Service helps new Cape Girardeau residents settle in

A new business offering concierge services for new Cape Girardeau residents launched last week. New2Cape provides 24/7, on-call assistance per prearranged contract. On-call assistance is available in two formats: passive, where the new resident calls as needed, and assertive, where New2Cape follows up with new residents to assist and ensure there are no issues.

In addition to on-call assistance, welcome packets, community tours, escorts and on-site services are available to assist new residents and their families in setting up a household and settling into the community.

Marie Gladue, New2Cape founder, has more than 20 years of experience creating orientation and on-boarding processes in corporate environments, most recently for Saint Francis Medical Center. Gladue created the service after her experience moving from a major metropolitan area to Cape Girardeau in 2010. As a graduate of Leadership Cape, she came to appreciate Cape Girardeau and its depth. She said she feels there is much missed by new residents as they focus on their new roles, not their new community. Residents with anchors to the community tend to be retained and have higher morale and productivity. Gladue has identified other local residents to join the firm so the best match may be made for each client and client family. For more information, visit www.New2Cape.com.

* Brown's Shoe Fit Co. will open Wednesday in its new location in the Park West Centre at 201 S. Mount Auburn Road. The space was previously occupied by Talbots. Brown's has been in downtown Cape Girardeau since opening here in 1965. At the new location, the store will be open extended hours, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. Brown's, which features high-end shoes, will expand its selection in its existing lines and adding new lines, said Nick Mercer, owner/manager. The new location is about twice the size of its store on Main Street. Brown's is based in Iowa and has 80 stores nationwide. Mercer said the new location will provide more convenience for customers, more parking and improved accessibility.

* Norrenburns Truck Service, known as NOTS, has opened a new location in Scott City to cover Southeast Missouri. The Nashville, Ill., based company operates as a "less-than-truckload" freight service serving the Midwest. Tom Kelsey, commercial broker with Lorimont Place Ltd. who handled the real estate transaction, said the company has recently moved into an office and warehouse cross dock facility at 3400 Willow Drive in Scott City, just across the street from the Cape Girardeau United Parcel depot. Roadway Express was formerly in the building for many years and relocated to the Yellow trucking facility in Sikeston, Mo., when the two carriers merged, Kelsey said. NOTS has been operating in the region for some time and, with an increase of business, recently chose to open a local redistribution center and office here. NOTS was founded in 1925 by the Norrenburns brothers in rural Albers, Ill., and provides warehousing and logistics management services, freight logistics, freight management and freight audits. The company, which has locations throughout the Midwest, is already operating at its new Cape Girardeau/Scott City facility, and some new employees were hired locally.

* Relentless Inc., a film and digital media firm in Cape Girardeau, contributed to a product launch for Case IH's new Steiger Rowtrac series of tractors. Relentless created motion graphics and 3-D animation to explain the Rowtrac systems and its advantages. The Relentless team worked on the project with Case IH teams throughout the United States and abroad. The Steiger Rowtrac animation project was led by Drew Janes, Halee Janes and Vlad Kovalenko with a supporting team of animators, motion graphic artists and other staff. Relentless also contributed to the product photography and its photos appear in the new Steiger flipbook, brochures and the Case IH website.

Southeast Missourian Business Editor Melissa Miller can be reached by email at mmiller@semissourian.com or by phone at 388-3646.