Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 29 S E P T E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 7 F O C U S S TA R T U P S / E N T R E P R E N E U R S H I P amount of growth they have seen in the last fi ve years is just astounding, even in the last two years," she says. " eir approach to foreign-language learn- ing is starkly diff erent from the way it' been taught in the past, which is very exciting." ough Greuel has yet to pay back the most recent loan, as well as pay himself back, he has no regrets about putting all profi ts back into the busi- ness. "My philosophy is that if you hire the right people, if you do the right things, if you create great products for your customers, then everything is going to work out for you. I see that happening right now. I've got a fantastic team." at team includes his wife, Amy, in charge of accounting and travel for the sales and marketing team; 18 employees in Freeport handling cus- tomer services, shipping/order fulfi llment, human resources, IT support and software development, graphic decision, editing, instructional training and marketing; and about 80 authors who work as independent contractors paid by royalties. It out- grew its cramped Yarmouth offi ce long ago, moving to Freeport in 2015 to a 10,000-square-foot space on U.S. Route 1, in a space formerly occupied by retailer J.L. Coombs. What's next for Wayside ough Greuel declined to reveal customer names, he says the company concentrates on populous states with an interest in language learning and sells to individual schools as well as districts. Buyers can order directly from Wayside or Amazon.com. e company shipped new orders to Texas this summer after being selected through the state's recent review and adoption process of instructional materials from diff erent publishers. Wayside is also looking to ramp up sales of digital materials, which it began off ering this year as bundles comprising printed textbooks that stay in the classroom for six years with annual subscrip- tions to FlexText and its Explorer platform. "We've built a platform to enable us to deliver to our customers whatever they want in whatever way that they want," says Greuel. He jokes that he hasn't yet used the materials himself to learn another lan- guage, which his authors like to tease him about. " e time to run a business is all-consuming," he says. R C , M a i n e b i z s e n i o r w r i t e r, c a n b e reached at @ . and @ Ben brings 24 years of know-how to our business team. With him, moving Maine businesses forward. Congratulate Ben today at BGeci@androscogginbank.com or at 207-376-3511. Learn more about 147 years of smarter banking and 275 years of business expertise at androscogginbank.com/275years Smarter Banking ™ Androscoggin Bank Welcomes Benjamin Geci Executive Vice President, Chief Lending Officer Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- Their approach to foreign- language learning is starkly language learning is starkly language learning is starkly language learning is starkly language learning is starkly language learning is starkly language learning is starkly language learning is starkly language learning is starkly language learning is starkly language learning is starkly language learning is starkly language learning is starkly different from the way it's been taught in the past, which is very exciting. — Mara K. Pennell Bath Savings Institution

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