www.openecho.org 1-844-512-ECHO Have a problem? We own IT. IT Managed Services Hardware Repair Compliance Network Security Consulting Home and Business Technology Solutions SVN | The Urbanek Group Commercial Real Estate Advisors 100 Silver Street, Portland ME | 207.613.7400 www.theurbanekgroup.com All SVN® Offices Independently Owned And Operated O c t o b e r 2 0 1 7 3 7 The competition is so fierce that the malls are struggling. People don’t like the hassle of parking. With it, half of the res- taurants around the malls are closing. What will take the place of the Maine Mall and places like it–little medical offices and dental offices to take care of the people who used to go to the malls? It’s going to be movie theatres and trampolines. Old-age health-care facilities. InGoneGirl,anabandonedmallhasbecomehometoa denofsquatters.ButthatcouldneverhappeninMaine! The other thing that’s marooned is the pa- per industry. Half of the paper mills in Maine have closed since 1980. In 2012, they fired up the Great Northern paper mill in East Millinocket. They caused a stir when they won the contract to produce 3,000 tons of paper for that erotic book Fif- ty Shades of Grey. If they keep making re- prints of Fifty Shades, the paper industry will be saved. What’stheglobalpicture? In 1960, Maine lost its top-paper-produc- ing state status to Wisconsin. Then Chi- na, Brazil, Germany, Canada, and Finland closed in. Tellusaboutahotbusinessthatisenrichedby,anddriven by,diversity. The Somalis and the Sudanese are growing populations in Maine. There’s been an im- pact on the seafood industry. No state has a lower percentage of people between 15 and 44 than the state of Maine. In 2011, there were more people dying than were born in the state of Maine. B arber Foods has always hired mi- norities. The economists say the on- ly way Maine is going to grow is through the new immigrants coming in. The growth needs to happen through 2035, and it’s going to be driven by the people who come here. In 1955, Gus Barber opened up his meat shop–a little more than a butcher knife and an old truck. It was acquired by Cincin- nati AdvancePierre foods in 2011. Today, Barber Foods claims they have employees from over 50 nationalities. Gus had English classes at the plant early on. It was a melting pot. Most of the Barber family has moved on, but they all did very well. In Portland, the company still operates as Barber Foods