Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/845923
V O L . X X I I I N O. X V I 8 FA C T BO O K / D O I N G B U S I N E S S I N M A I N E Q UA L I T Y O F L I F E 10 iconic Maine businesspeople Maine has a long list of business people and public figures who have made their mark on the economy. We offer a look at 10 Mainers making a difference right now. Linda Bean E N T R E P R E N E U R & G R A N D DAU G H T E R O F L E O N L E O N WO O D B E A N A lightning rod for her politics, as a business person Bean has helped broaden the wholesale market for lobster, buying it and promoting it through Linda Bean's Perfect Maine Lobster Roll. She also owns general stores on the midcoast and Maine Kitchen & Topside Tavern, across the street from the flagship L.L.Bean store. Jean Hoffman FOUNDER & FORMER CEO OF PUTNEY INC. Hoffman built Putney Inc., a maker of generic pet medicines with $50 million in annual sales, and sold it in 2016 to the British pharmaceutical company Dechra Holdings for $200 million. At the Mainebiz women's leadership forum this year, she advised listeners concerned about the gender- wage gap: It's not about money, it's about power. Tom Chappell NA M E S A K E F O R TO M ' S O F M A I N E Chappell and his wife Kate sold Tom's of Maine to Colgate in 2006 for $100 million. He later earned a masters in theology from Harvard Divinity School. Now in his 70s and in his third act, Tom and Kate Chappell launched Rambler's Way Farm, which sells apparel made from sus- tainably produced wool and has three stores and another three in planning stages. Roxanne Quimby C O - F O U N D E D O F B U RT ' S B E E S W I T H B U RT S H AV I T Z Roxanne sold Burt's Bees to Clorox for $925 million in 2007. She invested in 87,000 acres of Maine forest land that last year became Katahdin Woods and Water National Monument, now under review by the Deparment of Interior. For now, her legacy is the impact Burt's Bees has had as a brand developed in Maine. Paul Coulombe R E A L E S TAT E D E V E L O P E R In 2012, Coulombe sold White Rock Distilleries, reportedly for $605 million, and since has made it his mission to revitalize Boothbay Harbor — a town some critics did not think needed revitalization. Nonetheless, by his own account, he has invested $150 million there, buying up golf resorts, restau- rants and bed-and-breakfasts, while creating jobs and pumping additional spending into the economy. David Shaw F O U N D E R O F I D E X X L A B O R ATO R I E S Shaw founded IDEXX in Portland in 1983 to provide animal testing products. IDEXX is now Maine's largest publicly traded company, with rev- enue of $1.6 billion. Shaw has since turned his efforts to investing in small biotech companies. Shawn Gorman E X E C U T I V E C H A I R M A N O F L . L . B E A N After joining the retailer's marketing department in 1991, Gorman has helped keep the company nimble while navigating the changes in how we all shop. He's kept L.L.Bean at the center of the outdoor world by offering classes, guided tours and, in Freeport, a campus experience — one that draws 3 million visitors a year. Beth Shissler P R E S I D E N T / C O O, S E A BAG S A native of the tiny island of Isle au Haut (and sis- ter of Linda Greenlaw of "Perfect Storm" fame), Shissler built the innovative Sea Bags brand, producing tote bags made from old sails. The Portland-based retail brand now has 11 stores on in coastal towns, from Camden to Martha's Vineyard, Mass., to Cape May, N.J. Bill Haggett C E O O F P I N E L A N D FA R M S Haggett, a Maine native, had another whole career, running Bath Iron Works. Now in his early 80s, Haggett directs his energy to running Pineland Farms — the vast New Gloucester cam- pus and its meat and cheese divisions. Earlier this year, Pineland Farms sold Pineland Farms Potato Co. to Bob Evans, for $115 million. Betsy Wyeth W I D OW O F PA I N T E R A N D R E W W Y E T H & M OT H E R O F JA M I E W Y E T H Betsy Wyeth has been instrumental in creating an arts-and-culture hub in Rockland and the midcoast. She has helped support the Farnsworth Museum of Art. She played a "pivotal role" in the founding of the Island Institute, one founder said, with a mis- sion of helping year-round islands remain economi- cally viable. She invested in Allen Island, creating a hub for research and a place for lobstermen to sell their catch, keeping a vital industry alive. P H O T O / F R E D F I E L D P H O T O / S E A N A L O N Z O H A R R I S P H O T O / C A R L D. WA L S H P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY P H O T O / BO O T H B AY R E G I S T E R P H O T O / G A BO R D E G R E , B A N G O R DA I LY N E W S P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y L . L . B E A N P H O T O / P E T E R R A L S T O N