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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 5, 2016)
10 A SIUSLAW NEWS ❚ SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2016 BUSINESS BEAT 541-997-3128 290 Highway 101, Florence, OR 97439 www.fl orencechamber.com www.facebook.com/fl orenceoregon www.twitter.com/FlorenceOrCoast November 5, 2016 Welcome to the Chamber! NEW BUSINESS PARTNERS Lane County Community & Economic Development 125 E. 8th Ave, Eugene • 541-682-4616 www.lanecounty.org Working to attract, retain and expand businesses. Lovejoy’s Restaurant 195 Nopal Street • 541-902-0502 www.lovejoysrestaurant.com High Tea, Fine Food, Custom Bakery, British Imports, Teas & Candies PE Bennett Company Florence Area • 209-986-4793 Business and Financial Consulting, Entrepreneur Support, Business Development Spice Restaurant 1269 Bay Street • 541-997-1646 www.spiceinfl orence.com An epicurean experience with fresh organic vegetables, meats, and seafood Village Grooming 4981 Hwy 101 – North of Fred Meyer 541-305-5411 Quality dog grooming with a gentle touch. Over 50 years “hands-on” experience. 2016-2017 Underwriter The Korando Dental Group Three Rivers Casino Resort TR Hunter Real Estate Distinguished Sponsors 101 Things to Do Magazine Banner Bank Bi-Mart Beachcomber Pub Burns’s Riverside Chapel Driftwood Shores Resort Fred Meyer Stores KCST/Coast Radio Lofy Construction Oregon Pacific Bank PeaceHealth Peace Harbor Medical Center Sea Lion Caves Shippin’ Shack/Siuslaw Signs & Graphics Spruce Point Assisted Living The Siuslaw News Be sure to thank these members for their investment in our community! UPCOMING EVENTS Holiday Festival Saturday November 26– Old Town and Around Town! For event details see the detailed article to the right. Noon Forum – November 10 – Best Western Pier Point Inn Please join the Chamber for an informative and interactive presentation by Ron Green on current economic related issues impacting local and coastal businesses. The Florence Area Chamber luncheons are designed to inform, educate, and promote business and economic development in our community. This event is open to the public, lunch is available for $14. BUSINESS AFTER HOURS: Vacasa Vacation Rentals - November 17, 5:00 pm - 6:30pm. Vacasa would like to invite the community to tour one of our lovely Florence vacation rentals. Enjoy wine, cider and hors d’oeuvres and mingle with the local Vacasa staff. With 35 vacation rentals in Florence, and over 4000 rentals worldwide, we would be happy to help you fi nd your next vacation rental or answer any questions about our full-service vacation rental management. Be sure to enter the raffl e drawing! Two nights free lodging at our Oceanside Inn in Oceanside, OR will be given away to one lucky winner! 83787 Hwy 101 – Look for the Lantern and Lights! Cindy Wobbe Estate Sales – December 1, 4:30-6:30pm. Cindy Wobbe invites you to kick off the Christmas season at the Cindy Wobbe Estate Sales showroom (498 Hwy 101) in the Florence Antique District. Join Cindy and her team for nibbles and nosh, great music, and door prizes, and preview fi rsthand the private offerings of several local estates. Event Committee Meetings – Want to grow your business? Business by referral is powerful. Participating on a Chamber Committee is an effective way to build relationships and referrals. Contact Nancy Pearson for upcoming meetings and times at 541-997-3128. From the Director’s Desk By Bettina Hannigan Chamber Executive Director October fl ew by in a fl ash! Oktober- fest, the Wine Walk, Chowder Fest, and Great Glass Float Giveaway are all hap- py memories. We had record attendance at both the wine and chowder events, with attendance up more than 30 percent from previous years. Participants and our local merchants had a great weekend as more than 600 happy folks wandered through our lo- cal restaurants, shops, and galleries. I am happy to report this is exactly the kind of event success your Chamber aims to achieve. Chamber event coordinator Nancy Pearson and I spent several very fruitful days in Red- mond last week at the Oregon State Chamber of Commerce’s annual conference. Nationwide, Chambers of Commerce are working diligently to promote, protect, and develop robust business. Many, like our Florence Area Chamber, partner with their respective cities as their designated marketing organization to promote tourism and grow our local economy. Managing Expectations By Bobby Jensen Jr. Chamber Board Member, Y Marina Surprise! Wheth- er you like it or not ev- ery time you have an interaction with your customer you’re likely to surprise them. It may be your selec- tions, appearance, Warm up your cash register! Black Friday and Small Business Saturday are just weeks away, and your Chamber is busy working on ways to get shoppers and buyers into your place of business! Th e Chamber’s Annual Holiday Festival is the Saturday aft er Th anksgiving, November 26. Th e Tree Lighting, Santa’s arrival, Choruses, and more activities will be in Old Town with many shops open for holiday shopping. Th e Chamber will advertise the event locally and out of town. As you know, our Old Town area is a major draw for visitors. I believe it’s the best Historic Old Town on the coast. However, while out-of- town visitors are enjoying our festival, we want We heard from Chambers from all over the state. Many struggle with relationships with their city, burdened with traditions that hold them back, non-productive events, internal board confl ict, and membership challenges. As I listened to people sharing their experiences, I re- fl ected on my short tenure as your executive di- rector, and I am so proud to represent our Cham- ber. We have amazing representatives from the City of Florence who truly care and are working to meet our community’s needs. Our Chamber board is smart, innovative, purposeful, and will- ing to consider new ideas and opportunities. Our membership continues to grow as local business- es see personal value in the Chamber as a partner to grow their business. I came away from the conference exhilarat- ed to create additional education opportunities for members by bringing timely, relevant, and useful resources. Legislatively there are many crucial issues coming up both at state and federal levels. If small business is going to thrive, we had better get informed and make our voices heard. Successful local businesses sustain the eco- nomic health of our community. Th e stronger our businesses are the more they support the area with employment, non-profi t contributions and resources. Join us. Let’s work together to make the circle bigger. Florence 1 Holiday 1 Festival 1 1 Kick Off Your Holiday 1 Season In Historic Old Town Saturday, November 26 3:30 - 6:30 pm 1 1 1 1 ! $% # " 1 1 1 $ 1 1 " 1 " 1 "' 1 & 1 1 1 1 1 1 quality, speed, the way you talk to them and ul- timately your price. Th is is where things really get passed on as well. People don’t talk about mediocre or normal experiences, they will usu- ally only share poor or excellent experiences. We all know that word of mouth weighs in heavy on a company’s success. So we don’t want to take customer expectations lightly! Solution is to take a little time and put yourself in the position of your customer. Write down the worries or con- cerns you would have. Now develop a strategy, script/keyword, or program that not only takes that worry or concern away right up front, but it actually exceeds the general expectation in your industry. Th is an opportunity to wow a customer and make them wanna talk you up! Examples: You quote the price prior to performing a ser- vice, then never exceed that price, heck make it lower! You’re a plumber and everyone knows for the most part they make messes. You put on shoe covers at the door before entering the cus- tomers home. You set your tools on a protective mat. You even wipe down the work area with wet wipes you carry in your tool bag. Boom! You have a delighted customer who is talking you up. Th e more concerns you solve the more they talk and refer! You win! Th e end! to get them into our shops in Old Town and ALL AROUND TOWN! To do so, we are developing a digital cou- pon book for all Chamber members who wish to participate. Participating business will be listed on our webpage and Facebook event page. Th e list of specials will be downloadable so shoppers can print it out or present it on their electronic device. It too will be promoted in our local and out-of-area marketing. You can make your off er or coupon for whatever you’d like—a discount, buy two get one free, $10 off purchases over a certain price...you get the idea. You can also set the expiration date to your preference. Remember, this is limited to Chamber members. Not a member? Call me today at 541- 997-3128! To participate provide the following infor- mation: 1) Your off er in 25 words (or so) 2) Your business name & address 3) Expiration date 4) Any logo or graphic you’d like included Please submit your off er via e-mail to Bet- tina@FlorenceChamber.com prior to November 10. Florence Holiday Festival Kick Off —Satur- day, November 26: 3:30 —Santa arrives - Take photos at Ga- zebo Park with Santa & Mrs. Claus. Take a hay ride down Bay Street 5:30 — Tree lighting ceremony, Siuslaw In- terpretive Center 4:00-6:00 — Musicians, Siuslaw Choir, solo- ists, warm beverages on Bay Street. Caroling too! Many sales and stores open late Did you know??? Employment Law Update! “Ban-the-Box”: As of January 2016 it is an unlawful employment practice for an employer to exclude an applicant from an initial interview solely because of a past criminal conviction. Th e practice is subject to enforcement by the Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI). Excluding an applicant means: • Requiring disclosure of a conviction on an applica- tion form; • Requiring such disclosure prior to an initial inter- view; • If no interview is conducted, requiring such dis- closure prior to making a conditional off er of employment. HB 3025 does not prevent an employer from considering an applicant’s conviction history when making a hiring decision. Refer to House Bill 3025 for more details and exceptions. Oregon Minimum Wage: As you know, minimum wage increased to $9.75 on July 1 st of 2016. It will increase to $10.25 on July 1 st , 2017, and will keep increasing yearly through 2022. Refer to Senate Bill 1532, ORS 653.025 and OAR 839-020-0004-001 for more information. Sick Leave changes as of January 2016: All employers with more than 10 employees in Oregon must provide up to 40 hours of paid leave per year. Employers with less than 10 employees must provide up to 40 hours of unpaid protected sick time. Refer to ORS 653.606 for more details. Other changes which have occurred this year, or are about to change in 2017 that you will want to research: Paycheck Transparency Social Media Privacy Health Insurance Continuation under OFLA Itemized Pay Statements For more information on all changes and to contact BOLI for Employer Assistance: Visit the BOLI website: www.oregon.gov/BOLI/TA Call for assistance: (971) 673-0824 Email for assistance: bolita@boli.state.or.us Florence Area Chamber wishes to express our heartfelt thanks To Sea Lion Caves for their incredible, wonderful and generous donation of Sunny the e Sea Lion She will be enjoyed by our community for many years to come and we e are positive her beauty will thrill visitors from all around the world! Message supported by Florence Chamber of Commerce
