JULY 2017 – President’s article by Todd Underwood

 

Summer time, and the living is easy. Actually, the living is hot!  But there is plenty to do, to keep our minds off the heat!  The Underwood family is looking forward to the 94th season of the Redlands Bowl that starts on Friday.  A wonderful lineup of programs again this year for our community and thousands of visitors!  Thanks so much to the Redlands Bowl Performing Arts. And don’t let’s forget the Redlands Theatre Festival in Prospect Park.

The State of the City Luncheon provided great information about our city and its future. Many thanks to; Mayor Paul Foster, City Council Members and the Redlands Chamber of Commerce, along with all the sponsors of the event  for providing all of us with an outstanding program.

The Chamber is proud to have partnered with Brixton Capital the Redlands Mall Developers, who presented an information sharing program on the development of the Redlands Mall. This was the first in a series of meetings that will keep the public abreast of progress and look for input at the same time.

See you at the Bowl, or in Prospect Park!

JULY 2017 – Chamber Members Renewing June 2017

COOPS COINS
Randy & Lauren Briggs
21 E. Redlands Blvd
Redlands, CA 92373
Phone: 792-2511

COUNTRY INN & SUITES
Kenny Makan
1650 Industrial Park Avenue
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: 792-7913

 DGA CONSULTING|
Don Gee
Phone: 800-2984

EL CAMINO RANCH, LLC|
Theresa Houchin
11363 Walnut Street
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: 801-0029

FOREIGN AUTO TECH
Sid Takouche
1635 W. Redlands Blvd
Redlands, CA 92373
Phone: 335-9575

FLANIGAN CONSTRUCTION, INC.
Dan Flanigan
|745 E. Stuart
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: 792-6740

GOOD NITE INN
Pamela Vengarick
1675 Industrial Park Avenue
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: 793-3723 

HAMPTON INN AND SUITES
Nadia Tabbaa
27959 Highland Avenue
Highland, CA 92346|
Phone: 862-8000

HARLOW’S KITCHEN CONCEPT
Jake Hebel
1504 Tippecanoe
San Bernardino, CA 92408
Phone: 796-0264

HIEN HUYNH
Hien Huynh
P.
O. Box 9502
Redlands, CA 92375
Phone: 363-5669

 

HUDCO HEATING & AIR CONDITIONING, INC.
Doug Hudec
P.
O. Box 309
Yucaipa, CA 92373
Phone: 797-2298

HYUNDAI INLAND EMPIRE
Joe Borges
25072 Redlands Blvd
Redlands, CA 92354
Phone: 796-1600

INLAND PRESORT & MAILING SERVICES
Nick Chudasama
2025 W. Park Avenue, Suite 8
Redlands, CA 92373
Phone: 307-1300

LIFEHOUSE THEATER PRODUCTIONS
Wayne Scott
1135 No. Church Street
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: 335-3037

LINDA VALLEY ASSISTED LIVING & MEMORY CARE
Veronica Ramos
25393 Cole Street
Loma Linda, CA 92354
Phone: 799-3117

RB MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
Randy Brown
700 E. Redlands Blvd, Suite U-347
Redlands, CA 92373
Phone: 335-1941

REDLANDS AIRPORT ASSOCIATION
Ted Gablin
1745 Sessums Drive, Suite 1
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: 557-5292

REDLANDS ADVENTIST ACADEMY
Luisa DeSia
130 Tennessee Street
Redlands, CA 92373
Phone: 793-1000

REDLANDS AUTO ELECTRIC
Jim Cooper
349 No. Eureka Street
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: 792-4776

REDLANDS ELKS LODGE #583
Sam Trad
663 New York Street
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: 793-4211

REDLANDS EXECUTIVE SUITES, LLC
Jennifer Heichberger
1255 W. Colton Avenue
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: 363-4700

REDLANDS SPRINKLER
George Morrison
P. O. Box 11708
San Bernardino, CA 92423
Phone: 798-2204

TARBELL REALTORS-ROLAND MORALES
Roland Morales
1440 Industrial Park Avenue
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: 809-8187

THE VILLAGE AT REDLANDS
Sallie Lambooy
310 So. Wabash
Redlands, CA 92374
Phone: 794-9880

TRIPLE EDGE FINANCIAL SERVICES
Lujan Catuegno
710 Brookside Avenue, Suite 9
Redlands, CA 92373
Phone: 748-5747

UNITED PROPERTY MANAGEMENT
Mary Shaw-McMinn
10535 Anderson Street
Loma Linda, CA 92354
Phone: 796-2897

VIEWPOINT FINANCIAL
Marvin Hudson
127 E. State Street
Redlands, CA 92373
Phone: 335-7100

 

 

 

 

JULY 2017 – New Chamber Members – June 2017

BELLO CRISTO SALON
Rudy Dorres
308 West State Street, Suite 3A
Redlands, CA 92373
Phone: 792-7412
www.bellocristosalon.com

PROFIT GROWTH BUILDERS|
Gregg Kell
P. O. Box 1946
Lake Arrowhead, CA 92352
Phone: 744-8985
http://profitgrowthbuilders.com

SIMONMED IMAGING
Casey Arias
1690 Barton Road, Suite 107/108
Redlands, CA 92373
Phone: 806-7025
www.simonmed.com

 

JULY 2017 – The Summer Season has come to Redlands


As the temperature rises the heat is turned up on the Redlands summer entertainment schedule as well. From special events to musicals, dramas and more there is something for everyone in Redlands during the summer months.

The Redlands Bowl offers up an extraordinary schedule of performances including the dazzle of Bollywood and the amazement of ballet with a little of everything in between. Performances are on Tuesdays and Fridays with the community musical presentation of Tarzan, July 27 through the 30. You can find the Redlands Bowl Schedule on line at www. Redlandsbowl.org. Performances begin June 30th and run through August 25th.

Redlands Theatre Festival offers an interesting array of productions in repertory, with old familiar comedies to British parodies and the intrigue of drama. The shows open on July 7th with the season closing August 19th. The scheduled performances can be found at www.Redlandstheatrefestival.org.

 

The 4th of July celebration in Redlands is a long standing community favorite with a picnic in Sylvan Park, including a good old fashion red white and blue parade to a spectacular fireworks show unlike any in Southern California. Tickets can be purchased in advance for general admission or reserved seating for the pyrotechnics at Ted Runner Stadium.  For more information you can log on to www.redlands-events/july4.htm

 

 

 

JULY 2017 – Social Media and Marketing

Use social media to enhance your marketing efforts

Social media can seem intimidating and at times, trying to maneuver through its best practices can be tricky, especially for smaller businesses balancing a variety of daily tasks, in addition to building a digital presence. But social media is quite possibly the most effective way to stay engaged with both current and prospective customers at very little cost.

Don’t have a full-time staff member dedicated to social media strategy? No problem. Even the smallest of businesses can create smart and strategic content goals as long as they’re realistic when it comes to their capabilities. It might not make sense for your business to have a presence on all of the social media platforms. It is better to maintain a presence on one or two platforms than a weak or no presence on several.

Identify Your Objectives It is important to define your objectives while making sure they’re attainable for your business model. Ask yourself, “Who am I trying to reach; what do I want to say; and how am I going to say it?” Once you start answering those questions, your goals and objectives will write themselves.

Create Purposeful Content The internet is massive, and new content is generated every second. How can you best stand out? Using engaging graphics and photographs can go a long way when creating new content. It is completely acceptable, and in most cases necessary, for your social content to reach beyond your business model and industry. Include statistics from the Inland Empire region, as well as industry news from other non-competing outlets. It will attract a wider audience and generate a greater reach, which is a win-win for your brand.

Consistency is Key Scheduling your social media posts may seem intimidating, but it is one of the most effective ways to save time and ensure consistency, especially for a small team with a busy schedule. Try to refrain from going too long without posting on any particular account.

Rules of thumb for posting on the most prominent social platforms:

  • Facebook: 2 – 3 times a week
  • Twitter: 8 – 22 times a week depending on your social strategy
  • LinkedIn: 1 – 3 times a week
  • Instagram: at least 1 time a weekDon’t be Afraid of Personality Every business has a different brand identity, so feel free to explore different social media personalities to fit that brand identity. Experiment with some appropriate humor, compelling graphics or enticing testimonials from your employees or customers. Social media can be professional without being boring. The most important question: How can you best ensure that content reflects your organization and engages its target audiences?B2B is Just as Important as B2C It’s important to engage with clients on social media, but it is equally important to engage with other businesses as well. Not only does it open up your brand to an entirely new audience, but it also gives you an opportunity to establish a relationship with other business leaders in the community.
  • With a few simple key strokes you can be a part of the social media marketing family, and there is no time like the present to begin.
  • Be Your Own Best Friend Find ways to share your own content, whether it be through a blog post or press release. Your social media channels are free publicity for your brand and your business, and it is best to utilize those opportunities whenever possible. Don’t be afraid to drive traffic to your website.
  • These recommendations all depend on your social strategy, but it always helps to have a baseline.

JULY 2017 – Examining your wage practices

By Jennifer Brown Shaw Esq. CalChamber

Wage and hour compensation issues remain some of the most active enforcement areas in employment law. These issues represent substantial lost wages for employees and lost tax revenues for government.

Self-audits can serve as a key tool to help employers avoid wage-and-hour liability in the workplace, especially given the current climate of increased enforcement and scrutiny. Employers must ensure their records and practices are compliant, or they face significant legal risk.

Enforcement agencies in California have stepped up efforts to target employers who perpetrate “Wage theft”. Wage theft is a phrase used to refer to infractions of the California Labor C ode involving the payment of wages to workers. Wage theft might refer to employers who fail to pay for all hours worked, fail to pay nonexempt employees overtime, fail to pay minimum wage or fail to properly classify workers as employees and report them to various state and federal agencies.

Failure to comply with state wage-and-hour practices may result in heavy fines, civil or criminal penalties and class-action suits.

In light of increased enforcement and continuing prevalence of class-action lawsuits in California employers should take steps to evaluate their practices and ensure compliance with the law.

Why self-audit? The purpose of a self-audit is to identify procedures and practices that violate the law. Given the complexity of the laws involved, audits invariably reveal some compliance issues. By taking a proactive approach, employers retain control over correcting the issues identified by an audit and are better prepared to defend themselves if the government or a plaintiff’s attorney comes a calling.

A simple review includes employee classification; meal and rest periods; timekeeping and pay practices; calculation of the “regular rate of pay” and related overtime issues; off-the-clock work; pay equality between men and women performing similar work; child labor laws; record keeping and wage statement compliance; and classification of workers as in independent contractors.

Committing your organization to a wage-hour self-audit is a big decision. Performing the audit and implementing self-corrective measures based on the results can be painstaking and expensive. In the long run such efforts can deliver big returns.

 

JULY 2017 – Member Profile – Senza Asthetic Medicine

Senza Asthetic Medicine, look and feel your best

Dr. Rasi received his MD from Loma Linda University School of Medicine where he went on to complete two years of surgical training before devoting his practice to cosmetic laser surgery. In 1999, he co-founded Senza Medical Corporation with the goal of establishing a center of excellence in cosmetic laser surgery. As the practice has grown, Dr. Rasi has added numerous new treatments and technologies such as laser assisted liposuction (Smartlipo), hair transplant surgery and several facial resurfacing lasers. As a cosmetic laser surgeon, he is constantly striving to provide the Inland Empire with the latest in aesthetic treatments by researching and incorporating new equipment, attending educational conferences and assisting in the development of new technology.

Senza Asthetic Medicine is located at 226 Nordina Ave. in Redlands. To learn more about the procedures, techniques and programs available call the office at 793-3563 or log onto www.senzamedical.com

JULY 2017 – Member Profile – Sugarbee Café & Bake Shop

 

Sugarbee Café & Bake Shop where sweet dreams come true

Sugarbee Cafe & Bake Shop began with two women who had a similar dream.  Co-owners Candace Gonzalez and Desy Albrecht met 10 years ago at the aerospace company where they both worked. While happy with their jobs, both women had secret talents.  Desy was a graduate of the Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts and Candace had a successful part-time custom cake business.  The women were both busy balancing work and children, but during lunch breaks, would talk about their passions for food and cake design and their dreams of one day owning a cafe and bakery.  As time passed and the children grew older, the timing felt right for the women to make their dreams a reality. That reality became Sugarbee Cafe & Bake Shop located in downtown Redlands at 5 East Citrus, Suite 105,

Serving both breakfast and lunch Sugarbee Café & Bake Shop will treat your taste buds with classic delights to extraordinary combinations. The aroma of baked goods will draw you into the shop where magic happens with cakes becoming works of art.

Featured on The Food Network’s “Cake Wars” and TLC’s “Outrageous Kids Parties” Sugarbee Café & Bake Shop has become not only a local sensation but is on the “must try” list nationally.

Ordering your very own custom cake is made simple …. log onto www. Sugarbeecafe.com and fill out the online order phone. Better yet stop in and treat yourself to a sweet treat while discussing design with the cake artist Candace, or you can call the shop at 335-3059.

Treat your sweet tooth, stop by for lunch, pop in for a quick mid-day snack or dazzle you party guests with a Sugarbee original cake.

 

JUNE 2017 – Redlands Chamber and Redlands Hotel Council help fund technology

Redlands Chamber of Commerce & Redlands Hotel Council fund technology that will help Redlands’ businesses protect their assets

By Lt. Travis Martinez, Redlands PD

 

Over the last five years, the Redlands Police Department (RPD) has been proactive in helping businesses protect their assets from both internal and external theft by using electronic stakeouts . Deploying specialized GPS technology that activates based on motion and immediately alerts officers on their smartphones enabling real-time tracking, RPD has been partnering with any willing business that has been experiencing crime.  Whether it be armed robbery, commercial burglary, organized retail theft, or simply protecting customers’ vehicles in the parking lot from vehicle burglary, RPD and Redlands’ businesses have discovered a strategy that turns the tables on would-be thieves.  With 265 arrests to date credited to the technology, the proactive strategy of setting traps that would aid in the apprehension of burglars and robbers has expanded to police departments and communities nationwide.  And now, the Redlands Chamber of Commerce and the Redlands Hotel Council have become two of the first business organizations to fund multiple devices for their local police department to use in protecting local business interests.

The year 2016 led to 66 arrests at RPD using electronic stakeouts including the following:

  • A local pharmacy was being repeatedly targeted by thieves who would break the windows of the business during nighttime commercial burglaries. The thieves would immediately collect all of the bottles of promethazine syrup and OxyContin. Community policing officers from RPD teamed up with the pharmacist, embedded a GPS tracking device in a promethazine bottle, and placed it on the shelf in the pharmacy. When four gangsters from Los Angeles hit the pharmacy in July, they only made it a mile away before they were arrested by authorities.
  • Nighttime burglars were targeting high-priced automotive technology scanners at a franchise auto parts store. RPD worked with the store manager and placed one of the GPS trackers in a scanner package that was then displayed behind the cash register counter.   When RPD responded to an alarm at the business caused by a broken window, officers discovered the suspects had already fled the scene, taking with them the GPS laced scanner package. Within minutes, RPD officers had the suspects stopped.
  • A convenience store prone to robberies allowed RPD to install a GPS chip in a packet of money that was then placed in the business’ cash register.   When the clerk of the business was robbed at knifepoint, she simply put all of the cash from the register into a bag and handed it over to the robber. The GPS device activated and helped authorities track the suspect as he fled the business on foot.   Using the tracking data, police were able to identify and apprehend the suspect. Just recently, he pled guilty to armed robbery and received a four year state prison sentence.

Seeing the value in how electronic stakeouts can help protect businesses and ease the concern of business owners, the Redlands Chamber of Commerce and Redlands Hotel Council raised $5,600 to be used to fund six GPS devices and two years’ worth of cell phone service for the devices. At a cost of only $1.82 per day per device the first year and only $.59 a day every following year, the strategy has proven to be a very effective yet very affordable way for businesses to help their local police departments combat crime and protect their assets.

To learn more about how GPS technology can be used to fight crime, please contact Lt. Travis Martinez at tmartinez@redlandspolice.org. Lt. Travis Martinez currently heads the Investigations and Special Operations Bureau of the Redlands Police Department.

 

 

JUNE 2017 – Member Profile – Jericho Systems Inc.

Experience the “Jericho difference” from concept to construction

Jericho Systems is a full-service environmental consulting firm providing services from project conception to construction since 2012. As a small California corporation, we are certified as a Small Business by the Metropolitan Water District of California, as a Woman-Owned Business by the California Public Utilities Commission and a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise by Caltrans.

Jericho’s professionals are experts in planning, biology, ecology, and regulatory permitting, with specialties in California’s various habitats and regulatory climate. We can help any developer through the entitlement process from project concept to construction, including management of sensitive biological resources.

The in-house staff has decades of experience in preparing environmental documents and permits within the guidelines of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA(, federal and State endangered species acts such as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), the California Department of Fish and Game Code (FGC), and the Clean Water Act (CWA).

Maintaining good relationships with State and Federal resource agencies and decades of experience to assist clients from project conception to construction, they have a proven track record with all aspects of small and large projects for public and private clients.

Jericho Systems Inc. is located at 47 N. First Street, Suite 1, call for more information at 307-5633 or long onto www.jericho-systems.com