In the membership of the Superior Chamber of Commerce is regional radio station KRDE. They are known for their “Country with Personality” mix of music and most of their listeners enjoy the fact that they focus their air time on music and advertising without a lot of extra talking. The coverage area includes a majority of central Arizona; to the west their coverage area goes to Glendale, to the north all the way to Winslow, east to Alpine and south to Oro Valley.
KRDE has one of the largest coverage areas in the state of Arizona and is one of the last few independently owned and operated radio stations. It is also minority owned by Linda Corso and is managed by her niece Mindy. Mindy’s daughter Lindsay also works at the station and does the weather reports and voice overs for the station. When Linda is not at the radio station she is working at Kevlin Steel with her husband Kevin Corso.
The station has changed formats in the past 20 years; at first the station was a mix variety station of rock, country and oldies, then it focussed on just new country and evolved to the current format which is both old and new country. They also work closely with many of the local bands and musicians to help promote them on the radio. They have a Fox News broadcast at the top of every hour of the national news.
Linda explained that she and her then husband had always wanted to open a radio station and when the FCC opened a license in Globe they took the opportunity. They have affordable advertising rates for almost every budget for those businesses looking to advertise on the radio and reach a large portion of the state. Linda shared a story about a roofing company in Apache Junction that started advertising on KRDE and within a year they had to expand their operations because their radio ad opened up new business opportunities for them throughout the state.
Linda’s advice to future business owners and her fellow entrepreneurs: “Many start ups will fail in the first six months. Make sure you have at least two to three years of expenses put away to cover in emergencies”
The “In Your Biz” column is sponsored weekly by the Superior Chamber of Commerce in an effort to further promote their business members. To learn more about the Superior Chamber of Commerce you can visit their website www.superiorarizonachamber.org or call them at 520-689-0200. The Chamber meets the third Wednesday of every month at their building 165 Main St. in Superior, Arizona. Those planning on attending the Chamber luncheons do need to RSVP prior to the meeting, please call Deb McKee to RSVP at 520-827-1773.
Article compiled by Mila Besich-Lira for Superior Sun – Copper Area News Publishers.