U.S. Open King Mackerel Tournament
To Be Held October 1st - 3rd
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COVID-19 is an easily transmitted virus with devastating results especially for those with underlying health issues. The U.S. Open King Mackerel Tournament Board of Directors is concerned for the health of our participants and volunteers. As other sporting events worldwide have made changes to their normal operations the tournament must as well.
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NC Job Retention Grant- If your business or non-profit organization experienced interruption due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, the new Job Retention Grant (JRG) Program may be able to offer assistance.
To qualify to receive these grant funds, your organization must meet some specific eligibility requirements, click here. We also encourage you to read carefully these instructions, which will help you gather the information and documentation you'll need before filling out our online application form. Accepting applications from now until our application deadline of 11:59pm - Tuesday, September 1, 2020
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LISC Small Business Relief Grants for small businesses facing immediate financial pressure because of Covid-19.
The Round 6 application period is now open. Click here to apply. Your application must be submitted by Monday, September 7th, 11:59 p.m. ET.
Please keep the following in mind:
· For business owners with multiple businesses, please answer this survey based on your largest business owned.
· Each awardee is limited to one grant.
· Grants will be made to qualified businesses and based on accurate and complete submission and verification of required documentation.
· This round of applications must be submitted by Monday, September 7th, 11:59 p.m. ET.
If you have questions not answered by the FAQ, please email smallbusinessgrants@lisc.org. We are monitoring this inbox and updating the FAQ accordingly.
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Don't Miss Out on Any Member Benefits |
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Chamber Cancels OKI Lighthouse Run for 2020 |
This year has been more than just challenging. As you are aware the original date of the Oak Island Lighthouse Run was in April but due to the COVID-19 stay at home restrictions we postponed the run to November 14, 2020.
Then on August 3rd, Hurricane Isaias made landfall in our county. The hurricane left sections of our beachfront damaged including parts of the lighthouse run course. Repairs are being made, we are recovering, but some of it will take a little more time than we have before the event.
The Oak Island Lighthouse Run is an event of the Southport-Oak Island Area Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber's Board of Directors has made the decision to cancel the November 14, 2020 Oak Island Lighthouse Run. We realize our no refund policy did not take a pandemic into consideration. We also want to start fresh in 2021. Therefore, we have instructed GoTime to refund 100% of the participant's entry fee paid including t-shirts/caps purchased(not the convenience fee). GoTime will begin on Monday processing the refunds to your credit card but, it will take 10 to 14 days to complete.
This refund applies to anyone who registered and paid an entry fee in 2020. The exception to the refund is those who used a prior year rain check to register for 2020. Your rain check will roll over to 2021.
We do not take this decision lightly. We have based this decision on input from our professional race timing company Go Time, health concerns for our participants, organizers, and volunteers as well as the damage to the race infrastructure from the hurricane.
We are already starting to plan for the April 17, 2021 race and hope to have registration open in January. We have invited the over 800 preregistered participants to plan a weekend trip to the Southport-Oak Island Area this fall. We let them know that our area businesses would be very excited to see them.
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SPT-Oak Island Restaurant Week To Go for October |
Restaurants are invited to join the Southport/Oak Island Chamber for our3rd annual Restaurant week. This 7-day event is dedicated to supporting our local restaurants during the slow season - Monday, October 19th - Sunday, October 25th.
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Does your business need more business? Let us put a spotlight on you and your business. A relaxed conversation about your business with Chamber Staff on Facebook Live or taped and posted on Thursdays at 10am. The Chamber has been promoting our business community through Faces of Commerce for many years. So don't be camera shy call us and schedule your interview today (910) 457-6964.
Faces of Commerce is for all types of businesses. Recently we had a home based business - Burnishop.com, the Freedom Boat Club and Dr. Paul Armstrong for Dosher Memorial Hospital.
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SPT-OKI Golf Classic Rescheduled for December 4th @ Carolina National |
Southport-Oak Island Golf Classic at Carolina National December 4th
Southport-Oak Island, NC – The Southport-Oak Island Golf Classic, an annual fundraising event for the Southport-Oak Island Area Chamber of Commerce, was postponed from May due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It has been rescheduled for Friday, December 4th at Carolina National Golf Club, 1643 Goley Hewett Road, Bolivia. The 4-person Captain’s Choice tournament will begin at 11:00am.
The entry fee for a four-person team is $340.00 and includes: 4 mulligans per team, golf cart, green fees, range balls, closest to the pin contest entry, box lunch and beverages. The tournament is limited to the first 32 teams. There will be cash prizes for First Place in several flights including championship, first, women’s & mixed flights. The closest to the pin contest will be held on the course in three locations. A Carolina National Golf Club Pro Shop credit will be awarded to the man and woman closest to the pin at each of the locations.
In addition to the traditional 18 holes, the tournament offers several opportunities for further entertainment including a hole-in-one challenge, Speedy Play Move Up on one Par 5 to the 150-yard mark and the Chip a Shot into the Pot contest. Those who want to show off their chipping skills can participate for $5 per chip or 3 attempts for $10. Each participant in the chipping contest receives a Moon Pie. There will be a Chip Off to determine winner of the Electric Grill donated by BEMC and a case of toilet paper.
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Secret Life of Pets - Not so Secret After Out of Box |
We appreciate Ali Travis, DVM, River Road Animal Hospital for her talk during Out of the Box Learning in August. Dr. Travis discussed the Secret Life of Pets: when you're back at work...or not. If you are having issues with your pets you may be over stimulating them or they may be having separation anxiety. She offered suggestions about how to help your pet with both issues.
We even had a couple of pets join us for the talk who totally agreed with Dr. Travis.
The next Out of the Box Learning will be on WebEx on September 24th at 5pm. Topic: Your Life Savings - big or small what can you do today for tomorrow. Presenter: Teresa Carroll, Edward Jones. Login Info
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Join us Tuesday for Business Connections on Webex |
Business Connections is a powerful tool to grow your business. Business Connections will establish and increase business referrals between members in a professional, concise and structured setting that will promote growth in our business community. It will develop relationships with other business owners and enhance business opportunities to those in attendance through a member to member referral process.
Each meeting begins at 12noon:
9/8- Wilmington Area Rebuilding Ministry (WARM)
9/15 - James Chestnut, Government Procurement and VA Verification Advisor, Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC)
9/22- Open
9/29 – No Meeting due to US Open KMT
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COVID-19's Impact on the Evolution of Online Sales |
Article reprint: Curtis Dubay, Senior Economist, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Last week we (US Chamber of Commerce) reported that retail sales had recovered fully from the pandemic. In fact, they exceeded their pre-pandemic high in July. As part of tracking retail sales’ recovery, it continues to be interesting to examine how the COVID-19 shock has affected the evolution of online sales.
In July, in-store retail sales remained the vast majority of all retail sales at 84%. Non-store sales, which are mostly online sales, accounted for the remaining 16% of sales.
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The long-term trend has been to online sales, but consumers still do most of their shopping at traditional brick-and-mortar stores. Prior to the pandemic, online sales accounted for around 13% of all sales, but that spiked to over 19% in April at the height of the pandemic as consumers stayed home and ordered more online. |
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Since April, online sales’ share of all retail sales has fallen for three consecutive months and is now at 15.7%. That is elevated from pre-pandemic levels, but considerably lower than the April high. The decline was slight in July compared to June.
The question is whether online sales will continue to decline closer to the pre-pandemic level and resume their long-term increase from that level, or whether they will remain elevated and continue to grow. They will continue to grow, but it remains to be seen how large a one-time shift, if any, occurs because of the pandemic.
Why it matters: Aside from being an interesting behavioral change to observe, this shift matters for brick-and-mortar sellers that do not also have an online presence. They could permanently lose customers and see revenues decline. It also matters for the financiers of these retailers if the shift is large enough that the viability of the businesses becomes questionable.
–Curtis Dubay, Senior Economist, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
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Jump on a Webex call with your cup of coffee and energize your day with a great conversation with other women of the chamber.
Tuesday, September 15th - 8:00am
Topic: Tips for Organizing Your Home or Office.
Last month, Coffee with the Girls focused on Network Marketing. Panel members Ronnie Burnish, Burnishop.com; Karen Anderson, PixitSocial; Felicia Sexton, LegalShield; Seth Robbins, Hamilton Realty Group shared information about the network marketing community, technical aspects, social media support, the don'ts & access to training.
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We welcome the following businesses to membership in the Southport-Oak Island Area Chamber of Commerce:
Marine Service Pro, Inc.
Leon Messer Jr.
8210 River Road
Southport, NC 28461
(910) 363-4725 or (910) 477-2862
Boat Dealership, Tackle Shop, Fish Processing & Seafood Market
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Purchase your 2020 U.S. Open Merchandise |
Or stop by the Chamber's Welcome Center at 4433 Long Beach Road, Southport - Monday - Friday from 8:30am -5:00pm.
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Understand How Government Contracts for Disaster Relief Work? |
After catastrophes and extreme weather, federal funds are frequently spent helping localities recover. Importantly, when this work is conducted by local businesses, local economies and communities recover faster and jobs in disaster-impacted areas are sustained and created. It is therefore important that businesses located in disaster-impacted areas understand how the contracting process works following disasters. Contracting during a disaster is significantly different than standard contracting.
The Thomas T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act requires the Federal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA)to contract with businesses located in the affected area when feasible and practicable. While the Stafford Act does not require small business contracts to be made, it does include a local business contracting preference. State and local government agencies control a large proportion of disaster response activities, so many of the contracting opportunities will come through these offices.
At the time of a disaster, they may initially rely upon contracts already in place so potential contractors must be registered in the appropriate federal, state, and/or local databases to be eligible for contract awards. Many Federal agencies, such as FEMA and the Army Corps of Engineers to participate in the recovery and relief process and therefore, each agency is responsible for their own bids and awards. Learn More Here.
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Contact James Chestnut the PTAC Specialist at SBTDC UNCW for more information
(910) 962-3746.
Or Login in at 12noon on September 15th to Business Connections to learn more from Mr. Chestnut.
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New COVID-19 Cases Decreasing- While testing and identification of positive cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) continue to happen every day, Brunswick County Health Services has started to see a decrease in the number of new cases in recent weeks—suggesting that proactive measures from the public like using face coverings and social distancing are helping to prevent the potential spread of the virus. Read More Here.
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SBTDC @ UNCW is holding MEDWeek in October. Several seminars to help prepare you including:
Preparing Your Business For the Next Major Event - Virtualizing Your Business and Maintaining Your Community on a Budget - October 8th at 8am. The pandemic, and our region’s weather, often require businesses to quickly virtualize. Moving your employees offsite while continuing to grow your customer base is possible when you’re prepared. We’ll discuss free and low-cost technologies businesses can use to continue to grow and thrive during and after a crisis. We will also address how to use your virtualized office capability to help maintain your business’s customer base or “community” and do it without risking the private information your customers entrust to you.
Financing Seminar: Show me the Money - October 9th at 10:30am. Join us for an engaging and educational discussion on what a business needs to know before they apply for financing. Learn what is needed for a successful application, why the information is needed, and advice and tips from small business owners that have firsthand experience and understand the frustrations from a business owner’s viewpoint. The information provided will help small businesses be more successful in obtaining financing. More information at (910) 962-2869
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COVID-19 Vaccines Update
One on track to apply for regulatory approval this Fall.
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Article reprint: Jonathan Weinberger, Executive Vice President, Global Innovation Policy Center, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
There are currently 30 vaccine candidates in the clinical stage of evaluation, with another 139 in the preclinical stage of testing. While the pressure is on in the race to approve a COVID-19 vaccine, the innovative and scientific community remains committed to following the science to identify a vaccine that is safe and effective.
What’s New:
- There are 6 vaccines in late-stage, Phase 3 clinical trials. The University of Oxford and AstraZeneca vaccine is widely regarded as one of the leaders.
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Last Thursday, Pfizer and BioNTech released additional data from their Phase 1 trial on their leading vaccine candidate. The data showed that the vaccine elicited a strong immune response in both younger and older adults. The vaccine is currently undergoing a Phase 2/3 evaluation, and the companies believe they are on track to apply for regulatory approval as soon as this October.
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With many promising vaccine candidates in development, all eyes will be on the innovative and scientific community as the world eagerly awaits a vaccine which will place us on the return to health once again.
—Jonathan Weinberger, Executive Vice President, Global Innovation Policy Center, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
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Thank you to all the members who have renewed! These are the businesses who renewed between August 1st - August 30th: |
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Mary Ellen Poole
Seaside Chaplaincy Services
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September Ribbon Cutting Ceremonies Scheduled |
- The only Marriott property in Brunswick County. Close to the Beach and Historical Downtown Southport.
- Robert A. Wilson, MD is a medical facility that specializes in family, urgent, occupational, and telemedicine.
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Christmas by the Sea Parade - December 5th on OKI |
Enter your business in this year's Christmas by the Sea Parade, Saturday, December 5th on Oak Island. More details coming soon. |
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Thank you to all the members who have renewed! This year we asked you to consider a voluntary donation of $15.00 in addition to your membership investment to cover the ever-increasing building maintenance costs at your Chamber. We are humbled to give some extra recognition to the members who are in the 100+ Club as of August 30, 2020: |
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A Clean House, Inc.
Allen Kinney Electrical
Design for Living
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Emily Humphreys
H. Richard Ishler, Jr.
Ilene Evans
Island Contracting, Inc.
Mary Ellen Poole
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Positive Vibrations
Seaside Chaplaincy Services
Woodside Trailer RV Park
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Group Workers Compensation Thru Chamber Group |
In need of Worker's Compensation Insurance? Check out the Chamber's Group Plan through NC Retail Merchants Association and First Benefit Insurance Mutual.
You are eligible because you are a member of the Southport-Oak Island Area Chamber of Commerce.
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Members provide news, information and articles about their business which is shared electronically with fellow members and the general public through a Direct Email Campaign and on the Chamber's Facebook Page. The deadline for submission is the 12th of every month. No display ads accepted. Include a jpeg photo with your copy in Word. Submissions by email only. E-Mail Subject must be Member News. |
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Calendar of Chamber Events |
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9/1 Business Connections – 12:oopm – 1:00pm via Webex Conference Call
9/3 Faces of Commerce – 10am -LIVE on FACEBOOK – Dosher Medical-Women's Health Dr.
9/7 Office Closed for Labor Day Holiday
9/8 Business Connections – 12:oopm – 1:00pm via Webex Conference Call
9/14 Ribbon Cutting Ceremony – 12pm @ Robert A Wilson, MD – Family Medicine Practice – 717 N. Howe Street.
9/15 Coffee with the Girls- 8am via Webex Conference Call: Speaker: Taryn Lamb, CPO Organized Havens, LLC Topic: Tips for Organizing Your Home or Office.
9/15 Business Connections – 12:oopm – 1:00pm via Webex Conference Call
9/17 Faces of Commerce – 10am -LIVE on FACEBOOK - Call 457-6964 to Schedule
9/22 Business Connections – 12:oopm – 1:00pm via Webex Conference
9/24 Faces of Commerce – 10am -LIVE on FACEBOOK - Call 457-6964 to Schedule
9/24 Out of the Box Learning – 5pm via WebEx Happy Hour –Your Life Savings - big or small what can you do today for tomorrow. Presenter: Teresa Carroll, Edward Jones
9/29 Business Connections – NO Connections Meeting this week
10/1 US Open King Mackerel Tournament Drive-Thru Packet Pickup -10am-9pm @ Bill Smith Park
On the Horizon:
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4433 Long Beach Road, SE
Southport, North Carolina 28461
info@southport-oakisland.com
910.457-6964
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