peanut butter, and two varieties of their “bark” product.

“We’ve been working with Price Chopper for several years now, and are thrilled that they are choosing to increase our footprint to all of their New York stores,” said Deb Morris, a chocolatier and co-founder of Barkeater Chocolates.

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Business Briefs: March 2017

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Erbessd Reliability Instruments Corp. of South Glens Falls, the creator of the DigivibeMX series of machine health analyzers, was recently selected as the supplier of choice for dynamic balancing systems by Harvard University Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering.According to...

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Business Report: It’s Just Not Fair

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Michael Cruz, president, Lighthouse Advisors LLC in Queensbury.

By Michael Cruz

Something strange has happened in the business world. I keep hearing “it’s not fair” as a mantra for excuses. By now, we should realize that life is not fair. So, why keep whining about it not being so?

What does ‘fair’ mean? Synonyms are: just, equitable, impartial, unbiased. What part of your business world has ever been fair?

Let’s blame our parents. When my kids were young the learned “dada” and “mama” first. The third thing they learned to say is, “It’s not fair!” Most parents attempt to logically justify fairness.

This is especially true when justifying why one sibling gets something, or gets to do something that another sibling is not getting. Yet, trying to explain that it is ‘fair’ harms the child. It sets in motion that idea that life should be fair. I went in a different direction. I told our kids that they were right when they said it was not fair. I would say, “You are right. It is not fair. Get used to it, because life is not fair.” Harsh as it may be, they all learned that life indeed is not fair.

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GlobalFoundries To Expand At Its Malta Plant, Add New Chip Manufacturing Plant In China

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GlobalFoundries plans to expand capacity by an additional 20 percent at this Fab 8 facility in Malta, with the new production capabilities to come online in the beginning of 2018.Courtesy GlobalFoundries

GlobalFoundries announced in February plans to expand its global manufacturing footprint in response to growing customer demand for its comprehensive and differentiated technology portfolio.

The company is investing in its existing leading-edge fabs in the United States, including the Fab 8 plant in Malta, and Germany, expanding its footprint in China with a fab in Chengdu, and adding capacity for mainstream technologies in Singapore.

“We continue to invest in capacity and technology to meet the needs of our worldwide customer base,” said company CEO Sanjay Jha. “We are seeing strong demand for both our mainstream and advanced technologies, from our world-class RF-SOI platform for connected devices to our FD-SOI and FinFET roadmap at the leading edge. These new investments will allow us to expand our existing fabs while growing our presence in China through a partnership in Chengdu.”

In the United States, GlobalFoundries plans to expand 14nm FinFET capacity by an additional 20 percent at its Fab 8 facility in Malta, with the new production capabilities to come online in the beginning of 2018.

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Local Banks See Large Growth In Commercial And Small Business Administration Loans

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This is the Glens Falls National Bank branch office at 8446 Route 22 in Granville. Banks like Glens Falls National look for opportunities to expand their footprint into new areas.Courtesy Glens Falls National Bank

By Maureen Werther

Local and regional banks are reporting record growth and increased attention being paid to expansion–physically and technologically–as they continue to court the growing number of businesses that are expanding throughout upstate New York.

While some local banks, like Adirondack Trust Co. are building upon their already strong relationships with customers in the immediate area, other banks, like Ballston Spa National Bank and Saratoga National, have seen significant growth as a result of expanding into other regional markets.

Still other banks, like NBT, which has branch offices throughout the state, are continuing to be viable competitors by offering high-caliber services to meet the needs of a diverse customer base.

Stephan Von Schenk, president of Adirondack Trust, said last year saw record growth across all three of their lending portfolios, with residential and consumer lending up by 15 percent.

“Anything over 10 percent is very fast and is not sustainable without expansion and increasing infrastructure,” he said.

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Bank: Precautions Should Be Taken During Tax Season To Prevent Exposure To Fraud, Scams

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Charles V. Wait, Jr. is executive vice president at Adirondack Trust Co.Courtesy Adirondack Trust Co.

As the 2017 tax season gets underway, the Adirondack Trust Co. is urging all customers to take extra precaution when filing their returns to prevent exposure to tax fraud.

“Fraudsters are using very clever tactics to get ahold of your personal information and submit false tax notes,” said Charles V. Wait, Jr., bank executive vice president. “Consumers must be suspicious of any communication from the IRS through email, text or social media that requests personal information, and should keep a watchful eye out for missing W-2s and mail containing sensitive financial information.”

Tax identity fraud takes place when a criminal files a false tax return using a stolen Social Security number in order to fraudulently claim the refund. Identity thieves generally file false claims early in the year and victims are unaware until they file a return and learn one has already been filed in their name.

To help consumers prevent tax ID fraud, the Adirondack Trust Co. offered the following tips:

• File early. File your tax return as soon as you’re able, giving criminals less time to use your information to file a false return.

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Woman Transformed Farm Land And Old Barns Into A Scenic, Rustic Wedding Venue

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Burlap and Beams, shown lit up at dusk, hosts about 20 weddings between May and October each year, according to owner Terri Larson.

By Jill Nagy

Terri Larson has transformed a cluster of barns dating from the 1800s and a large open field with views of Three Sisters Mountain into a romantic venue for summer weddings.

Her company, called Burlap and Beams, hosts about 20 weddings between May and October each year.

Larson lives in the farmhouse on the property and her day job is as a third grade teacher. However, when school is out, she becomes a wedding entrepreneur.

She said she got the idea from a friend who asked to use the property for her wedding. The property was not in any shape for a wedding. That ceremony landed elsewhere, but the idea took root.

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