Written by Jay Stahl
As the Urbandale Chamber of Commerce commemorates 60 years of operations during the remaining months of 2022, the organization is spotlighting local businesses that have been impacted by the chamber’s mission.
The first, a family-owned technology provider, is celebrating a birthday – 85 years in business – during 2022. Passed down like a family memento, MMIT has gone through evolutions of business technology sales: starting with typewriters, then copiers and printers, and now providing a number of options to businesses like IT services and tech support.
In a blacktop driveway-colored building, sandwiched near Goodwill and next to Scholastic Book Fairs, sits Urbandale-based business consulting agency MMIT Business Solutions Group at 4201 NW Urbandale Drive. MMIT, a fourth-generation family-owned company, was founded in 1937 by Gilbert Minor. Originally known as M & M Sales Company, the business started when Minor sold typewriter ribbons to local clients.
MMIT President Tom Minor took the reins to the family business in 1992 after his father retired. The company moved to Urbandale in 2000. Minor said the company chose Urbandale because the community and its Chamber of Commerce provided important opportunities for growth.
“The Urbandale community, especially the Urbandale Chamber of Commerce, have hosted a number of events and provided access to resources that helped our business grow,” Minor said.
MMIT is currently assessing options for further growth like expansions into emerging markets.
Pat Pithan, a Past Chamber Chair and MMIT sales and marketing director, said Chamber staff have provided countless opportunities over the years to grow company clientele and expand its business portfolio. “Urbandale has helped tremendously over the years and represented a large number of clients and (brought) revenue to our company,” Pithan said.
Pithan said the community’s warm welcome 22 years ago as the company searched for a new location for its headquarters led to the decision to shift operations from Des Moines to Urbandale. “We appreciate Urbandale and what a tremendous and positive asset it has been for the company,” Pithan said.
The family business is still growing – MMIT is currently in the process of transferring ownership to Minor’s daughter Ellie Tysklind and her husband Braydon.
For more information on MMIT, visit mmitiowa.com.