The Business Consulting and Resiliency Team is a group of dedicated local consultants brought together by Park Local. Each consultant brings their own specialty and strengths to create a well rounded group of professionals. Making their homes in Park County, each member of the team is able to offer in person and specialized consulting services. 

 

What is our mission?

The BCRT is committed to making quality local consulting available to all small, locally owned businesses in Park County. Park Local has dedicated itself to this mission by covering the cost of the first three hours of consulting for small, locally owned businesses in Park County. When expert consultants are more accessible, small businesses in our community can thrive. 

 

How does it work? 

Park Local representatives will perform an initial interview with any locally owned small business who wishes to utilize the program. This will be an opportunity to express your wants and needs for your business. After a thorough exploration, the business will be paired with the best consultant for the job. The consultant and the business will be put in contact to schedule their meeting at a time that best works for them.

 

Who should apply?

All locally owned, small businesses are invited and encouraged to apply. Different businesses will benefit from utilizing the BCRT for their consulting needs. 

Start-ups- When you’re just starting out is one of the best times to seek expert business advice to help build a solid foundation for the life of your business.

Existing Business- After hard work and perseverance, you’ve created a running, established business in the community. Now it’s time to scale up and expand operations or create a solid support system to create a more resilient business. Maybe things have changed since you started and you need guidance on the newest trends as you transition into the next phase of your business. Whatever your needs are as an established business the BCRT is here to help.

Solopreneurs- Being a solopreneur can require you to wear a lot of hats. As both the owner and only employee, everything falls on your shoulders. It might feel like you have to know everything about everything to make your business a success, but you don’t have to go it alone. With the BCRT in your corner you can get expert advice and knowledge to help beef up those weak spots in your wheelhouse. 

 

Our Specialty 

The range of skills held by our consultants allows us to offer consulting services in the following areas;

-Financial Management

-Employee Conflict Mitigation

-Bookkeeping

-Web Design

-Insurance

-Social Media / Marketing

-Retail Inventory

-Branding

-Costing

-Accounting

 

Meet The Team

Trent Balestri 

Trent currently serves as a Park County Economic Development Extension Agent and has experience in the United States Department of State and the tourism industry. Living in four different countries, Trent brings technical knowledge of economic development, diplomacy, and operating in diverse cultures to the table. He obtained a degree in International Studies from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Trent currently lives and works in Livingston and in the summers he loves to mountain bike, hike, and fish. In the winters, he backcountry split boards. He often finds himself buying sourdough from the Livingston Community Bakery and then exploring the creeks throughout Park County on the weekends. Trent enjoys exploring the coffee shops, restaurants, and bars from Wilsall to Cooke City.

 

Kate Stewart 

Kate Stewart helps business owners reduce costs related to internal and external conflicts, disengaged employees, and low trust in the workplace. She is a trusted advisor who can coach leaders and employees for success. In addition, she can mediate disputes and make recommendations to improve relationships, retention, engagement and productivity, collaboration, and customer service. 

 

Steve Caldwell 

Steve Caldwell brings over 40 years of experience in financial management, capital projects, and commodity price risk management to the Business Team. His background in the mining and investment banking industries has included projects throughout the United States and Canada, and in various locations in Australia and southeast Asia. He has also managed commercial and trading relationships in North America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Japan for both American and British companies.

 

Steve has a strong commitment to developing and sustaining the social and economic health of Park County’s diverse communities and businesses. In addition to his ongoing private consulting work, Steve has also contributed his time and energy to a number of local, regional, and state non-profit organizations, and has served as both a City of Livingston and a Park County Commissioner. Steve has a Bachelor of Science degree from Indiana University and an MBA from the University of Chicago.

 

Peter Rubicam 

Peter Rubicam earned a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Union College, Schenectady, NY. After working for several years as an application engineer at Hipotronics, a maker of high voltage and other test equipment located in Brewster NY, he returned to school and received an MBA in Finance from Bentley University in Waltham, MA. He spent the following twelve years working as an equity research analyst for several investment banks, including Dean Witter Reynolds, Credit Suisse First Boston, and McDonald Investments. Seeking a change of pace, he then joined a small commercial loan brokerage, where he arranged financing for a number of small to medium sized businesses. These loan projects ranged from $100,000 for the purchase of a laundromat, up to a $14 million bond offering to finance construction of a church. He then left the east coast and landed in Montana, where he started teaching first at Helena College, and then at Montana State University. He is still teaching finance classes at the MSU Jake Jabs College of Business and Entrepreneurship in Bozeman. He also acted as manager of the Bootstrap Montana loan program for several years. Bootstrap Montana provided zero-interest micro-loans of $2,000 to $20,000 to help rural Montana entrepreneurs grow their businesses. He also maintains his own consulting practice, Yellowstone Valley Consulting, LLC, which provides financial consulting and other services to area businesses.   

 

Rachel Wilhelm Anderson 

Rachel is a creative professional with over 20 years of experience in sales and marketing management, project management, customer service, key account management, and innovative business development. Her areas of expertise include promotional products, commercial print, marketing, graphic design and branding, website design and development, content and copy writing development, direct mail, product and packaging development, trade shows, events, and email marketing.

 

She is the president and creative director of M Design Group, whose mission is to elevate brands and grow business through thoughtful strategies, creative solutions, collaborative relationships, and caring and dedicated partnerships. Rachel prides herself on working hard to develop and grow meaningful, long-lasting relationships with her customers to truly understand their company’s vision and goals and help them be successful.

 

Community is at the core of everything she does. Rachel has served on a number of nonprofit boards over the years, she founded a women’s leadership group called Livingston Women in Business, founded Montana Matriarch, a women’s philanthropy group, and produces the annual community brew fest, Tap into Montana that benefits a different local nonprofit each year.

 

Kitty Rubicam 

Kitty was born and raised in NY state before moving to Montana in 2008. She has her degree in Small Business Management and Entrepreneurship along with twenty years of experience in the restaurant and hospitality industry. Kitty has a passion for helping small businesses find their social media niche and making sense of the ever changing internet marketing climate. She’s also experienced in customer relations, employee training, culture development, branding, and public relations. Kitty has several full-time clients in Livingston, including marketing for Park Local.

 

How to contact us

Send an email  to info@parklocal.org or call Trent at 406-885-9740 during normal business hours.