It may have been the crack of dawn but the optimism was soon rising along with the sun at the Goleta Valley Chamber of Commerce’s inaugural Business 2 Business Breakfast at Earl Warren Showgrounds.
The brainchild of chamber board member Mark Dispenza of Holmes & Holmes Insurance Agency Inc. and Max White, the chamber’s business development manager, the breakfast was intended to give businesses a new, more direct way to network in today’s challenging economic environment. Judging by the attendance — representatives from 90 businesses were there — and the response afterward, it worked.
Dispenza got the idea from the Ventura Chamber of Commerce, which has hosted a similar breakfast for some time, with great success. The Goleta Valley and Ventura chambers are affiliated through the Regional Legislative Alliance and frequently collaborate on issues of mutual interest, such as the recent regional transportation forum in Ventura.
“In what could be a tough economic year, the Goleta Valley Chamber of Commerce is meeting initiatives to get back to basics,” said Kristen Amyx, the chamber’s president and CEO, explaining her organization’s enthusiasm for the project. “We will help businesses focus on core strengths of relationship building, customer service and financial management.”
Each Business 2 Business Breakfast participant last week had the opportunity to introduce himself or herself and the participant’s organization to the entire group, display marketing materials on display tables, and swap business cards with other attendees. There were a number of door prizes and everyone received a full contact list for each pre-paid attendee — a leads list that was pure gold to many.
Participants had 20 seconds to describe their businesses and unique positioning, which is a lot harder to do than it sounds. A few of the early descriptions ran a little long, which prompted a bell from the time-keeper, Drew Wakefield of Ramada Limited. By the end, the scripts were down pat and moving at a good clip. Afterward, participants made a beeline to others for a direct connection that was much more meaningful and efficient.
“Everyone was an enthusiastic participant and they all seemed to take away a lot of beneficial business contacts,” said Bob Grissom, vice president of Cox Media.
Dispenza was more direct.
“Each participant gets at least 20 seconds in the spotlight in front of nearly 100 qualified prospects,” he said. “You can’t beat that level of promotional efficiency anywhere.”
February’s title sponsor was Venoco Inc., which received seven minutes for a captive-audience presentation, and other event sponors were Ameravant Web Design, Palius & O’Kelley, Rabobank and Santa Barbara Airbus. Future sponsors include Montecito Bank & Trust and Pacifica Suites Hotel.
Annual sponsors are Noozhawk, SBParent.com, AMS Entertainment and Cumulus Media (Kruz 97.5 & Magic 106.3).
Catering sponsors are Catering by Woody’s, Cold Spring Tavern, Country Catering and Farmer Boy Restaurant.
February’s Spirit of Business sponsor was Baroness Jewelers, which honored Dispenza for his role in developing the Business 2 Business concept.
As is customary for the Goleta Valley chamber, much of the program was organized by chamber Ambassadors, which included Dispenza and White; Michelle Bischoff of Mary Kay Cosmetics; Aaron Brown of Edward Jones Investments; Monique Bunstone and Tony Vallejo of Palius & O’Kelley; LeRoy Cubbison of Community West Bank; Javad Esfandiary, Pete Llena and Sam Sosa of Wells Fargo Bank; Cynthia Estrella of Business First Bank; Adlean Fuller of Candy Lane PreSchool; Dale Hegland of New York Life Insurance; Betty Hensel; Kimberly Jones and Lara Lytle of Pacifica Suites; Christine LeBon of Santa Barbara Airbus; Russ Llewellyn of Montecito Bank & Trust; Ed Pena of Cox Media; Maria Sanchez of Select Staffing; Charlotte Valentine of Cathedral Oaks Athletic Club; Drew Wakefield of Ramada Limited; Steve Woodward of Riviera Insurance Services; and Gary Young of Pro Moving.
The big door prize, donated by AMS Entertainment, was an EZ DJ ($450 value) that was won by Habitat for Humanity for Southern Santa Barbara County). Other door-prize donors were the American Heart Association, Best Buy, Cathedral Oaks Athletic Club, Mary Kay Cosmetics, Montecito Bank & Trust, Pacifica Suites Hotel, SMART Office Interiors, White House Florists and Noozhawk, which extended a 25 percent advertising discount to all organizations in attendance.
Participating organizations included:
» Alpha Resource Center of Santa Barbara & Thrift Store
» The Art Department Graphic Design
» ATI-CTI
» Best Buy
» Best Western Pepper Tree Inn
» Breakfast Optimist Club of Goleta
» Cathedral Oaks Athletic Club
» Foodbank of Santa Barbara County
» Gail Gillies (Institute of Management Accountants)
» Goleta Valley Chamber of Commerce
» Habitat for Humanity for Southern Santa Barbara County
» Ed Heron, Santa Barbara Board of Education
» Holmes & Holmes Insurance Agency Inc.
» Jennifer Henry, The Acupuncture Lady
» Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services
» Gregory Lowe, attorney
» Noozhawk
» Pacific Coast Business Times
» Pro Moving
» Rabobank
» Robert Half International-Accountemps
» Robert Half International-OfficeTeam
» SBCC
» Santa Barbara Signs & Graphics
» Santa Barbara Special Olympics
The Goleta Valley chamber’s Business 2 Business Breakfasts are scheduled for the first Tuesday of each month, with the next one 7-9 a.m. March 3, also at Earl Warren Showgrounds. The cost is $20 for chamber members, $25 for nonmembers and $30 for registration at the door. With an annual pass, the 12th breakfast is free. The advance registration cut-off is 48 hours prior to each event date. Click here to make reservations, or for more information contact White at max@goletavalley.com or call 805.967.2500.
— Noozhawk publisher Bill Macfadyen can be reached at wmacfadyen@noozhawk.com.
