Curt Tillotson has some fascinating stories about his very varied career. There’s the one about introducing the Geek Squad to “just one” Best Buy store in 2002 that led to a successful merger of the maverick computer repair guys with the big blue retailer. Or the one about starting out as vice president of sales for Nahan, the St. Cloud-based printing firm, even though he’d never worked in sales before.
But a favorite is about being connected with a competitor company in Omaha that was using a software system that Tillotson’s firm was considering buying. The owner of the company knew they were competitors but gave the Minnesotans a full tour of the plant. Not only did he show them how the software worked but talked about how he was implementing lean manufacturing principles to cut costs and remain competitive. “There was a mutual trust,” Tillotson says. “He firmly believed that America needs to get better at manufacturing. We have slipped. He was doing manufacturing the right way and was willing to help others make American manufacturing better.” He wanted to share his wisdom with others — even competitors.
About the same time, Bob Kill, president and CEO of Enterprise Minnesota, approached Tillotson about joining the organization’s board of directors. “And I thought, ‘I want to be part of that,’” Tillotson says. “I agree manufacturing in America is not what it used to be. We have a lot of catching up to do. I think Enterprise Minnesota can help elevate American manufacturing.”
A winding road
Tillotson started his career in accounting but brings a breadth of experiences from sales to operations to his current role as CEO of The Lakeland Company, a Twin Cities-based family of eight firms manufacturing and distributing electrical controls, enclosures, and other products for agriculture, rail, and additional industrial applications. He developed those skills by being just a little outside of the mainstream.
Working for corporate giants Pillsbury and Best Buy, he was never assigned to what he calls “the mother ship.” At Pillsbury, he worked in restaurants, not refrigerated dough. And, for Best Buy, he oversaw a unit developing new income streams, including the acquisition of the funky computer repair business, Geek Squad, and setting it up in Best Buy stores. Acquiring Geek Squad and letting it keep its nerdy persona — the orange signage, Volkswagen service vehicles, and skinny black ties — seemed risky to Best Buy’s corporate image protectors at the time.
“We’re just going to test it in one store,” Tillotson remembers saying as the first Geek Squad unit opened in 2002 at a Best Buy in Maple Grove. It was quickly rolled out to all Best Buy stores and currently employs 20,000+ repair technicians as services have become a significant share of Best Buy’s revenue and earnings.
As exciting as these experiences were, Tillotson realized that the Fortune 500 was not where he wanted to work. “I always knew I wanted to go to a smaller company. Many of the projects I worked on at large corporations never saw the light of day,” Tillotson says. “I really like a place where you can make an impact.”
He left Best Buy to become CFO for St. Cloud-based grocery retailer Coborn’s, then signed on as vice-president of sales — something he’d never done — for Nahan, the printing, direct mail, and marketing firm, also based in St. Cloud. The plan was to move him into finance after the then CFO retired. While waiting for that to happen, Tillotson learned everything about the print business and sales strategy. “I was a very willing student,” he says. “It was a great experience, and it set me up for running the printing company.”
When private investors bought Nahan in 2021, Tillotson moved to Lakeland, which has 250 employees divided among the eight companies. Each company has its own business leader. They occasionally work with each other and share resources such as human resources and finance, but each has unique products with its own market and varied challenges. This is where Enterprise Minnesota has come in, Tillotson says. Different Lakeland companies have sought assistance with quality assurance and ISO certification, strategic development, and leadership development. It’s Tillotson’s job to help each business unit succeed and grow profitably, while staying in alignment with Lakeland’s overall goals, says Joel Scalzo, business development consultant for Enterprise Minnesota. “The takeaway I get from working with him is that he provides calm leadership,” says Scalzo.
His big company background has helped in working with some of Lakeland’s big company customers. “You get the challenges of working in a big company,” Tillotson says. “You have sympathy for them. But you can nudge them to direct more business our way.” Implementing more lean strategies and managing costs to make each Lakeland company globally competitive will be key parts of “winning the market,” going forward, Tillotson says.
Currently, one of the Lakeland companies is making a controller for a global OEM. A European firm is also manufacturing the same controller. “The plan is that they will do the European union, and we will do all of the Americas,” Tillotson says. “If they trip up, we may find ourselves doing Europe’s work, and if we trip up, they might be here in America.
“You have to question almost everything you are doing,” Tillotson says. “Taking costs out is a must, whether it’s cost cutting or cost containment.”
Kill describes Tillotson as “a growth-oriented executive,” who can find hidden opportunities and innovate. “As manufacturers, you’ve got to know your space,” Tillotson says, “but adjacent spaces could have opportunities. Using that strategic thought process is something Enterprise Minnesota offers. That’s a big deal.”
His experience in a variety of roles and a range of companies will bring connections and new insights to Enterprise Minnesota, Kill says. He’s dealt with a variety of complex situations. “His style is leadership, not management,” Kill says.
“I look forward to being on the board and hope to provide guidance and connections,” Tillotson says.
Return to the Summer 2025 issue of Enterprise Minnesota® magazine.
