Goshen, Ind — From his storefront at 229 S. Main St., Goshen, Digital Hill Multimedia owner Troy Rumfelt is pleased with the direction the downtown area is moving. He looks forward to future improvements that could positively affect his business, both in foot traffic and in ambiance.
Rumfelt moved to the southern end of the downtown “strip” after moving his business from Fifth Street.
“I’ve been here three years,” Rumfelt said. “The downtown exposure is very nice and I think the area is making a comeback.”
Rumfelt said that even though downtown concepts and renovations are not complete, he feels city officials are moving in a good direction.
“The Chamber of Commerce and other organizations have put a lot of time and money into revitalizing this area,” Rumfelt said.
The choice to move his business to the Goshen area after graduating from the University of Florida came while he was completing his internships after earning his graphic design and electronic media degrees.
“While I was in Florida, I envisioned starting a business, but I wasn’t sure where I wanted it to be,” Rumfelt said.
Eventually, the thought of being close to home and to family members drew him to Goshen, which conveniently had many potential industrial customers for his Web-based business.
Rumfelt is celebrating his 10th year in business in 2007, and is pleased with the progress he’s made.
“There are still goals in front of me, but I’m very pleased with where we’ve come until now,” Rumfelt said.
Digital Hill Multimedia is a Web site design business that hosts and maintains personal and commercial Web sites. Digital Hill staffers also develop e-commerce sites and manage other Web site concerns for their clients, including application development and remote networking.
Rumfelt explained that 10 years ago, his customers were less informed than they are today.
“Then, no one knew what they wanted. They’d just heard about Web sites, and knew they wanted one,” he said. “Now they’re more informed and want up-to-date technology.”
Rumfelt has also expanded his business over time to include eight employees and a full-time salesman, and he’s currently looking for another programmer — quite a jump from where he started.
“I was everything — the programmer, the salesman, the receptionist, you name it,” he said.
Rumfelt began his business door-to-door and acquired clients by word of mouth.
“I was the first company in the area and I was the go-to guy for quite a while. Now the computer industry is somewhat segregating itself, and specialists need to find a niche,” he said.
Rumfelt said his niche includes providing services to a diverse culture of clients.
“I serve businesses from the size of a bed and breakfast to billion-dollar companies. We have a huge range of clients,” Rumfelt said. “The nice thing is to not have to rely on one industry to keep us afloat.”
Rumfelt hopes to continue to expand his clientele base at a reasonable rate over the coming years.
“There is a lot of work that can still be done here, and we’re looking to branch out and reach new markets, including Fort Wayne and Indianapolis.” Rumfelt said.
One Internet project Rumfelt is working on is Youthloop.com, a site similar to MySpace, where young people can join an online community that is sponsored by and monitored by youth pastors.
“We’re doing a test group locally, and hope to expand with it,” Rumfelt said.
He realizes he’s not the only one who has declared a renewed interest in Goshen’s downtown and has seen other business owners filling storefronts and drawing consumer business.
“There is a lot of potential here. The move has been a positive change for my business,” Rumfelt said.
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