Starting this week, a new statewide nonprofit group called South Dakota Trade hopes it can make it far easier for other Rushmore State businesses to do business with international markets and generate new revenues and jobs along the way. The team broke into the international market on their own, mostly through resourcefulness, dedication and a large dose of trial and error. Their continued foray into international trade is one driver of a recent growth spurt that has seen Ruff Land’s annual revenues climb from $11 million in 2021 to $16 million in 2022 to an expected $23 million in 2023. Turner, Van Kalsbeek and third co-owner Doug Sangl have since become relative experts at selling their kennels and other pet-carrying accessories overseas. “I didn’t sleep for weeks hoping it would cross the border – and that I wouldn’t go to prison.” “Lyle said to me, ‘You better hope you have that right, because you’re signing that and it’s a federal offense punishable by jail time if anything is wrong,’” Turner recalled. MORE: Dakota Herb is Aberdeen’s first medical marijuana dispensary She and co-owner Lyle Van Kalsbeek paused before signing the documents to enter international trade relations with America’s neighbor to the north. Turner laughs about the process now but recalls how nerve-wracking it was. Turner is a co-owner and CEO of Ruff Land Kennels in Tea, which makes industry-leading, one-piece molded plastic kennels.Īt the time, the company wanted to build on its domestic business and expand beyond the border. TEA – Alisa Turner can readily remember the trepidation she felt a decade ago when her company made its first international sale to a Cabela’s retail store in Canada.
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