News & Press Releases
Local wireless entrepreneur discusses rural-area pros, cons
Publication: Eureka Reporter, Eureka, California
Courtney Hunt, 7/28/2007
Any entrepreneur on the North Coast understands there are certain inherent advantages and disadvantages in running a business from behind the Redwood Curtain: transportation limitations, Internet connectivity problems and shipping costs all come hand in hand with living and working in Humboldt County.
A day after Caltrans announced its plans to realign the twisty Richardson’s Grove section of U.S. Highway 101 to allow for the passage of larger cattle trucks, Carlson Wireless representatives spoke to an audience of local businessmen and women about the challenges of operating a business from a rural area of California — and the benefits as well.
Company owner Jim Carlson sat on a panel with Carlson Wireless Vice Presidents Sallie Speaker and Dan Gunderson at Avalon restaurant on Friday, where community residents interested in what the trio had to say about sustainable business gathered for a luncheon sponsored by the Prosperity Network.
Although transportation is not as much of an issue for Carlson Wireless as for other local companies, the business has had problems attracting and retaining skilled and semi-skilled workers, particularly during the 20 years it was located in Redway.
Relocating to Arcata has made “a world of difference,” Carlson said. Not only has he been successful at bringing in experienced and innovative employees, Carlson believes operating in close proximity to Humboldt State University has been advantageous for both the university and the company.
A major obstacle the company has had to hurdle, though, is the cost of flying in and out of the area. With prices reaching $500 or $600 per plane ticket into and out of the Arcata-Eureka Airport, weather delays and cancellations, making the five-hour drive to San Francisco is almost worth the time it takes.
Carlson sees the cost of airfare as his company’s main transportation issue.
“Our company could do so much more if we could get in and out of here for less,” he said.
One of the most common misconceptions about Carlson Wireless is that the company provides cell phone service when in fact it manufactures products that are later assembled into computer boards. The wireless part comes into play when these computer boards are used to bridge the connection between otherwise wireless devices, like cell phones and Wi-Fi-enabled computers, and a home base.
Simply put, Carlson Wireless products allow people to use cell phones without having to be attached to anything.
Ingenious, especially if you consider that Jim Carlson developed the idea in 1986, a time not too far removed from rotary telephones.
Technology has rapidly grown since Carlson Wireless’ infancy in the 1980s, but it hasn’t left the company in the dust. Quite the contrary, in fact. Carlson stays on the cutting edge of the tech industry by hiring creative engineers with fresh ideas and ambition.
Many of the engineers on staff at the company are Silicon Valley transplants seeking intellectual challenge and the quality of life Humboldt County offers. Carlson believes it is the combination of both that he sought when moving to the North Coast from Michigan, and it is the reason he chose to keep his business local.
What Gunderson believes has helped keep the company on the cutting edge of the technology industry is the fact that most of Carlson’s business is done on a global scale. Money comes in from economies outside Humboldt County, but instead of going back out, Carlson Wireless keeps it circulating locally.
Currently, Carlson Wireless employs 16 full-time employees, up from the nine the company employed upon moving to Arcata, and Speaker said the company is constantly growing. By the end of the year, she hopes to add between five and 10 employees to the staff.