UA News

A Look Back at another Successful Year

Date: December 20, 2012

As December comes to a close, we at the UA Area Chamber of Commerce pause to reflect on our accomplishments during 2012. We began the first quarter of the year with the Chamber’s Annual Celebration which included a business expo, silent auction, live band, cocktails, dinner, a dessert bar, dancing, theatrical entertainment and an awards program.

The Annual Celebration was made possible by generous donations from the following sponsors: Anthem, the Upper Arlington Community Improvement Corporation, Indus Hotels, HHH CPA Group, PNC Bank, the Guernsey Bank, the law firm of Newhouse, Prophater, Letcher and Moots, and Home Instead Senior Care.

Every year, the Upper Arlington Area Chamber recognizes member businesses for their outstanding achievements and contributions to the community at an awards ceremony at our Annual Celebration. Our 2012 award winners were:

Business Person of the year W. Arthur Cullman Award - Don Leach, Dinsmore & Shohl, LLP

Contributing Member of the Year Jeanne E. Schaal Award - Jerry Schwan, Tom & Jerry’s Auto Repair

2011 Best Place to Work - The Publishing Group, LTD.

2011 New Business of the Year - Royal Ginger Asian Fusion Bistro

Entrepreneur Award – Small Business 1 – 4 Employees - Dave’s Dogs and More

Entrepreneur Award – Medium Business 5 – 30 Employees - Suzy’s Helping Hands

Entrepreneur Award – Large Business 31 Plus Employees - The Arlington Bank

Young Professional Business Leader of the Year Award - Jeff Danziger, Edward Jones

We quickly followed that with the Community Market Place which is a fun and innovative event connecting the residents of Upper Arlington with local businesses. Sponsors of this program included Anthem, Coldwell Banker King Thompson and the Arlington Bank. The event encourages the promotion and support of the Upper Arlington business community, entrepreneurial spirit and community awareness.

And then it was time for the 19th Annual Taste of Upper Arlington. This hugely successful event would not happen but for the generous donation from the following sponsors: Fifth Third Bank Arlington Urgent Care Key Bank Tri-Village Magazine Yard Solutions PNC Bank Wow! Internet, Cable and Phone National Church Residences at First Community Village Lane Avenue Chiropractic Citizens for Stephanie Kunze Columbus School for Girls Indus Hotels Keller Williams Classic Properties Nicola Restaurant and Bar Nightingale Home Care Schmidt’s of German Village Two Men and a Truck.

This year, the Chamber expanded the Taste of UA event to include a music component featuring a variety of local bands. 121 restaurants and food-related vendors served a variety of food to attendees, while area businesses and organizations showcased their goods and services. Food vendors submitted food samples in three categories in the annual Taste of UA food judging contest, and festival attendees also were given the chance to vote for their favorite food vendor. The following are the 2012 Taste of UA award winners:

Appetizer

1. The Wine Bistro – Braised Veal Meatball

2. Mojo TaGo - The Mojodilla

3. The Rusty Bucket – Sliders

Entrée

1. Nicola Restaurant – Pasticcio Di Melanzane

2. City Barbeque – Signature beef brisket on buttery Texas toast topped with sweet vinegar slaw

3. Dave’s Dogs & More – Chicken Gyro

Dessert

1. Caffe’ DaVinci – Gelato

2. Schakolad Chocolate Factory – Gelato

3. Leslie’s Creperie – Lemon Cream w/ Fresh Blueberry Crepe

People’s Choice Award

1. The Original Goodie Shop

2. Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams

3. Leslie’s Creperie

The fall saw the Chamber reemphasizing its Business Advisors program. This free program is available to Classic and Premier-level members, and provides a service for our members through which members can seek advisement from designated business advisors in areas such as law, accounting, finance, business development and planning, marketing and social media, sales, commercial insurance, and more.

We also jumped into the holiday shopping rush by promoting the UA Chamber’s Best Gift Ideas program. The program offered members an opportunity to market their business through a Chamber promotion while positively impacting their retail holiday sales. By promoting a discount on services and goods or a unique or distinctive gift, retailers have the opportunity to attract new customers, while strengthening their relationships with current patrons.

In addition to these larger events, the Chamber continued to offer additional networking and educational programs such as the Ask the Expert series, Business Networking Exchange lunches, Early Morning Networking breakfasts, and First Thursday’s gatherings.

While members certainly benefit the more they get involved in the Chamber’s many offerings, the Chamber’s staff and committees are continuously working behind the scenes to provide a return on investment to members.This year, we partnered with Aboutourwork.com, Womply and Offersbyme.com. These three partners provide online services that enable UA Chamber Members to gain a competitive edge in today’s challenging marketplace.

As we look toward 2013, we are excited about planning and promoting Chamber programs and services that will best fit our membership’s needs. For more information about any of these events or programs, please contact the Chamber at 614-481-5710.