It’s difficult to find anyone who says that 2009 was one of their best years. From business and job woes to violence in the community, the year ended on a down note.
Ever the eternal optimist, I am hopeful that next year will be much better, calmer, and filled with less controversy and more happiness for everyone. If this year has taught us anything, it’s that you have to be ready to adapt at any time. The most carefully laid plans for retirement, employment, marriage, children, etc., can be sidelined all too quickly by bankruptcy, layoffs, illnesses, and other unforeseen circumstances.
The cover article in today’s Business Section is a must-read for business owners as they look for ways to trim budgets and save money. Finding ways to reward employees if a monetary reward is out of the question, finding ways to continue to promote and grow your business and learn that good old fashioned customer service goes a long way towards helping both your customers and employees know they are cared for.
Although there are no quick fixes, there are two things that business owners can do to help even in tough economic times.
One is to continue marketing your business. I can’t emphasize enough how often I get questions about restaurants and stores that people think are shut down because they never see or hear ads for them anymore. It’s a self-fulfillling prophecy — if you act like your business is in trouble, it will be.
The other recommendation is to ask real estate companies in town to limit their signage by viable businesses. There are a number of huge signs saying for lease, for sale, or for rent directly in front of restaurants and stores that are open and trying to retain customers. Just because one store in a strip center may be empty, there’s no reason to create the impression that the entire place is closed or in trouble. That’s not to say that realtors shouldn’t advertise their businesses or actively find tenants, but the placement of the signage goes a long way towards hindering or helping a business.
As we look forward to the new year, here’s hoping that we all learn from the past in order to improve the future. We all want happiness and good health, and let’s hope this year we all come closer to finding it.
Business Roundup
The O’Neals Country Buffet on North Ashley Street is getting ready to shut down for a couple of weeks for renovations and a general sprucing up. The beloved buffet and downtown mainstay for lunchtime diners will re-open in mid-January with a new, fresh look but the same good food. There’s a rumor that Mr. O’Neal may retire, but it’s doubtful that he’ll leave his perch at the counter for long.
Look for the new Chick-fil-A on Inner Perimeter Road to open Jan. 14. I understand the interior is being finished and the staff is being trained to prepare for the opening.
If you’ve been around Toombs Street downtown lately, you will notice that the building for the new Teen Center and activity areas for the Boys and Girls Club is underway. It’s taken a while to get to this point, but the center is sorely needed and will be a great addition to the club and its offerings.
WaldenBooks in Valdosta Mall is shutting down and will be closed soon, and they are offering steep discounts on the merchandise and books in the store. It will be a shame to see them go, but we’re not the only ones losing a mall bookstore as several hundred are closing nationwide this year.
Look for work to begin in the New Year on the Harvey’s supermarket and other businesses locating in the old Pick’in park in Hahira.
Folks on the north end have been waiting for a large grocery store to come their way for a long time.
A few other projects around town are in various stages of planning and development, and I’ll have more updates coming, but for now, Have A Happy New Year!!
Business
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O'Neal's Country Buffet will be undergoing renovation over the next few weeks.
Business This Week: Optimism for the New Year
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Gayla’s Grits: A Taste of the South
What started as a unique Christmas gift for family and friends has turned into the go-to business for the best grits in town and, possibly, the world.
Gayla’s Grits, owned by husband-and-wife duo Kevin and Gayla Shaw, began in 1997 while grinding naturally grown white corn for personal consumption. -
Graduates heading into the real world
Over the last week or so, thousands of high school students in our area have graduated and are preparing for their next step in life. Some are going straight to college, others are seeking military careers, some are going straight to work, and there are most likely quite a few who have no real plans or idea what to do next.
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Have A Happy Free Birthday!
The only thing better than a birthday is a free birthday. I would know, because my birthday was on Friday and, yes, I am absolutely using the newspaper as a platform for a free birthday ad because Facebook just doesn’t do it for me anymore.
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Valdosta Shared Office Space
VALDOSTA — Though Valdosta Shared Office Space is not new to Valdosta, it is newly green. The first and only shared office space in Valdosta owned by Gino Fina, just became the first Downtown Valdosta business to work with the Georgia Cities Foundation’s Green Communities Fund to implement environmentally friendly, energy-efficient improvements, reducing energy consumption upwards of 50 percent. -
Downtown businesses to be mobbed this week
A few years ago, when everyone started talking through social media, flash mobs became the new in thing to do. Primarily in the big cities, although VSU did their own a year or two ago, a designated place and time would be set and masses of people would descend on these sites, sometimes dancing, sometimes singing, sometimes acting obnoxiously.
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Keep tails wagging when your budget is lagging
I have a problem. Though I am a tight-wad when it comes to spending my money, I cannot resist the calling to buy adorable toys, collars and, yes, even clothes for my three cuter than all get out fur babies.
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The Valdosta Mall: Revamped and Ready for Business!
VALDOSTA — The Valdosta Mall has made tremendous strides since its rebranding away from Colonial Mall in 2007 and it’s refocus in 2008 when it made a move from serving the community to being a part of the community.
“We had taken for granted our place in the community for a long time,” said Jerry Weller, general manager of the Valdosta Mall. “We don’t do that anymore.” -
Keep your clothes looking fab to avoid looking drab
As I get older, I’m beginning to learn that there are more important things than clothes. Ugh! It pains me to even form that sentence; however, it’s true.
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Business This Week: Happy Mother’s Day!
Today is the one day a year dedicated to celebrating mothers, although we all use their guidance and wisdom every day. But for this one day, their sacrifices, kindness, love, and advice are recognized, hopefully, by the children they raised or helped to raise. It might not even be those born to them, as most mothers don’t limit their love and it flows over onto their children’s friends, family members, and the children they influence in the classroom, in Sunday school and in volunteer activities.
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Downtown will have a new beat this week
The Brown Bag Concert Series produced by Valdosta Main Street will begin again on Monday and last all week.
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