Chamber Times February2014 October 2014
Upcoming Chamber Events Chamber Networking Breakfast Thursday, October 9th 8 am - 9 am @ Bistro Fusion Restaurant 27077 Dixie Highway Naranja, Florida, FL MAC Golf Tournament Friday, October 10th 7am-4pm Redland Golf and Country Club 24451 SW 177 AV (Krome Avenue), Homestead, FL Business After Hours October 21st @ 5:30 pm Grand-Re Opening of the The Big Cheese of Homestead Meet the new owners 350 N, Homestead Blvd Homestead, FL Meet the new owners Business Excellence Awards Luncheon Thursday, October 30th 11:30 am to 1pm @ Woman's Club of Homestead 17905 SW 292nd Street Homestead, Florida 33030 Save the Date ! Speed Fest 2014 Burger Brawl on Krome Saturday, November 15, 2014 Time: 6-10 pm @ Losner Park Downtown Krome Register for events at:
www.chamberinaction.com
Chamber Installs New Leadership at the 99th Annual Installation Dinner On September 26, 2014 members and guests of the Homestead/Florida City Chamber of Commerce acknowledged outgoing Chairman Bill Duquette, CEO, Homestead Hospital/Baptist Health South Florida and welcomed new Chairman of the Board Renee Reichling, SVP Chief Lending Officer, Community Bank of Florida at the 99th Annual Installation Dinner. Our new board was installed by The Honorable Holly Raschein of the Florida House of Representatives. The event celebrates the beginning of Reichling’s term. She will guide the organization through September 30, 2015. The installation was held at Banyan Tree at Keys Gate Country Club Homestead, Florida. Sponsors of the event were Homestead Hospital, The Capri Restaurant, Community Bank of Florida, Kimre Inc, Valley Crest Landscape Maintenance and Flowers Designs by Darenda As of July 2014, the Greater Homestead/Florida City Chamber of Commerce was officially renamed to South Dade Chamber of Commerce, Inc. The chamber is located at 455 N. Flagler Avenue, Homestead, FL 33030. If you're considering starting, expanding or relocating your business, the South Dade Chamber of Commerce should be at the top of your list. There's always something going on at the chamber that creates opportunities for business success! Check out the Chamber’s website at www.chamberinaction.com
Volume 25 Issue 10
Welcome New Members in the Month of September 2014 ! Dog Barker's Rescue & Retirement Camp, Inc.
Your Meeting Coach
George Arellano
Laurie Dougherty
12307 SW 224th Street
2388 SE 17th Terrace
Homestead, FL 33170
Homestead, FL 33035
Phone: (305) 766-5521
Phone: 888-400-1029
Email: grarellano@gmail.com
www.YourMeetingCoach.com Email: Laurie@YourMeetingCoach.com
Community Events Are you involved in a group that puts on community events? Did you know that you can enter your community event on the Chamber’s event calendar, for free? All events that are open to the community can be entered on the Chamber’s website. These can be as simple as a fundraiser car wash for your kid’s sports team. Go to the Chamber’s Calendar of Events. In the blue menu bar click on Events/Submit Community News & Events. Fill out the Event Listing Request Form - Public Submission form and click on submit for approval. Business events can only be submitted by Chamber members. Please share this information with any groups or organizations that you are part of.
Thank you for renewing in the Month of September 2014 ! All Keys Gas, SVC Ann Marie's Boutique, Inc. Barbara Eads Realty BB&T (Branch Banking & Trust) Bradford Printing Dade Correctional Institution Flagship Cinemas, Inc. Furnari, Lofton ,OD Goldcoaster Mobile Home & RV Park Hamker Enterprises Corp.
Sacred Heart Catholic Church Sonny's BBQ Restaurant St. John's Episcopal School Summerville Charter School Trophy City
Support your chamber members!
Homestead Animal Hospital Boarding & Well
Homestead Gas & Suburban Propane
Homestead Orthopedic Associates -Dr. Glosser
Buy local, stop in and say hello. Pick up something that brings a smile. Your purchases are what keeps those business around!
M.U.J.E.R., Inc.
Mavericks High School of South Miami Dade
The Olive Garden Italian Restaurant Palace Gardens Parkway Auto Sales, Inc. Pick's Safe & Lock Corp R F Orchids Redland Company, Inc. Redland Golf & Country Club
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Economic News
American Airlines launches new service from Miami to points west American Airlines announced it is adding a handful of new routes from Miami International Airport to destinations in the West, Midwest and South. The airline, Miami's largest carrier, will launch the daily nonstop service to Austin, San Antonio, Salt Lake City and Kansas City, MO. on March 5. American said that with the just-announced routes, it will serve more than 130 national and international destinations from Miami. For more information - Read the Miami Herald article. http://origin.library.constantcontact.com/download/get/file/1108849902108-1759/American+Airlines+launching.pdf Are you a Commercial Real Estate Broker with listings in Miami-Dade? Market your listings at no cost through www.miamidadesites.com and reach a targeted audience including Site Selectors/Consultants, Real Estate Developers, and businesses pursuing new opportunities in Miami-Dade County. Signing up is quick and easy. Start uploading your listings today for a chance to be featured on our next newsletter (a listing is selected arbitrarily each week). For more information, contact Jennifer R. Hernandez, Director of Economic Development at The Beacon Council Miami Dade College Monthly International Forum Join Miami-Dade County and Miami Dade College for a discussion on capital and lending opportunities available for small businesses. For more information, click here WHEN: Friday, October 10, 2014 WHERE: Stephen P. Clark Center 111 NW First Street, 18th Floor Room 18-3 Miami, FL 33128 TIME: 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. AT&T is filling 225 positions across South Florida and about 200 of those are newly created jobs, the Dallas-based company says. Open positions include call center representatives, retail associates and write technicians. Click here to read article in the South Florida Business Journal. The Beacon Council sponsors New York Times International Luxury Conference The New York Times International Luxury Conference "Luxury Miami 2014" will bring together more than 500 business and creative leaders from the luxury sector to explore the dialogue between luxury and art and luxury and technology. Join the exciting program with speakers including Fashion Designer Diane Von Furstenberg held Dec. 1-3 at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. Register at www.inytluxury.com. In support of our Creative Design Initiative, The Beacon Council is pleased to be a Media Sponsor of this Conference. Please contact Pamela Fuertes, Vice President, International Economic Development Programs, for more information.
Small Business Saturday is November 29th Share where you'll SHOP SMALL速 in your neighborhood I will #ShopSmall for (favorite thing) at (favorite business) to support my neighborhood
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Making the Chamber of Commerce Work For You
On-Line Business Directory Members can log into their on-line listing and edit/update their information, add employees or representatives. Choose what information you would like to display, Add a 200 character description, hours of operation, driving direction, keywords for better search placement. Add Hot Deals, list Job Postings and much more. See who's taken advantage of the Hot Deals Page on our website: http://business.chamberinaction.com/hotdeals Contact the chamber office for login information 305-247-2332 or email info@chamberinaction.com Enhanced Directory Listing: Members can upgrade their on-line listing. DIRECTORY LOGO: Your logo next to your listing in the Business Directory or any search result. WEBSITE LINK: Your Website Link next to your listing in the Business Directory or any search result. ENHANCED LISTING & PRIORITY PLACEMENT: Priority Placement *Enhance your Information Page: - 1600 character description - eight photos - five bullet points - logo - map link - 20 keywords. For more information about this and other marketing packages available call the chamber at 305-247-2332 or email info@chamberinaction.com Visitor Information Center - Business Information: Come by the Chamber office and drop off information about your business, brochures and business cards or coupons if you have them. Every month, tourists as well as locals visit the Chamber it's a great way to gain exposure for your business. (Brochures should be rack card type or Trifold). Coupon Packs: The Chamber Visitor Center is distributing coupons to area visitors and new residents. A GREAT way to reach tourists and locals that come thru our office and get them into your business... Bring us your coupons! Value or Discount Coupons should be no larger than 4x9 and supply us with at least 50. Coupons can be for discounted items or buy one get one type deals. Questions call Wanda Brown at 305-247-2332 4
Saving Money on the Things Your Business Needs To enhance our ability to serve our members with increased benefits we are one of many local chambers throughout Florida who have partnered with the Florida Chamber. As a member of a participating Chamber of Commerce, you have the power of more than 137,000 members and 3 million employees working together. Using the influence of the entire business community, we get you and your business savings and discounts on services that matter to you. We invite you to review our benefits and then do what thousands of other growing businesses have done – take advantage of the time and money you will save by using Chamber endorsed services. As you’ll soon discover, we’re much more than Florida’s best business advocate – helping you and your bottom line is what we do best. To sign up for chamber perks follow the link: http://www.chamberinaction.com/pages/ MemberBenefits4/
The Homestead Florida City Chamber Health Savings Card This card includes programs that offer discounts on prescriptions, vision, hearing, diabetic supplies, and much more.
Are You Ready for EMV? In 2015 the new credit card standards will begin to reshape how most customers pay for goods and services. “The U.S. is the last bastion of the magnetic stripe. Every other country and every other continent, with the exception of Antarctica, has moved over to EMV.” The chip-based cards are less susceptible to fraud. U.S. adoption will also allow for increased interoperability between domestic and international markets as things move to a more global credit card standard. What is EMV? All payment card transactions involve what is called an interchange fee. You may have heard the term, but it’s possible that you’re not clear about exactly what it is and why it’s charged. The overall process is complex, but here is a simplified explanation of what happens. EMV stands for Europay, MasterCard and Visa and it’s a joint entity established with the goal of developing specifications for more secure payment transactions. While there is still some debate on the inevitability of EMV, recent large-scale data breaches in the news — such as the one at Target last winter — have spurred some in the industry to push for adoption due to its superior security. EMV technology has been used widely overseas for years and has been linked to significant reduction in fraud in the card-present environment. As the U.S. catches up with this capability, huge changes are anticipated in the landscape of payment acceptance and beyond — for the better. Not only will security be vastly improved, but the ease and speed with which card-present transactions can be authenticated will help enhance convenience for consumers, changing the face and pace of credit card usage and acceptance. Chip-enabled cards or “smart cards” look just like a regular credit card but have a microchip embedded inside. The microchips inside these cards communicate with EMV-enabled point-of-purchase devices to verify the card is valid. The chips encode the cardholder’s data in a more secure way than the traditional magnetic stripes; because chip cards have the ability to change their coding on a rotating basis, they are much more difficult to copy for fraudulent use. During a sale there is a two-step verification process. The customer will need to present either their card and a PIN, “Chip” and “PIN,” or their card and a signature, “Chip” and “Sign.” If your rental store already hasn’t made the change to accept EMV cards in your business, the current deadline to do so is October 2015. This might involve the purchase of new equipment or simply upgrading what you already have. After the deadline, fraud liability is scheduled to shift from card issuers to businesses that are not set up to accept EMV cards. Since 46 percent of credit card fraud takes place at the point of sale, it’s possible this could translate into significant costs for businesses. It is important to remain current on changing requirements and deadlines. Additional information can be obtained at: ECHIPMIAMI.COM is a portal to access a group of Subject Matter Experts from every aspect of the payments industry and the necessary resources for the migration of EMV (Chip) technology that complies with EMV global standards. 5
Download 2015 YEA! Student Application Now. http://www.chamberinaction.com/files/932.pdf Now accepting applications for the YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS ACADEMY (YEA!) 2014-2015 program year. YEA! is looking for students, entering grades 6-12, who have what it takes to start their own small business, from the ground up, with instruction and inspiration from local leaders. Students must be creative, energetic, motivated, and interested in entrepreneurship. YEA! is a cutting-edge program that takes students between the ages of 11 and 18 through the process of starting and launching a real business or social movement over the course of an academic year . By the end of the class, students own and operate fully-formed and functioning businesses, which may be carried on after their graduation from the program. YEA! aims to teach students at an early age how to make a job, not just take a job. It is the ONLY pre-college program developed by an entrepreneur, at a university, with support from a major entrepreneurial foundation, the Kauffman Foundation and the United States Chamber of Commerce. Both program and scholarship applications must submitted by September 15th, 2014. The selection process is competitive and applicants are urged to apply early. Both scholarship and program applications are available to download at www.Chamberinaction.com or can be requested by contacting Rosa Brito at 305-247-2332 or email rbrito@chamberinaction.com Supporting Young, Local Entrepreneurs & Leaders Your generous support will directly transform local students into real business owners and real entrepreneurial success stories, strengthen our business and educational communities, and secure the next generation of leaders in our region. For additional information on the Young Entrepreneurs Program, please visit us on line at http://www.chamberinaction.com/pages/YoungEntrepreneursAcademy/ or contact Rosa Brito at 305-247-2332 or email rbrito@chamberinaction.com.
Office Depot Chamber Program FREE exclusively for all members!
Take advantage of significant savings of up to 60% off a list of 195 most commonly purchased items. Most other items are discounted at least 5% over everyday low web price. Free next business day delivery on qualifying orders of $50 or more. Sign up today to start saving. Call the chamber at 305-247-2332 or email wbrown@chamberinaction.com
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Click here to download Restaurant and Vendor Forms
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SUBMIT NOMINATIONS BY OCTOBER 10TH
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SUBMIT NOMINATIONS BY OCTOBER 10TH
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Click here to download Student Application form
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2014-2015 BUSINESS DIRECTORY & COMMUNITY RESOURCE GUIDE
RESERVE YOUR AD SPACE CALL THE CHAMBER AT 305-247-2332
This full-color, glossy magazine, features EXPERIENCE SOUTH DADE, dining, entertainment, calendar of events, local attractions and the diverse community we have to offer. Additionally the directory will focus on exploring the myriad of things for both locals and tourist to do and see. Take advantage of this special resource guide. This is a great opportunity to get your name in front of thousands of residents, visitors and businesses alike! 5,000 copies will be available at the chamber, Hotels, City Hall, local businesses and other key locations. Internet Exposure: The entire publication will be downloadable from the Chamber website at http://chamberinaction.com/pages/ CommunityResourceGuide/ throughout the year.
New member benefit Save Local Now ! The Greater Homestead/Florida City Chamber of Commerce is thrilled to introduce Save Local Now, our newest chamber benefit! Save Local Now is a one-stop digital marketing platform with 9 insanely easy-to-use products to help you connect with your customers. The platform includes Deal and Event publishing, Email Marketing, iPhone and Android apps, SEO and tons more. Even better, Save Local Now is FREE with your Chamber membership! I encourage each of you to take advantage of $LN’s FREE 1-on-1 sessions with its digital marketing experts! The personalized webinars will focus on your business needs and will help you with everything from image suggestions to ideas for creative campaigns. And yes it’s all FREE!
Check our $LN chamber portal Click here http://homesteadfl.savelocalnow.com/ Schedule a 1-on-1 session today at http:// blog.savelocalnow.com/training/ 11
Homestead National Park Trolley Project Wins Prestigious National Awards
HJCC Celebrates Job Corps' 50th
“VIP Triple Play Tour” Guests of Honor
Anniversary
The City of Homestead was a big winner recently with an impressive showing at the prestigious National City-County Communications & Marketing Association (3CMA) Savvy Competition 2014. The multi-pronged marketing effort put forth by the City to promote the Homestead National Park Trolley project garnered a lot of hardware including three first place Savvy Awards in Community Visioning, Most Innovative Program and Graphic Design Art, as well as a third place Award of Excellence in Marketing Tools. The annual contest receives hundreds of entries from municipal governments from all over the country. The Homestead National Parks Trolley project, spearheaded by Vice-Mayor Stephen R. Shelley, is a joint venture between the City of Homestead, the Everglades and Biscayne National Parks, and the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) that facilitates visitorship to area national parks by offering a free ranger-guided trolley tour to and from the city’s historic downtown district. The program, which is back this year from November 22 to the end of April, is a highly successful and innovative collaboration that provides the only public transportation to the Everglades and Biscayne National Parks. This free weekend service offers a popular and educational program while promoting ecotourism and Homestead’s historic downtown. The dynamic multi-media, bi-lingual campaign that was selected for the awards was instrumental for informing residents and visitors about this groundbreaking service. Ridership amounted to over 5,000 residents and tourists who enjoyed the picturesque streets of the nationally historic designated area, dined at the restaurants and shopped at the area’s stores, an economic impact that would not have been possible without this innovative program that attracted new audiences. Click here to continue to read the full article.
2014-2015 Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors Executive Board:
Chairman’s Appointees Term Expires 2015
Chairman: Renee Reichling, Community Bank
Joseph Marcus, Marcus & Marcus, PA
Chair Elect: George Mirabal , Clearent
Nitun Patel, Owner, Best Western Florida City Homestead
Immediate Past Chairman: Bill Duquette, Homestead Hospital
Sandy Sosa-Guerrero, CEO of Larkin Hospital
Treasurer: James Pierce, Lopez, Levi & Associates Operations: Corey Gold, Homestead Hospital
Members by Virtue of Office
Government Affairs: Sharon P Haxton, Chapman Partnership Trustees/Chairman’s Circle: Tony Garcia, Keyes Real Estate
City of Florida City Mayor or Designee
Mortgage & Title
City of Homestead Mayor or Designee
Chair Economic Development: Michael Kiley, FPL/Turkey Point
Homestead Air Reserve Base Commander
President: Rosa I Brito
Special Operations Command South Commander Miami Dade County Public Schools Local Region Dade County Farm Bureau
Directors
Tropical Everglades Visitors Association
Brad Bettelli, Vice President, TD Bank
Homestead Main Street
Charlie Hudson, Charlie Hudson Writes Dale Machesic, Publisher, South Dade News Leader Felecia Vescera, Marketing Director, Florida City Centre
Active Past Chairs
Kametra Driver, Executive Director, WeCare of South Dade, Inc. Larry Roth, Realtor Associate, Keyes Real Estate Mortgage & Title
David Peyton, President & CEO, 1st National Bank of South Florida
Richard Erschik, JustASKRich.com
Robert Jensen, VP Community Relations, 1st Nat’l Bank of So. Florida
Roxanne Jeghers, Owner, Royal Palm Real Estate Services
Susan E. Newman, Realtor Associate, Keyes Real Estate Mortgage & Title
Sharon Wilson, Chief Residential Officer, Community Bank of Florida Susana Vela, Program Director, Miami Dade College Homestead Tony Fiore, Cruising Unlimited - Intelmar USA Inc.
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Trustees of the Chamber The Chamber Trustees are leaders in our community who recognize that their business success and failure is tied to the area around them. In taking a leadership position, the Trustees are insuring their future success by reinvesting in the local business community through the Greater Homestead/Florida City Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber Trustees voluntarily contribute more than required because they believe in the important programs of the Greater Homestead/Florida City Chamber of Commerce. They understand that the prominence of their organization makes it appropriate for them to assume the role of a substantial participant and contributor to the Chamber’s operation. Members like this refuse to let the burden of improving the business climate and our local quality of life fall on others. Trustee contributions make it possible to maintain the Chamber’s day to day operations with an efficient and professional staff who, in turn, bring more and better programs to the business community.
Plan your month ahead! The Chamber’s monthly calendar is on our website. As a member, you can promote your own events! go to... WWW.CHAMBERINACTION.COM—Member Center
Click on Calendar of Events You can post job openings and Hot Deals, too! 13
As Florida continues to experience increased visitation year over year, HJCC Celebrates Job Corps' 50th “VIP Triple Play Tour” Guests of Honor VISIT FLORIDA recognizes the importance of exceptional guest Anniversary service and ensuring visitors have a memorable and enjoyable vacation in our state. This year, VISIT FLORIDA is beginning some initiatives to provide the industry with hospitality training resources--one being a series of monthly guest service tips to empower your frontline staff. The August Guest Service Tip of the Month is...Know Your Product. Dealing with an incompetent/unknowledgeable service representative gives guests an unfavorable impression of your business. This can be even worse when it happens over the phone. Nothing turns guests off more quickly than being transferred all over a company and/or not getting an answer in a friendly and timely manner. Knowing about all the aspects of the company can mean the difference between being able to provide the stellar service your guests deserve, and losing your guests’ business. Preventing this scenario is easy. Consider an onboarding process that introduces new guest service representatives to each department. Taking the time to ensure all guest service representatives are familiar with your product is a worthy investment and will pay you back in guest satisfaction and loyalty.
Did You Know: Florida Welcomed 50 Million+ Visitors in First 6 Months of 2014? Did You Know: After four consecutive years of record-breaking tourism numbers, including two back-to-back record quarters of visitors, Florida welcomed more than 50 million visitors in the first six months of 2014? This recent success translates to one visitor every three seconds. Consider the following:
More people visited Florida last year than live in 34 U.S. states combined, Florida has seen an increase of more than 40,000 tourism-related jobs in the last quarter alone, We now hold a record number of more than 1 million Floridians working in the tourism industry, and Last year’s economic footprint for tourism was more than $76 billion. “Florida has a lot going for it, but in order to compete in what will continue to evolve as a global tourist economy, we will need to continue seeking ways to attract more visitors and broaden our base,” said Tony Davis, Vice President of The Hertz Corporation. “While domestic travel will continue to be the foundation of our tourism industry, international business offers greater year-over-year growth in both the near- and long-term. This will mean catering to new and emerging segments of travel and making travel to our state easier. As Florida grows, infrastructure improvement will be critical.” So Where do Florida’s Visitors Come From? You’ve probably seen license plates from states like Georgia, New York, Texas, Alabama and Illinois- states where Florida gets its most visitors. While more than 77 million of Florida’s guests visited from the domestic U.S. last year, the fastest growing groups of visitors aren’t our American neighbors. In fact, more and more visitors are coming from Canada and overseas to vacation in the Sunshine State. Consider that when visitation from U.S. states only increased by 1.5 percent, overseas visitation increased 7.9 percent and Canadian visitation increased 4.1 percent. International visitors are flocking to Florida from Canada, Brazil, the U.K., Argentina and Venezuela—creating thousands of jobs and putting billions into Florida’s economy.
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Advertise with Your Chamber Times! Your Chamber Times e-newsletter advertising rates are nearly half the price of printed newsletter advertising. The Chamber Times is a monthly e-publication that features Chamber events, economic development issues and community activities. It is emailed as a link to over 500 businesses, individuals, and public officials and appears on the Chamber’s website, www.chamberinaction.com. The site averages 117,000 hits per month.
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Some Helpful Websites Homestead/Florida City Chamber Small Business Administration City of Homestead City of Florida City Miami Dade County Public Schools Small Business Development Center Miami-Dade County Non-Partisan Elections Site SCORE Counselors to Small Business State of Florida Information Tropical Everglades Visitors Center
455 N. Flagler Avenue Homestead T. 305-247-2332 F. 305-224-9101 Toll Free 888-352-4891 Mail to: P.O. Box 901544 Homestead, FL 33090
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www.chamberinaction.com www.business.gov www.cityofhomestead.com www.floridacityfl.us www.dadeschools.net www.floridasbdc.org www.miamidade.gov www.voteforflorida.org www.score.org www.myflorida.com www.tropicaleverglades.com