[From Summer 1996 issue of A&S Perspectives]

Dennis Burns remembers the moment inspiration struck. Third period, down by one goal in an ice hockey game in 1963. Burns got whacked in the face by a hockey stick, just inches from his eye. In that instant, a brilliant entrepreneurial career was born.

Well, maybe not that instant. But the accident did inspire Burns to design a protective mask that later launched his first business, Pro-tec. Within a few years, Pro-tec was producing protective gear for all sorts of sports, from bicycling to skydiving. By the time Burns sold his majority interest in the company (and a spin-off company, Gargoyles) in 1995, annual sales exceeded $20 million.

Burns is one of a growing number of local entrepreneurs who hail from the College of Arts and Sciences. Most did not go on to business school; instead they depended on skills developed through a liberal arts education: analytical skills, an ability to write and speak persuasively, and an awareness of other people and cultures.

Of course there is an element of entrepreneurship that cannot be taught. As Burns explains, "I think running a business is largely common sense, but most of all you must have guts and tenacity. They are essential."

A Voice for the Asian Community

Assunta Ng first demonstrated her "guts and tenacity" when she moved from Hong Kong to the United States at age 18. She came to the Northwest to attend college and never left. "Growing up, I was a very traditional daughter who just listened to my parents and did what I was told," recalls Ng. "But then I decided that I didn't like the role models around me. I left Hong Kong to search for role models for myself."

	Assunta Ng founded both the Seattle Chinese Post and the Northwest Asian Weekly.

Ng did much of her searching at the UW, where she received a B.A. in East Asian Studies in 1974, a teaching certificate in 1976, and an M.A. in Speech Communication in 1979. In the late 1970s, she taught social studies to immigrant children at Mercer Junior High School on Seattle's Beacon Hill. "It was a rewarding job, but I was frustrated that I could only reach 40 kids a day," says Ng. "I wanted to have more of an impact."

Ng soon found a way to reach more people: a newspaper. In 1982, she founded the Seattle Chinese Post, a weekly newspaper published in Chinese. "There was no Chinese newspaper here," explains Ng. "I wanted to provide a place where immigrants could get the facts from a source in their own community." Ng later learned that four different groups of men had wanted to start a Chinese language newspaper in Seattle, but none had followed through on the idea.

Although Ng was strong on follow through, her journalism experience was limited to a stint as a reporter for The Daily at the UW. That lack of experience never concerned her, even as she invested $25,000 of her own money in the business. "I had no newspaper operation experience," Ng admits. "But if you give yourself excuses by saying 'I've never done this before,' you'll never do anything. I learned the hard way, but I still think it's the best way."

It also helped that Ng started small, with a staff of four and a 12-page publication. Now the staff numbers twelve and the Seattle Chinese Post averages 28 pages. A year after founding the newspaper, Ng introduced a companion publication in English, the Northwest Asian Weekly, to reach a broader audience. The combined circulation for the two newspapers is 15,000.

As is often the case, outside events have played a crucial role in Ng's business. The Northwest Asian Weekly was planned as a one-time publication to celebrate the Chinese New Year. "One week after publishing that issue, the Wah Mee massacre happened," explains Ng. "I felt that we had to continue the English language version. We were able to offer a perspective on that tragedy that no other newspaper could provide." The Northwest Asian Weekly now has the larger circulation of the two publications.

"Starting a business is like traveling into a strange land or putting together a jigsaw puzzle," says Ng. "In most phases, you don't know the answers. But once you start doing it, the answers will come one by one. It can be frightening at the beginning, yet exciting and gratifying in every stage."

A New Venue for Theatre-and Laundry

Like Ng, Lisa Bonney started a business armed with more enthusiasm than experience. A 1990 drama graduate, Bonney's dream was to open a theatre where new and experimental work could be performed. Her boyfriend, Michael Rose, wanted a space to present conceptual art. With two partners, they opened Sit & Spin in 1993, a combination cafe-laundromat-theatre-gallery in Seattle's Denny Regrade. The establishment has become something of a media darling, attracting the attention of the BBC, MTV, The Today Show, The Tonight Show, and other broadcast outlets.

Lisa Bonney and partner Michael Rose at Sit & Spin, their cafe-laundromat-theatre-gallery.

Why the cafe and laundromat? Those enterprises raise the revenue that makes the theatre possible. In fact the theatre did not open until October 1995, when the cafe and laundromat were well established. "I had always planned on having a separate theatre, and we had space in the back designated for that, but we couldn't afford to open it right away," says Bonney. "Last year, the business was finally stable enough financially to open the theatre. We were pretty sure we wouldn't go under if we added something."

Compromise was still necessary, however. Bonney and her partners discovered that experimental plays could not pack the 183-occupancy theatre, so they began presenting rock 'n roll on weekend evenings. "We do the music because that's where the money is," Bonney says. "We work the theatre around the music; the beer from the rock 'n roll shows subsidizes the theatre productions."

Since opening the theatre--a funky, informal space with a mix of old couches and chairs for seating--Bonney has presented three plays. The first was directed by Robyn Hunt, UW drama professor and mentor to Bonney. The second production was directed by Bonney. "I do a little of everything-producing, directing . . . . I'd love to act as well, but it would seem a little odd to just open a space and say, 'OK, I'm acting now.'"

Although Bonney controls her impulse to act, she has no hesitation about involving UW students and alumni. All of the actors in the first show were former or current UW students; another play showcased students from the School of Drama's Professional Actor Training Program (PATP). "The University is turning out good people who have a lot to offer," explains Bonney. "I'm just glad that I can provide them a space to do their work."

That dedication to the theatre community motivated Bonney to start Sit & Spin, and it continues to factor into all of her business decisions. "If we had started by thinking of this as a business rather than as a labor of love, I don't think we would have done it," she says. "The whole thing ran over budget and took longer than expected, but by that time there was no going back. We were too far in to even let fear get in the way."

Combining Music and Marketing

Michael Malone was a bit more savvy when he launched his business, AEI Music, in 1971. The former UW football player had graduated from the UW in 1967 with a bachelor's degree in political science and was working as a financial analyst. Then he noticed a trend--an explosive interest in music--and decided to capitalize on it.

"People enjoyed listening to music a lot in their houses and their cars," Malone recalls thinking, "so why wouldn't they want it where they eat and shop?" Muzak and 3M were offering background music, but that was not what Malone had in mind. His idea was to provide "foreground" music to businesses-taped compilations of music performed by the original artists.

	Michael Malone, founder of AEI Music.

The main selling point, Malone thought, would be his ability to tailor the music to a business's clientele. "Our goal was to complement the merchandising and ambience of a store with familiar music that the customer would like to hear," he says. "The music would be an active part of the environment."

Malone began the business in the stairwell of an abandoned building. Recognizing that his expertise was in marketing rather than music, he hired one employee knowledgeable about music and electronics. The two of them began producing four-hour tapes for local businesses. That was in 1971.

"The concept really hasn't ventured too far since then," says Malone. Maybe not, but the business certainly has changed. AEI now has a staff of 500-about half in Seattle, the rest in offices around the globe-and its product can be heard in most major food and retail chains.

"Name a company," challenges Malone. "They are probably a customer of ours." He's not just blowing smoke. The list of AEI clients reads like a who's who of popular culture, including such diverse companies as The Gap, Eddie Bauer, Toys R Us, Brooks Brothers, Red Lobster, and Jack in the Box.

AEI's compilations also can be heard on nearly all major airlines. When you plug in that rented headset and surf the music channels, it's Malone's product you are hearing. "The airlines only represent about two percent of our business," says Malone, "but it is certainly a high profile part of our business."

Given AEI's list of clients, it might seem that the company has tapped all potential markets. But the business just continues to grow. AEI now has a presence in 42 countries and is the major music supplier in Germany and England. In addition to four-hour stereo CDs, the company offers a direct broadcast satellite service (a less expensive, less flexible option) and just launched a consumer products division that produces one-hour CDs for customers who like the music compilations they hear in their favorite store.

Not bad for a political science major with no business degree. Malone says that he began the business with "a gut feel" for what would work, and he continues to use the same approach. "I find that more spontaneous, more exciting, than a more scientific approach," he says.

And while many entrepreneurs itch to move on when a company reaches maturity, Malone has had no such urge. The reason? "I keep changing," he says. "It's important that I change. The person who starts a business in an abandoned stairwell is not the same person who can run a $100 million enterprise."

Slavic Grad and Science Junkie

Stewart Parker also knows about change, having risen from corporate secretary to president and CEO of a biotechnology firm in less than ten years.

After graduating with a degree in Slavic Languages and Literature in 1979, Parker went on to earn an M.B.A. at the UW School of Business. Her first job after business school was with a newly formed, unknown start-up company called Immunex. In fact, she was the company's first hired employee.

	Stewart Parker, CEO of Targeted Genetics

"Biotechnology really wasn't around then," Parker recalls. "Immunex was one of the first companies in the field."

The company's three founders--two scientists and a local businessman--hired Parker to handle the company's day-to-day business activities, including market research and coordination of the company's facility. "It sounded like an exciting opportunity," says Parker. "I wanted exposure to a broad range of functions and this job provided that."

Immunex, of course, quickly took off. Parker's role grew along with the company. Within a few years she was named director of marketing and communications; later she was promoted to vice president. Then, in 1989, she was asked to head Targeted Genetics, a biopharmaceutical company formed by Immunex to develop gene and cell therapy treatments. Targeted Genetics became a separate entity in 1992; the company has grown to 85 employees and has raised $50 million from capital markets.

There is some irony in Parker's current situation. Parker shied away from science in college, limiting herself to geology courses. But after spending years surrounded by scientists, she has become a self-described "science junkie." "Science is very elegant--particularly the concept of asking a series of questions to get a broader answer," she says. "The more I get into it, the more fascinating it is."

The next year will be telling for Targeted Genetics. Several of its products are currently in clinical trials; the results will indicate whether the scientists are on the right track. Assuming all goes well, does Parker see herself staying with the company for the long haul? "Definitely, for the foreseeable future," she says.

"I'm fond of making order out of chaos," Parker explains. "It's very exciting when you've got a clean piece of paper and come up with a group that will fill in the colors. First there is euphoria, then the realization that, 'Oh, we really have to do this.' Then you get past that and you get down to work. I enjoy the whole process."

Bottling a Great Idea

Unlike the other entrepreneurs described here, Dennis Burns has sold his successful business, providing him the freedom to pursue other ventures. But then, he never intended to run his own company in the first place.

Dennis Burns

"When I made that first hockey mask, it was just for my own use," he explains. "There was no hockey mask on the market and I wanted to protect my face. Then parents at the ice rink starting asking about it, wanting to buy it."

Burns, who graduated with a B.A. and M.A. in art, still had no intention of going into business. He contacted several companies about buying his design, but they hesitated. The problem, he discovered, was that the National Hockey League's rulebook prohibited facial protection in hockey.

"At that point I decided to introduce the product anyway, figuring that parents would get the rule changed." Sure enough, one year after Burns introduced his mask, the NHL approved masks as optional equipment. The next year, masks were required for all amateurs.

Other products followed, including the first child's bicycle helmet and sports/fashion sunglasses with a highly impact resistant lens that protects the eye. The sunglass venture became a separate company, Gargoyles, in 1982.

Burns sold his majority interest in both companies last year. "I felt I'd done what I could do," he explains. "I think what I do best is ideas. Maintenance of a company other people can do better than I can, and this way I can pursue other ideas."

Burns has no shortage of those. His current brainstorm is a wine bottle cork made of a urethane compound. He came up with the idea after learning that bark cork ruins up to 15 percent of all wine bottled with it, due to mold in the cork itself. His man-made cork addresses that problem and also eliminates the leakage that is common with bark cork.

Burns' company, SupremeCorq, already has 800 wineries using its product. Sales have skyrocketed during the past year. Much of the growth can be attributed to a good product and effective marketing, but Burns admits that luck also has been on his side.

"After we started producing this product, we learned that the main source of natural cork-cork trees in Portugal-have a disease not unlike Dutch elm disease," says Burns. "When something like that happens, you do start to wonder whether fate plays a role."

Maybe, but that's never the whole story. And Burns knows it.

"Really it all comes down to trusting your ideas," he says. "A lot of people have great ideas but they get stumped. They think, 'If it's such a good idea, wouldn't someone already have done it?' You can't think like that."

Basic Training: A Liberal Arts Education

Like Burns, all of these entrepreneurs trusted their ideas. And, with the exception of Parker, they pursued them without the benefit of a business degree.

"People think that there is a great leap between my education and what I'm doing now," says Burns, "but really there isn't. Both art and business have to do with coming up with ideas, defining requirements, and solving the problems that come up. In fact, I'm not sure I'd have the same creativity if I'd chosen a different major."

Bonney concurs. "I wouldn't change what I studied," she says. "My liberal arts education has served me well. In business, you have to deal with many people, so learning to read people and think quickly in a variety of situations is important. I learned how to do that as a drama major. I also learned to write well at the UW, which has been essential in this job."

Even Parker, who attended business school, sees a liberal arts education as a major asset for an entrepreneur. "Business school gave me the language that I needed for this job, but it's my liberal arts training that has helped me learn how to interact with people," she says. "No question about it-I'm a big fan of liberal arts."

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