INSIGHT FOR BUSINESS

November 2011 Vol. 1

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: S&J CATERING COMPANY

Thank you to our Breakfast Partners 2011/2012

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: TASTEBUDS CATERING

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: SELECT A KUP

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: COSTCO PEMBROKE PINES

NOVEMBER 2011 DATES Events

Marketing Opportunities

CONNECT :: GROW The Chamber is a powerful resource for business connections in Miramar and Pembroke Pines Community. Each year, events, programs and publications highlight the outstanding quality if life and economic climate that make Miramar Pembroke Pines a great place to live and work. This year, take the step toward maximizing your Chamber membership by taking advantage of marketing opportunities that align your business with powerful programs and meaningful events. For more information on finding your niche, email [email protected] or call 9544329808

NOVEMBER 2011 CALENDAR

EVENTS 1st Annual Non‐Profit Fair Hosted by the Young Professionals Ana G Mendez University System 5:30 PM – 7:30PM Business Golf Classic Golf, Lunch, Auction, & Awards The Pembroke Pines Country Club 8:00AM ‐ 2:00PM Chamber Office Closed HAPPY THANKSGIVING Light Up Pembroke Gardens Tree Lighting, Mini Expo, & Santa The Shops at Pembroke Gardens 6:00PM – Tree Lighting 8:00PM

MONTHLY MEETINGS Tuesday, November 1st Ambassador Meeting 8:30 AM 9:30AM Chamber Office Wednesday, November 2nd Golf Committee Meeting 9:00AM – 10:00AM Chamber Office Wednesday, November 2nd & 16th City of Pembroke Pines Commission Meeting 6:30PM City Hall Wednesday, November 2nd & 16th City of Miramar Commission Meeting 7:00PM City Hall

Thursday, November 3rd, 10th, 17th, & 24th Toastmasters Meeting held every Thursday 7:30AM – 8:30AM Memorial Hospital Pembroke Tuesday, November 8th Membership Breakfast sponsored by TFCU 7AM – 9AM SW Focal Senior Center Wednesday, November 9th Business Development Committee Meeting 3:00PM – 4:00PM Chamber Office / Conference Call Thursday, November 10th Government Affairs Committee Meeting 8:30AM – 9:30AM Chamber Office Friday, November 11th Women in Business Committee Meeting 8:30 AM – 9:30AM Bank Atlantic Miramar Thursday, November 17th Board of Directors Meeting 8:30AM – 10:00AM Memorial Hospital Miramar Thursday, November 17th Net at Nite 5:30PM – 7:00PM Snap Fitness Miramar Wednesday, November 23rd Express Leads Group (Exclusive) 11:30AM – 1:00PM BIG Tomato Grill Pembroke Pines Tuesday, November 29th Member Orientation 8:30AM – 9:30AM Chamber Office Plesae visit our website www.MiramarPembrokePines.org for detailed information

THUR 03

FRI 04

THUR 24

SAT 26

PRINT ME & USE IN OFFICE

New Online Edition of the MPPCC Newsletter Makes a Debut!

This week marks a significant transition for The Miramar Pembroke Pines Regional Chamber of Commerce (MPPCC) as we introduce our digital newsletter, Insight for Business. It’s an important step that we hope you will see as an investment in the chamber, one that will strengthen our ability to provide high‐quality content to members and the community. The change will allow us to reach a wider range audience and provide more timely information.

When each new issue is available online, you will receive an e‐mail with the Internet address to find the new issue, as well as a brief description of the articles that are featured.

Your Business is Our Business!

MAYOR FRANK ORTIS AT DOLLAR MAXX OPENING EVENT

STAFF OF GOLDFELLOW, NEW CHAMBER MEMBERS

Thank You to Our Renewing Members

Boyd ‐ Panciera Family Funeral Care City of Pembroke Pines Trustee

David L. Popper, O.D Minuteman Press/Miramar Awesome Awards Florida Power & Light Walmart #1511 Miramar Lou Manfra Realty Sunbeam Properties/Development – Chairman Circle Maroone Auto Plaza ‐ Trustee Broward College Florida Bible Church Walmart #2591 Pembroke Pines Children's Harbor, Inc. LaMar 1 Hour Dry Cleaners Two Men And A Truck Falcon Foundation NexPub Printing Wingate by Wyndham

Offices Unlimited ‐ Regus Business Miramar Police Athletic League Tropical Financial Credit Union – Pines Trustee Tropical Financial Credit Union – Miramar Trustee S & J Catering – Trustee Costco Wholesale Corp. Courtyard by Marriott at Miramar Residence Inn by Marriott at Miramar Clara Macias, DMD, PA Allstate Insurance Company Behnke & Associates Insurance AFLAC – Tracy Reeves Douglas Garden North Inc. BankAtlantic ~Miramar Pearle Vision Center Dr. Connie Arguello, DDS PA The Shops at Pembroke Gardens Trustee Vet Brands International Allstate/ Roy Stewart Agency Solano at Miramar Salgra Dental Lexus of Pembroke Pines – Trustee First Bank Florida Pembroke Lakes Country Club Comprehensive Clinical Development Mazza Mediterranean Cuisine Xclusive Installation & Equipment Corp Miramar Branch Library, Broward County Tooth Tales ‐ Timothy Chen, DMD, PA ADP Printing & signs Think Magazine Credomatic Merchant Services North Perry Airport Miami Dolphins – Chairman Circle

40 + Years

20 + Years

15 + Years

10 + Years

5 + Years 5 + Years

2 + Years

Your Chamber In Action

Grand Opening: TD Bank Pines East

Grand Opening: Allpets Emporium

PEMBROKE PINES, JULY 2011 PEMBROKE PINES, JULY 2011

Grand Opening: Tulum

MIRAMAR, JULY 2011

Grand Opening: Midas

PEMBROKE PINES, AUGUST 2011


Grand Opening Children Harbor


Grand Opening Dollar Maxx


Anniversary Celebration Jencare Skin Farm

`

Grand Opening TCBY @ The Shops at PG


MIRAMAR, AUGUST 2011


Grand Opening Orange Theory

Anniversary Celebration Miramar Animal Hospital

Grand Opening Kaizen Beauty Academy

Grand Opening Keiser University

MIRAMAR, SEPTEMBER 2011

Pembroke Pines, September 2011

Welcome to Our New Members Allpets Emporium Scott Nash 14802 Pines Blvd Pembroke Pines, Fl 33027 (954) 520‐5305 Any Lab Test Now Miramar Mac Innocent 9909 Miramar Parkway Miramar, Fl 33025 (954) 450‐0200 Miramar West Animal Hospital Gus Gonzalez 14485 Miramar Parkway Miramar, Fl 3027 (954) 436‐1200 BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse Eric Johnson 12100 Pines Blvd Pembroke Pines, Fl 33026’ (954) 430‐3545 TULUM Mexican Grill & Bar (Chairman Circle) Jeannette Vilaro 14395 Miramar Parkway Miramar, Fl 33027 (954) 437‐9989 TD Bank Pines East (Chairman Circle) Roman Khodos 7999 Pines Blvd Pembroke Pine, Fl (954) 981‐6350 TD Bank Pines West (Chairman Circle) Rosanne Caretsky 1 SW 129th Ave Pembroke Pines, Fl (954) 885‐5982 Keller Williams Realty Partners SW Rita Polit 2000 NW 150 Ave Suite 2000 Pembroke Pines, Fl 33028 (954) 237‐0394 Pay1online.com, Inc. Joe Ismail 4001 NW 97th Ave #200 Miami, FL 33178 (305) 594‐9198

Audiology Hearing Aid Center Dennis Dubin 306 S Flamingo Road Pembroke Pines Fl 33027 (954) 437‐1766 Foot & Ankle Sports Center Augustine Bollo 17779 SW 2nd Street Pembroke Pines, Fl 33029 (954) 450‐0099 Law Offices of Douglas A Harrison, P.A. Douglas Harrison 320 S Flamingo Road, # 347 Pembroke Pines, Fl 33027 (954) 825‐7071 Bookkeeping Business Solutions Saby Gomez de Molina (954) 266‐8005 Orange Theory Fitness Cristina Weaver 14918 Pines Blvd Pembroke Pines, Fl 33027 (954) 534‐9949 Kaizen Beauty Academy Jackie Nepola 8405 Pines Blvd Pembroke Pines, Fl 33024 (954) 433‐4442 Chamberlain College of Nursing Harriet Myers 2300 SW 145th Ave Miramar, Fl 33027 (954) 885‐3529 Royal Treatz Lisa Cann 7855 Pines Blvd Pembroke Pines, Fl 33024 (954) 986‐2424

Fondly and with Heartfelt Thanks

Dear Colleagues and Friends, When I was 12 I began running and was hooked. In high school I ran the 220, 440, and distance and it didn’t take me long to figure out that had to pace myself or run out of strength to finish well. Learning to breath, position my footing; properly prep my body to warm up, and oh, ya…most importantly …choose the right cute, little outfit to wear so that I was sure to look good no matter how much I sweat! But hard work it was! In order to go to the next level I had to train. Make sure I was healthy mentally and physically to accomplish what I set out to do. To go to the next level took perseverance, strategy, and sometimes team work. But it was worth it. The feel of victory was so good…tiring, but good. My position as President /CEO of the chamber has been hard work…but worth it. I have run a good race here at the chamber and now it is time for me to pass that baton and allow someone else run the next leg of the race. And let me assure you, there is plenty of distance to yet run.

Thanks to all of you, your responses, involvement, leadership, and support the chamber managed through some tough recession years. The chamber exists to work on behalf of your professional and business needs. The chamber can only provide development and support to the business community if you are present in all those ways and this year was a good example resulting in a healthier year end. That means the chamber is ready for its next growth spurt. Are you? In the year 2000 I was hired as the CEO of the chamber and committed to a one year contract to assess the chamber and attempt to salvage a dying organization. Bankrupt, broken‐down operation, and in trouble the board wasn’t sure the doors would stay open for more than 6 months. Well, fast‐forward to 2011. Here we are! So that brings us to today. My resignation is nothing short of absolute confidence that the MPPRCC perfectly poised for its next tier of success and I am stepping out of the way so that a new energy, new ideas, and a new generation can take over. This chamber is ready for change and I am counting on each of you to continue the race. Change means refreshment.

I plan to join you as a member of this great chamber in 2012 as I start my own venture. I am going to miss being your CEO and each of you. Fondly and with heartfelt thanks, Stella Tokar President /CEO

October Breakfast Sponsored by: Jose Maria Vargas University

October Net @ Nite Sponsored by: Ana G Mendez University System

Social Media Lessons from Three Small Businesses No matter how long you have been using social media marketing to build your business or organization, it is always beneficial to see how others are taking advantage of the tools. Perhaps there is an idea you can “borrow” and use for yourself. So in that spirit, let’s take a look at what lessons you can learn from these three businesses.

Get the word out: Cheri Ruskus, founder of Business Victories in Longmont, Colo., hosts weekly teleseminars to help educate her customers and prospects on tactics for running a booming business. In addition to email invitations, Cheri spreads the word about her seminars to her 2,035 Twitter followers. She also shares links to the registration page with her more than 125 Facebook fans and nearly 500 LinkedIn connections. This ensures a sizable turnout every time. "We've seen registration go up 30% to 40%, and it's consistently growing each week," Cheri says.

Get people involved and engaged: At the Currier Museum of Art, in Manchester, N.H., the curators created a recent exhibit, The Secret Life of Art: Mysteries of the Museum Revealed, based on questions the staff gets from visitors on a regular basis. During the exhibition, the museum asked members and guests to tweet their thoughts using a dedicated Twitter hashtag (#curriersla). Over the roughly four months the exhibition was open to the public, the

Currier grew its Twitter following by 49%, while expanding the number of Likes of its Facebook Page by 24%. Build relationships: For B.Good, a Boston‐based restaurant chain, Facebook and Twitter help to build stronger relationships with customers. On Facebook, the business runs contests to name its newest burger, posts pictures of holiday presents the company wrapped for its customers, and announces its latest menu items. On Twitter, the chain takes advantage of the immediacy of the network, collecting and responding to instant feedback. "With the dialogue and trust that we create, customers are much more likely to engage and help us," explains Jon Olinto, one of B.Good's founders. "Our loyal customers want us to improve and succeed."

Encuentro Hispano: Celebrating Hispanics... Celebrating Business!

Successful Networking...UNMASKED!Sponsored by: Baptist Medical Plaza

Pinnacle Awards

Craig Zinn – Lifetime Achievement Award

Representative Matt Hudson – Coceono

Community Leadership Award

Ana G Mendez University – Corporate

Stewardship Award

Kaylin Printing & Promotions – Small

Business Award

Commissioner Barbara Sharief – Woman in

Business Award

Henry Rose – Pinnacle

Karen Maerovitz – Pinnacle

Steve Pressman – Pinnacle

Upcoming Meetings Membership Breakfast Second Tuesday of the month 7:00a.m. – 9:00 a.m. SW Focal Point Senior Center 301 NW 103rd Avenue Pembroke Pines, FL 33026 Members: $10 Visitors & Guests: $15 Net@Nite Third Tuesday of the month 5:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Location varies Members: $5 Visitors & Guests: $10 Power Networking Groups Fourth Wednesday of the month 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. Location: Big Tomato (8300 Pines. Blvd.) Chamber members only – Free (Attendees pay for their own meal) 7@11 First Friday of the month 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Location varies Chamber members only – Free (Attendees pay for their own meal)

Join A Committee Today and Get Connected! Chair Contacts:

Ambassador Committee, Isabel Martin, Celebration Time Florist, (954) 437‐3451

Business Development, Jay Schwartz,

Coast to Coast Home Services, (954) 673‐3479

Education Committee, Teresa Justice, Broward College, 954‐204‐8800

EXPO, Simone James,

Ambrose Events, 954‐854‐6036

Express Leads Group (exclusive), Audry Ferdianand, Select A Kup, 1800‐381‐AKUP

Golf Tournament, Karen Maerovitz,

Crème de la Crème Events, 786‐210‐8837

Government Affairs, Gaspar Garcia, RBC Wealth Management, 954‐916‐1300

Membership, George Mirabal, Credomatic

Merchant Services, 305‐372‐3000

Pinnacle, Subcommittee of Business Development

A Sip of Wine & Taste of Heaven, Karen

Maerovitz, Crème de la Crème Events, 786‐210‐8837

Women in Business, Barbara Bergevin,

Bank Atlantic, 954‐432‐2422

Young Professionals, George Fossett, Leroyan Collection, 954‐854‐7838

Trustees

All Service Refuse

AutoNation, USA

Baptist Medical Plaza

City of Miramar

City of Pembroke Pines

Lexus of Pembroke Pines

Maroone Auto Plaza

Memorial Healthcare System

Sam’s Club

The Shops at Pembroke Gardens

Tropical Financial Credit Union

Chairman Circle BB&T Miramar

BB&T Pines

Humana Medical Plan

Miami Dolphins

NBC6

Plantation General Hospital

RBC Wealth Management

RBC Bank (Miramar)

Sunbeam Properties

TD Bank Pines East

TD Bank Pines West

The Miami Herald Media Company

Tulum Mexican Grill

Waste Pro of Florida

Westside Regional Medical Center

Chamber Volunteers

Marlene Dawdy Debbie Lewis Sandra Morno

Documents

INSIGHT FOR BUSINESS