CHAT - Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce
Transcription
CHAT - Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce
h T C A C r e T H b C A C r r newsletter H m e a C b h r C mbe ham C c h a m b er CHAT www.mountvernonchamber.com a h WINE, DINE, SWINE HEALTH The Burlington and Mount Vernon Chambers INSURANCE of Commerce are very excited to announce the Kick-Off date for the Key Bank “Win a Hog” Harley Davidson Raffle Sponsored by Key FOR CHAMBER Bank, Skagit Harley, Best Buy, KAPS, KBRC, RiverCity Screenprinting, Towner Press. MEMBERS The Kick-Off also known as Wine, Swine APRIL 2005 In This Issue Wine, Dine, Swine . . . . . . . . . . . Chamber Health Insurance . . . . Public Official’s Day . . . . . . . . . . 10 Networking Tips . . . . . . . . . . SBA Nominees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Golf & Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Member Of The Month. . . . . . . . Upbeat Award. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . After Hours . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shop Chamber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Community Meeting Room . . . . Membership Information . . . . . . Ad Space Available . . . . . . . . . . CEO Magazine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Management Mentor . . . . . . . . . Member Announcements . . . . . . New & Renewing Members . . . . Chamber Events . . . . . . . . . . . . The Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce Phone: (360) 428-8547 Fax: (360) 424-6237 [email protected] Address: Post Office Box 1007 105 East Kincaid Street Mount Vernon, WA 98273-1007 The Bridge To Skagit Business 1 1 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 & Dine (Sponsored by: Fred Meyer, Max Dales, Skagit River Brewery, Landed Gentry & HomePlace – Where the Heart Is) will be Friday, April 8th at 6:00pm at the Burlington Chamber of Commerce - 600 E Victoria Ave, Burlington. Guests will receive a free burger or bratwurst with ticket purchase. First place winner of the six-month long raffle will receive a 2006 Heritage Softail Harley Davidson and there are many more prizes this year. Tickets are $10.00 each; a limited amount of discount books are available with six tickets for $50.00. Call the chamber to reserve your spot. The Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce is pleased to announce that Mount Vernon Chamber members are eligible to purchase group healthcare programs through our new AAOA benefit affiliate program. Your membership in the Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce brings to your business or organization an outstanding value in employee benefits. The program is open to businesses of two or more employees with husbands and wives both qualifying if the both work in the business. For a free no obligation quote call (866) 968-0545 or the chamber office at (360) 428-8547. BIZ BUZZ What’s all the Buzzzzzzzz About? HARP Bizz Buzz Networking Luncheon – April 20 – 11:30 – 1:00 p.m. – Skagit Fairgrounds. What’s the healthiest way to spend The crew at Mr. T’s Awards and Embroidery hang out with chamber members at last month’s Business After Hours See ‘Biz Buzz’ on Page Legacy Members Platinum Member: Safe. Smart. Secure. IT Matters. www.diversint.com Silver Member: Luxurious Living For The Independent Senior At Affordable Prices Bronze Member: Donnie Keltz www.donniekeltz.com www.mountvernonchamber.com PUBLIC OFFICIAL’S DAY The Bridge To Skagit Business Governor Gregoire to attend Tulip Festival Public Official’s Day on April 8. Governor Christine Gregoire has announced plans to attend the second annual Tulip Festival Public Official’s Day on April 8. The day-long event presented by Comcast will begin with a forum at McIntyre Hall, followed by a tour of the tulip fields, a reception at Skagit Station and dinner at the Kiwanis Salmon Barbecue. The focus of Pubic Official’s Day will be forming collaborations and partnerships; the unique Skagit Valley projects like McIntyre Hall, Skagit Playfields, Skagit River Park, Skagit Station and the Padilla Bay Interpretative Center will be among the topics. Both elected and appointed public officials and their spouses are invited to attend. Chamber members may attend the Governor speech from 10:00-10:30 and the Skagit County Chamber of Commerce Reception from 4:00-5:30 at no cost. For more information or an invitation, call the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival at (360) 428-5959 or email [email protected]. SBA NOMIINEES The Skagit County Chamber Executive Directors Association (SCCEDA) will be joining together with SBA and the Small Business Resource Center to celebrate Small Business of the Year awards on Thursday May 26th at Skagit Valley College. Each chamber will bring forth three nominees and the winner from each city will then be judged for the overall county award. Last year Mount Vernon’s Riverside Health Club won the county-wide SBA award. This dinner offers recognition for businesses achieving greatness within their organization, and another opportunity for businesses countywide to come together and network. Tickets will be available at all seven chamber offices as well as the BRC. Sponsorship opportunities are available. For more information call (360) 428-8547 NETWORKING 10 Keys To Generating Endless Referrals: 1. Create and maintain your database (contacts details, special interests, major achievements). 2. Make contact with current clients and prospects every 60-90 days. 3. Attend one or two networking functions regularly and become known as the key person in your industry. 4. When you receive a referral, acknowledge the referral in writing-fax, card, email, at the time of receipt. Then get back to the person and let them know how it went. 5. Give away a referral a day to someone in your network with the law of reciprocity, “what you give out is what you get back.” 6. Send a thank you card every day to someone. 7. Build a positive profile in your community – call people by name, wear a name badge, sponsor on a local basis. As Anita Roddick says: THINK GLOBALLY, ACT LOCALLY. 8. Volunteer for a civic event. It is a great way to rub elbows with others you might not know and let the community know that you care. 9. Avoid keeping tabs on what you do for others: “Give Without Expectations.” 10. Be open to opportunities – “The window of opportunity is so clear, sometimes we miss it.” Incorporating even a few of these practices will affect your business referrals. Go out and make it a great year! This list was compiled by Colleen Smiley owner of Creative Celebrations and new chamber member. Colleen can be reached @ 428-5972. AUGUST 19 A Hands Across The River Event Presented By The Burlington & Mount Vernon Chambers GOLF & SHOW Get On The Team! We need volunteers. If this is you come to the Burlington Chamber on April 6th and find out how you can Be a part of this wonderful event. MountVernonChamber.com • APRIL 2005 www.mountvernonchamber.com The Bridge To Skagit Business MEMBER OF THE MONTH Bayshore Office Products Catering for all Occasions Appetizers • Party Platters • Boxed Meals Wedding Cakes • Delivery Available Toll Free 1-866-912-2233 Serving Skagit and Whatcom Counties 406211 July Haggen Catering Ad Mount Vernon Chamber Tune In Monday mornings, Chamber Executive Kristen Whitener, addresses the Skagit Valley with updates on Chamber activity. KAPS 8:20 AM KBRC 8:40 AM ChamberCHAT 2005-2006 The ChamberCHAT Newsletter is distributed to 20,000+ every year and growing. Ad sales for the next volume are open now. For more information call at the Chamber 428-8547. On September 10, 1985 Partners Duane Remmenga and Doug Vanderpool opened Bayshore Office Products with a simple vision. “We set out to build a business for the long haul,” Remmenga recalls. “We wanted to build it on customer service because we didn’t know any other way to do it- And we still don’t,” he adds with a chuckle. Today their vision is as clear as it was 20 years ago. The store, located at 603 Commercial Avenue in Anacortes, is now a bustling full-service office supply company, with 14 employees servicing customers large and small alike. Besides selling every kind of office consumable, both in-store and via catalogue with guaranteed next-day delivery, Bayshore has also assembled an 14,000 square foot office furniture showroom of domestically and locally manufactured veneer pieces that are simply not available anywhere else. Remmenga asserts that “Our mission is to help make our customers successful, and I believe in the package we bring to the marketplace.” Bayshore is an exclusive dealer of Panasonic copiers, fax machines and printers. They also sell and service Okidata impact printers and fax machines. The UPBEAT AWARD Beau McCallum Beau McCallum of Emerald Bay Events is not only active in the Mount Vernon Chamber but in other areas of the community. He has a positive attitude that makes everyone around him feel welcome and relaxed. His positive attitude mixed with his dedication and hard work, shows in everything that he does. Doug Vanderpool, Craig Volkman, Duane Remmenga - part of the great team at Bayshore Office Products service team currently handles over 600 machines from Birch Bay to Langley, with a guaranteed four hour response time. That number is growing thanks to the sales efforts of Craig Volkman. The partners note that “Craig is a major factor here because he is a hard-working, very ethical guy who believes in dealing straight with people and doing the job right the first time, which makes him a perfect fit for our team.” As Bayshore approaches its twentieth birthday, they seem a perfect fit for our business community as well. From major industrial concerns to one-woman consultancies, the customers share an appreciation of the founding principals founding principles. “We wanted to establish a tradition of trust, and it seems to be working,” Remmenga reflects, adding that “When people give us an opportunity to show what we can do for them, they tend to stay with us, and we are thankful for that.” Call 293-4669 to find out how Bayshore can help your business. It’s what you do AFTER HOURS that really matters. who: North Cascade Eye Associates when: May 12 where: 2100 Little Mountain Lane time: 5:00 - 7:00 PM www.mountvernonchamber.com The Bridge To Skagit Business SHOP CHAMBER FIRST RESERVE YOUR SPACE NOW MEMBER ANNOUNCEMENTS The Skagit County Chamber Executive Directors Association (SCCEDA) will be kicking off a “Shop Chambers First” campaign for the second quarter. This campaign is sponsored by the Skagit Valley Herald and will feature special promotional shop chamber posters for members around the county to display in their places of business, as well as, a special full-page advertising section in the Skagit Valley Herald. The seven area chambers take membership very seriously and are in the business of promoting member-tomember spending. For more information on this campaign call your local chamber of commerce! How would you like your message to reach local business owners on a regular basis for a reasonable price? Ad sales in this Newsletter are on sale now. Your ad will be permanently placed in the newsletter for 12 issues – which has a circulation of 20,000 annually. You can reach this targeted audience for as little as $400. Backman Marketing. COMMUNITY MEETING ROOM The new Skagit Station has a community meeting room available for reservation. The 1,500 sq foot space can accommodate 95 people and has a warming kitchen attached. Current rental prices ranges from $100 - $225. Call 428-8547 to reserve; the calendar is filling quickly. MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION CEO MAGAZINE The Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce was a proud participant in the March “Skagit County” insert for the Washington CEO magazine. Kristen Whitener, President/CEO was interviewed by featured writer Michael Barrett regarding the economy in Mount Vernon. The special feature was published in March and was a collaborative partnership with EDASC, the Anacortes chamber, Port of Skagit County and City of Mount Vernon. The Skagit Valley is a vibrant and growing area we all should be proud to do business in! Call the chamber for your copy of Washington CEO Featuring “Skagit County.” Additional copies are available at the chamber office. BIZ BUZZ The Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce currently has 399 members and is quickly growing. You too can be a included in this list of businesses simply by investing with the chamber. Our mission is to Serve, Promote, and Protect our members. We serve by acting as the front door to the communityanswering phone inquiries, sending relocation and visitor packets and referring our members. The Chamber protects its members through business advocacy at the local, state and federal level monitoring legislation that would negatively impact our business community. We promote our members through a variety of networking and advertising opportunities like the quarterly “Biz Buzz” meeting, Business After Hours, Golf and Show, Chamber Chat newsletter, email and radio show, and the Mount Vernon Marketplace tradeshow. You to can be included in this incredible list of businesses by investing. Call today or go online to join. ...Continued from Page 1 your lunch hour? Some say exercising your body…but we say it’s exercising your business card. First there is the warm-up – spend a few minutes preparing your one-minute “elevator speech” and gathering handout materials. Next it is time to fuel up – get there early for lunch, and be sure to choose a table full of new faces. And finally, power up your business by presenting your products and services to at least twenty-four likely customers or referral sources! That’s right: At least twenty-four business leaders will hear what makes your business special! Last quarter we had over 150 attendees so reserve your seat at the table right now! Call 428-8547 for a reservation today. Chamber Ambassador, Donna Backman of Backman Marketing, just completed an exciting quarter with two Skagit Valley College Interns. The theme for the internship was “Chamber Membership” and her students helped Backman Marketing put on a Business After Hours at The Children’s Museum of Skagit Co, participated in a Biz Buzz, designed flyers & posters and personally invited Chamber Members to attend the event. With over 80 people attending, the business after hours was a huge success and the students felt it was a valuable class in their education. To host students in an internship, please contact Skagit Valley College or call Donna Backman @ 360-420-3385. GrafixCORP. The Skagit County Chamber Executive Directors Association (SCCEDA) recently announced the development of their new marketing identity for Skagit Tourism. The mark was designed by grafixCORP of Mount Vernon. Skagit Tourism is the name by which SCCEDA will market tourism in and around Skagit County. The new logo identity will be used in all marketing materials as well as on the skagittourism.com web site. GrafixCORP is a full-service graphic design studio, which provides visual communications in print, illustration and web-site development. MANAGEMENT MENTOR Probably the biggest faux paus a manager can make is planning in a vacuum. We usually miss the forest, because all those trees are in the way! Remember to include your employees when updating your plan and just like surveying your customers, feed your staff surveys with a variety of possible answers when identifying what is working well, what isn’t and what are the main roadblocks that are holding up the progress of your company. Never assume you know what they think. A good anonymous and confidential survey with optional answers provided and room for comments will help you understand where your company is and how you can lead it forward. MountVernonChamber.com • APRIL 2005 www.mountvernonchamber.com The Bridge To Skagit Business NEW MEMBERS CHAMBER EVENTS Skagit Capital Funding April 6 Javier Arreola 17091 Blodgett Road Mount Vernon, WA 98274 Phone: 866-857-3569 Fax: 800-605-3871 Email: [email protected] Cash Flow Consultant Splash & Dash Car Wash Larry Vandermay 909 E College Way Mount Vernon, WA 98273 Phone: 360-424-5257 Fax: 360-424-5487 Email: [email protected] www.splashanddash.biz Skagit Transit Dale O’Brien 600 County Shop Lane Burlington, WA 98233 Phone: 360-757-8801 Fax: 360-757-8019 Email: [email protected] www.skat.org Boys & Girls Clubs of Skagit County Wendy Poulton 160 Cascade Pl. Ste#218 Burlington, WA 98233 Phone: 360-404-2031 Fax: 360-404-2008 Email: [email protected] Clubs/Non-Profit General Teamsters Local 231 Charles Eggert & John Lynn P.O. Box H Bellingham, WA 98227 Phone: 360-734-7780 Fax: 360-734-8501 www.231teamster.org Labor Union Golf Committee Meeting 10:00 am Burlington Chamber Office April 8 Public Official’s Day 3:00 pm Skagit Station Harley Kick Off Sales WINE, DINE & SWINE DINNER 6:00 pm Burlington Chamber April 12 Chamber Board Meeting 7:30 am Skagit Station April 20 ‘HARP’ Bizz Buzz Lunch Meeting 11:30 am – 1:00 pm Skagit County Fairgrounds RENEWING MEMBERS • Skagitonians to Preserve Farmland • Vilaorba Property Management • Human Resources of Mount Vernon • Enterprise Rent-A-Car • Wal-Mart • The Chrysalia Inn & Spa • The Leaning Ladder Child Development Center • Brecky’s Events Guide Gazette • ALLDATA Shredding Inc. • Flounder Bay Seafood Café • Anacortes Inn Your LOCALinformation resource for Northwest Washington State MacGregor PUBLISHING COMPANY THE PLAID BOOKS Phone Directories • Newcomersʼ & Visitorsʼ Guides All Available at your Chamber of Commerce. Or our offices: 17869 SR 536 • Mount Vernon (360) 336-6171 • www.PlaidNET.com www.mountvernonchamber.com O F F I C E S TA F F President/CEO Kristen Whitener Chamber Office Manager Sue Sayer Membership Development Susie Heller VIC Keith Ridgley The Bridge To Skagit Business BOARD OF DIRECTORS Chairman Stephanie Hamilton Mary Kay Cosmetics Treasurer Frank Tuzzolino Geiger’s Custom Cleaning Vice Treasurer Donnie Keltz All State Insurance Legal Counsel Rachelle Eason The Eason Law Firm, P.S. Vice Chairman Dr. Karen Westra Riverside Health Club Past Chair Larry Clark American Express Financial Services Dan Berentson Dottie Piazza Skagit County Piazza Construction Jon Pederson Dale Ragan Prime West Graphics Karl’s Paints Mark Stearns Carrie Parks Comfort Inn Landed Gentry Charlie Sulivan Teresa Knight-Pugh KAPS/KBRC Skagit River Brewery Jana Hanson Barb Lowery Synergy Salon & Day Spa Claudine Joly City of Mount Vernon People’s Bank George Feldman Scott Sutton Haggen Food & Pharmacy Towner Press PRESORTED STANDARD US POSTAGE PAID MOUNT VERNON, WA PERMIT No. 47 Phone: (360) 428-8547 (360) 424-6237 Fax: Post Office Box 1007 Mount Vernon, WA 98273-1007 www.mountvernonchamber.com
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