Quest for Innovation

Quest for Innovation

Let’s take a field trip back to a time and place that few of us remember well. In 1963, the communities of the Treasure Valley were quite different. Boise’s population was only about 40,000 and had just opened its second high school. Boise College was still years away from becoming Boise State University. Meridian, Idaho’s fastest growing city for the last 25 years, had a population of only 2,000, and it’s lifeblood since the Great Depression was the creamery run by a local cooperative of dairy farmers.

It was in this time and place that Gerald Cope saw a need that he was well suited to fill, opening Cope Auto Repair in Meridian. Thus began a journey that continues to this day, more than 56 years later. The business has grown, moved, rebranded, and has been passed from father Gerald to son Rick, but one thing hasn’t changed — the Cope commitment to quality work.

It is, in fact, the Cope name that has become synonymous with auto body repair in the Treasure Valley. The Cope Collision Center, as the business is now called, is a family-run affair. Many of the Cope lineage have dedicated their talents to the family trade. But Rick Cope is not one to turn down talent when he finds it, rounding out their needs with skilled and dedicated operators wherever they find them.

Cars have become incredibly more complicated than they were when Rick’s father first started the business, with new models having more lines of code in their computer systems than most airliners.

That’s why the Cope team is very dedicated to continuing education. The technicians are constantly taking classes and receiving instruction, always updating their education. Their team has the highest possible rating in the industry as I-Car Gold Class certified professionals. Outside of the Honda dealer, they have the only shop in town that is Honda certified. You can add to that virtually every other major car manufacturer, including Nissan, Ford, Dodge, GM, Chevrolet, and more.

Danielle, the Vice President of Cope Collision Center, also emphasized that consumers have a lot more power than most realize. If, like me, you’ve ever been steered to one business or another by an insurance adjuster, she stressed that you don’t have to listen to them. In Idaho, consumers are legally free to take their vehicles to be repaired anywhere they want. Get that estimate; get that second opinion, and make an informed choice!

Cope Collision Center happily works with all insurance companies and agents, but won’t allow themselves to be influenced by them. Cope will return your vehicle to you in pre-accident condition and document it so that insurance will cover it, and their work will come with a lifetime guarantee.

Cope Collision Center might be an old dog, but it’s a reliable one that has learned all kinds of new tricks to stay modern and relevant. It’s how they’ve been an essential part of the community for more than 50 years, and in all likelihood will still be going strong in 50 more.

A Master Class in Custom Furniture

When my son was born eight years ago, I went bananas trying to make everything perfect before the little bundle of joy/terror arrived. Baby-proof house? Check. Vast supply of diapers, clothes, and educational toys? Check. But even after the spare room had been transformed into a colorful nursery with a rocking chair and changing table, there was a large empty space where the crib should be.

We hadn’t been negligent in our shopping duties. But as we evaluated crib after crib at most of the major stores, I was very unsatisfied with the low quality of what I saw and not impressed with the prices. Perhaps it was just the nervousness of a new parent, but I had trouble trusting the flimsy, mass-produced products with a new life.

As it happens, woodworking is a hobby of mine and I was certain I could produce the sturdy masterpiece that my son deserved. And after working every night for several weeks, the pile of redwood lumber in my garage had been transformed into a beautiful mission-style crib.

While I have no regrets about tackling such a task, it’s not the path I would recommend for parents in the market for a new crib or anyone seeking quality hardwood furniture of any type. Had I simply done better research, I would have found exactly the crib I wanted, produced by hands far more skilled than my own, and even at a very reasonable price — right here in the Treasure Valley.

In fact, I was driving right past the big red chair in front of Heritage Reflections every day! At the time, I didn’t know they offered American-made, custom hardwood furniture. I didn’t even know that stores like that were a thing.

One might assume that handcrafted, custom furniture is very expensive, but in this case you’ll find that Heritage Reflections can still step into the ring and compete in pricing with major furniture stores.

What’s their secret? Do they have some magical elves that come out at night to build furniture? Not quite. Owners Bob and Terri Anderson work with 150 Amish families in Ohio, Indiana, and Pennsylvania. Each family focuses their skill in one area, becoming masters in handcrafting tables, chairs, or bedroom furniture.

Nearly all the furniture you see in the store comes from these dedicated Amish craftsmen and Heritage Reflections passes the savings along to the customer.

The Heritage Reflections showroom is a master class in design and decor centered on the incredible furniture that you can’t find anywhere else. If you see something you like (whether it be in the showroom, catalogue, or on their site), you have access to more customization options than a Cold Stone Creamery ice cream cone. Choose from a variety of hardwoods, stains, and design options to get custom furniture exactly how you want it, built from scratch.

Whether you’re looking for your “forever” table, a handsome bedroom set, or a crib fit for your baby prince, Heritage Reflections is where you’ll find Idaho’s Best furniture.

What It Takes to Be #1 in the #2 Business

You know what grinds my gears? When small businesses and startups become successful because they are incredibly good, and then that quality disappears as their success grows. American-made Craftsman tools were replaced with cheap, foreign knockoffs. The incredible Pyrex cookware now fractures or explodes (true story — I almost killed my prom date with Pyrex glass shards). ESPN is basically just MTV now, but for sports. And MTV hasn’t shown music videos for years!

Before I shake my fist at the sky and scream at kids to get off my lawn, let me tell you that we don’t have to go back in time to find quality companies. We have some great ones right now, right here in Idaho. Just look at Express Plumbing Service, who’s had great success and just keeps getting better as they grow.

Express Plumbing Service (EPS) is owned by Brad Jordan and Ben Davis. I love these guys, as they are hard-working and honest. They like to get their hands dirty, take great care of employees, and even better care of customers. What started as a one-man operation in 2006 has grown to the biggest plumbing operation in Idaho, all without any compromises in quality.

I talk to business owners every day and I can tell you what makes EPS different. One of the first things Ben said about building their business was “The most important thing is to be honest.” Karma is the energy of life, and if you surround yourself with good people and do good things, good things will follow for you.

Also important: Take care of the people that take care of you. That philosophy doesn’t just apply to EPS customers, but also their employees. They offer very competitive pay and benefits, providing books, training, and continuing education for employees as well. Consider this brain nugget: EPS — a plumbing service — is rated as one of the Top 10 Places to Work in Idaho!

Ben appreciates his plumbers because he IS one. He leads his team of service technicians by example and from the front. Brad is the Leonidas of plumbing, but instead of a sword he wields a wrench, and instead of hordes of angry Persians, his foe is a clogged sink drain!

It’s my belief that plumbing is one of the most under-rated professions out there. We live very well and fail to appreciate our modern amenities until they stop working, which always seems to be at the worst possible time. But EPS understands and they don’t hold it against us. They’re available for those inconvenient emergencies 24/7 and they boast a 60-minute response time, like the DoorDash of toilets! They work so hard because, as Ben says, “We want to be that hero for the customer.”

So the next time you’re on the john and reminiscing about when History Channel actually had shows about history, you can thank a plumber if it all goes well. And if it doesn’t go well, call Express Plumbing Service (or a gastroenterologist, whichever seems right for your situation).

Seeing 2020

At first, Eagle Vision One seemed too good to be true, such that it might be the setting for a modern Pleasantville film. Their offices are beautiful and could pass a white glove inspection any day of the week. The staff seem empowered and confident. Patients were even smiling after doing the new gentle eye pressure test that replaced that dreaded eye-puffer thing!

I sat down with Dr. Adam Warner and Dr. Shawn Sorenson, co-owners of Eagle Vision One, to learn more about how they’ve built such an impressive practice.

After handily winning “Best Optometrist” in the 2019 Best of Treasure Valley and then winning “Best Eye Care” in this year’s Idaho’s Best, Eagle Vision One has firmly planted their flag atop the eye doctor hill.

Everywhere you look, Dr. Warner and Dr. Sorenson have done more than was necessary. Continuing education, more staff, better training, extended hours, and advanced treatment — they go as far as they reasonably can to provide the best service for their patients.

I work with many small business professionals across the country — doctors, dentists, and lawyers that own their practices. Few have achieved such near-perfect execution as Eagle Vision One. And while they’re not necessarily perfect, they seem to have few (if any) weak areas. Plus, you’ll never see them cut corners. They believe their patients deserve and should receive the best available treatment.

When I asked the doctors what was most important to them, Dr. Sorenson said seeing his patients every year. Even if your eyes seem fine and your prescription hasn’t changed, there is still a lot of value in a checkup. Most insurance plans cover annual exams, and that’s because early detection of glaucoma and macular degeneration is incredibly important.

There are even other health conditions that may be revealed with an eye exam, making them even more important as we age. Conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, and hypercholesterolemia can be evaluated and detected by visible changes in the appearance of the retinal blood supply and blood vessels.

Some eye conditions may not be a serious threat to your health, but can be incredibly annoying. Eagle Vision One has a dedicated dry eye center in their clinics, which provide testing, imaging, and treatment for a widespread problem that is often ignored.

Eagle Vision One is proof that the who is as important as the what in eye care. You don’t have to deal with years of poor vision, glasses that don’t fit, poor service, or high pressure sales. Do your research and you’ll clearly see the right choice is Eagle Vision One.

The Savvy Shopper

One look at me and it’s obvious that I know everything about fashion. I’m the Ru Paul of white, middle-aged, strong-fat guys. OK, so I don’t actually know anything about fashion. That’s why I learned so many new terms by interviewing Erin, like “haute couture”, “boutique”, and “ruche”. Now I’ll be able to blend in when I’m shopping with my better half!

Erin Rigel is the founder and owner of Fashion 15 Below, newly-crowned as the best clothing store in Idaho. Going in, I wasn’t sure I could steer the interview or contribute to conversation, but I perked up when she explained the basic principle of her business — they offer a wide range of boutique clothing and nearly everything is under $15.

Erin has always been a savvy shopper. She loved her childhood experiences of looking for great deals with her mom, and her shopping sprees just never stopped — they just grew in scale.

“Our goal is to make every woman feel beautiful and empowered whether they bought something from us or not.”

Her operation began as the first mobile boutique in Idaho. But her growth and success has been such that Fashion 15 Below has two locations with a third on the way and a separate warehouse to handle online orders in just its fourth year. Customers have their choice of 15,000 hand-picked products in a wide range of sizes, with new fashions arriving every day.

I know what you’re thinking, because it’s what I thought. Over 15,000 items priced at $15 or below; so it’s just piles of Chinese imports, right? That couldn’t be further from the truth. Quality is very important to a fashionista like Erin, and 85 percent of Fashion 15 Below’s stock is made right here in the USA (insert Eagle’s cry). After all, it’s not a good deal unless what you’re getting is worth having.

And I’ll tell you what…Erin is impressive because she’s industrious and she’s a hustler. She’s constantly attending all the shows, building relationships with manufacturers and designers, and shopping for fantastic deals for her stores. She uses her magic shopping powers for good, passing the savings on to her customers.

Even if you don’t live in Twin Falls or Pocatello, you can still take advantage of the great deals that Fashion 15 Below is able to find for you by ordering online. Erin’s club of savvy shoppers can access the store plus six big sales every day through the Fashion 15 Below app, available for Android and Apple devices.

Quest for Innovation

 

Let’s take a field trip back to a time and place that few of us remember well. In 1963, the communities of the Treasure Valley were quite different. Boise’s population was only about 40,000 and had just opened its second high school. Boise College was still years away from becoming Boise State University. Meridian, Idaho’s fastest growing city for the last 25 years, had a population of only 2,000, and it’s lifeblood since the Great Depression was the creamery run by a local cooperative of dairy farmers.

It was in this time and place that Gerald Cope saw a need that he was well suited to fill, opening Cope Auto Repair in Meridian. Thus began a journey that continues to this day, more than 56 years later. The business has grown, moved, rebranded, and has been passed from father Gerald to son Rick, but one thing hasn’t changed — the Cope commitment to quality work.

It is, in fact, the Cope name that has become synonymous with auto body repair in the Treasure Valley. The Cope Collision Center, as the business is now called, is a family-run affair. Many of the Cope lineage have dedicated their talents to the family trade. But Rick Cope is not one to turn down talent when he finds it, rounding out their needs with skilled and dedicated operators wherever they find them.

Cars have become incredibly more complicated than they were when Rick’s father first started the business, with new models having more lines of code in their computer systems than most airliners.

That’s why the Cope team is very dedicated to continuing education. The technicians are constantly taking classes and receiving instruction, always updating their education. Their team has the highest possible rating in the industry as I-Car Gold Class certified professionals. Outside of the Honda dealer, they have the only shop in town that is Honda certified. You can add to that virtually every other major car manufacturer, including Nissan, Ford, Dodge, GM, Chevrolet, and more.

Danielle, the Vice President of Cope Collision Center, also emphasized that consumers have a lot more power than most realize. If, like me, you’ve ever been steered to one business or another by an insurance adjuster, she stressed that you don’t have to listen to them. In Idaho, consumers are legally free to take their vehicles to be repaired anywhere they want. Get that estimate; get that second opinion, and make an informed choice!

Cope Collision Center happily works with all insurance companies and agents, but won’t allow themselves to be influenced by them. Cope will return your vehicle to you in pre-accident condition and document it so that insurance will cover it, and their work will come with a lifetime guarantee.

Cope Collision Center might be an old dog, but it’s a reliable one that has learned all kinds of new tricks to stay modern and relevant. It’s how they’ve been an essential part of the community for more than 50 years, and in all likelihood will still be going strong in 50 more.

Charity Unleashed

 

I am grateful for people like Brian and Jodie Rencher, owners of Advanced Dental Care of Twin Falls. I could use this space to tell you how successful their business is (very), how advanced their technology and treatments are (impressively so), or even how incredible the view is from their treatment rooms (majestic), but I’m not going to do that. Instead, I want to tell you about their service.

You see, while we all have our difficulties, most of us here in Idaho are lucky enough to live so well that we fail to appreciate some of the great luxuries and opportunities we have. Most of us don’t realize how life-changing dentistry can be.

When a new patient showed up to Advanced Dental Care for a consultation, she asked Dr. Rencher to pull all of her teeth and prepare her a set of dentures. She’s a young mother who is in fact beautiful, but the poor condition of her teeth led her to covering her mouth to hide them from view. Working in food service without great benefits, replacing her teeth with dentures was the only solution she could afford.

She may not have asked for charity, but she got it. Dr. Rencher saw that the young lady’s teeth might be discolored and not quite straight, but they were otherwise healthy. Advanced Dental Care provided cleaning, whitening, and orthodontic care, asking her to pay only what she could afford. That act of charity has changed her life!

Brian and Jodie are a model in this regard, not taking their blessings for granted and always quick to help others. They are very focused on giving aid where they can. In cooperation with the LDS Dental Academy, Dr. Rencher has made multiple trips to China to provide humanitarian aid. There he provided free dental care for children from orphanages and the elderly, and also provided dental training at a local university.

The practice hasn’t lost sight of the fact that there are also people right here that could use a little help. They provide service, cash, and material donations to a variety of local causes, including the Valley House, animal shelters, the Special Olympics, victims of domestic violence, the list goes on and on!

But the event that may be the cause for the most excitement is Advanced Dental Care’s Dentistry from the Heart Day. At last year’s event, the team provided free dental care to more than 70 local residents. It was a smashing success, and they are looking forward to their next Heart Day, which is slated for next fall.

Diamond Hugs

When I first spoke with Rick, the founder of Diamond Heating & Cooling, I was not impressed when he told me, “Taking care of clients is our top priority.” You see, just about every HVAC website, ad, and mission statement will say something to that effect. Any cynical person would say that these claims of wholesome intent are hogwash.

Sprint’s “About Us” page says their focus is creating an amazing customer experience, yet year after year they rank among the most hated businesses, worst customer service, and worst places to work in America.

So how do you know when it’s not hogwash and the organization actually holds to the ideals that it claims? It’s simple — you ask their customers.
Let me share a story of Anne (name changed for privacy). She is 81 years old, wheelchair bound, lives alone, and receives palliative care. When her furnace stopped working on a cold December day, Anne couldn’t bare it.

Diamond Heating & Cooling not only provided fast and reliable service, they helped Anne on a whole new level. Despite receiving a new furnace, Anne’s invoice read a grand total of $0.00.

In the notes read the following: “No charge for this lady under any circumstances. We will be available 24/7 to help her and keep her comfortable.”
Anne had become a recipient of the famous “Diamond Hug”, a community program led by Diamond Heating & Cooling where they look for opportunities to give back to others in need.

As the cold season began last year, the team met because Rick had generously offered free furnaces with the requisite labor costs for two families in need. Problem was, they had actually found five families that needed furnaces.

They had a choice to make.

And choose they did! After one technician offered to cover a third furnace out of his own pocket, the rest of the team collaborated and pitched in so that each of the five families could keep their homes warm over the winter.

It doesn’t stop there either. The Diamond team sponsored an orphanage and teamed up with a non-profit to provide shoes for “their” kids. For 2020 they’ve already set aside time and money for veterans, the Boise Rescue Mission, the Garden City Police, and they’ll again partner with KTSY to provide furnaces for a few homes this year.

It’s acceptable if you have tears welling up in your eyes right now. These people are good, in the truest sense of the word.
Sue Ellen, Diamond Co-Owner and Rick’s number one gal, explained to me their philosophy. “When someone is in the field, we want our technicians to have the authority to make decisions for the best needs of the client without worrying about blow-back from management.”

Sue Ellen and Rick begin by setting the example from the very top. Then they hire and train highly-skilled HVAC technicians, emphasize the Diamond Hug philosophy, and then empower them to take care of clients.

No hogwash here, right?

The 2020 Idaho’s Best Magazine is Coming in Hot

Idaho's Best Magazine

Coming soon to a mailbox near you

 

As successful as our 2019 Best of Treasure Valley awards were, sadly, I didn’t know if we were going to do it again. Now is not the time to rehash the gynormous roadblock that lay before us at the end of Summer 2019. If interested, you can check out this article.

To solve our dilemma, I surveyed last year’s nominees in August, seeking their advice.

Should we walk away and shut it down? Or should we run the awards under a different name?

The replies I received were enthusiastic, if not encouraging. I immediately transformed from being deflated to feeling energized. The feedback was clear— keep the contest going under a new name. So, we fittingly settled on “Idaho’s Best.”

What a huge undertaking! For sure, I had my doubts about starting over, but fast forward a few months, and I sit here at the start of 2020 with absolutely no regrets. That “roadblock” I mentioned earlier? It was more like a “ramp” that catapulted the awards into the most legitimate and popular “best of” contest in Idaho. Not to give me and my team all the credit! We had loads of help from all sorts of angles— friends, family, colleagues, and of course, last year’s nominees. In reality, our adversity revealed our ingenuity!

Case in point, our new partnership with the Better Business Bureau (read about it on page 7) wouldn’t have come about if it weren’t for that obstacle. Two more examples— We had more support from sponsors this year and even though we doubled the size of our Awards Banquet, it sold out faster than last year!

At Inbound Systems we are honored to run Idaho’s Best. We promise to do all we can in maintaining it as the true gold-standard “best of” contest that it is. To that end, we should at least in part, thank the Idaho Statesman for placing that hurdle in our pathway last summer.

To being your best,

Brodie Tyler

The Best is even Best-ier!

No other “best of” contest cares about getting it right as much as Idaho’s Best does, period.
What sets Idaho’s Best apart is our relentless aim to find and recognize the very best companies and places that Idaho has to offer.

We’re able to find the best because we do it differently:

» No pay to play — participation is free.

» You choose the nominees; we don’t.

» Online reviews help determine the winners.

Gone are the days of the glorified popularity contest that allows companies to win with an endless supply of duplicate votes provided by employees. With Idaho’s Best, tricksters are unable to manipulate the results!

STEPPING UP OUR GAME

New for Idaho’s Best of 2020 are three major improvements to last year’s awards:

#1: Text Message Registration
To reduce duplicates, our voting software now utilizes text message verification. After all, how many of us have multiple cell phones?

#2: Statewide but Still Local
In addition to the Treasure Valley, we included two more regions, the Panhandle and Eastern Idaho. Going statewide increased the competition at the regional level while allowing us to offer a new, statewide award.

#3: BBB Partnership
Could a company truly be named the “best” if they’ve lost their accreditation with the Better Business Bureau? No, and neither should companies with negative BBB ratings.

Thanks to our local BBB office, which provided access to its expansive company data, we were able to filter out those that came up short.

HOW IT WORKS

There are three stages to Idaho’s Best, all of which may increase a contestant’s chances of winning:

Nominations
September 3–13, 2019 — We launched by opening up the nominations to anyone living in Idaho. Word spread quickly and in just 10 days we saw many more nominations than last year pour in from all over Idaho.

Voting
October 14–31, 2019 — After determining the top nominees in each category, we opened up the voting round with our new software. We had a few initial bumps, but we soon settled in and received even more votes per day than last year’s contest.

Nominees didn’t mess around either. Many got the word out to their customers on social media. Some hung banners and window clings to attract the vote. In the end, we came away with the top three to five finalists in each category.

Reviews
November 1, 2018 to October 31, 2019 — In reality, the contest started before it even started! We counted the reviews and ratings for each finalist from the previous twelve calendar months.

PRESENTING THE AWARDS

Because of this year’s changes, making it as a finalist was much more difficult for our nominees. So, making it as a finalist ended up being quite the accomplishment!

Once all the data was in, we added the vote total to the review score for each finalist. This final score determined the winners.
In their honor, we held an awards banquet (see page 8) in downtown Boise on the evenings of December 3–4.