Dear Chamber Members:

Dear Chamber Members,

2012 is quickly approaching! Here’s what you need to know, where we need your support and how YOU can make a difference in the upcoming year!

FIRST – Board Member Nominations:

The Nominations Committee of the HWCOC Board of Directors is actively looking for dedicated and committed Chamber Members who can serve on the Board.

According to our Bylaws, should a Chamber Member wish to seek such a position, they may do so through our “Nominations by Petition” process. This allows Members in good standing (of at least one year) to self nominate by petition.

In order to give you plenty of time:

• ·      Your petition must be filed with the Chamber’s office on or before August 1^st.
• ·      Bearing the original signatures of at least fifty (50) members (individual business members) in good standings of the Chamber.

Then your petition will be forward to the Nominating Committee within (10) days after receipt.

Nominees by Petition who wish to join the Board of Directors will have their name added to the list of nominees selected by the Board Nominating Committee and will be added to ballot for voting by the membership.

As always we seek individuals who can and will make the necessary time commitment, bring resources, support Chamber events through financial sponsorships and are willing to share their expertise and talents to support our membership.

SECOND – Chamber App (Perfect for all you smart phone users!): 

Our Board of Directors has authorized the purchase of a Chamber App at NO COST to our Members.

A Chamber App (or Chamber Application) for your smart phone is a nationwide mobile directory of businesses that belong to our Chamber. It allows your business location to be pinpointed on an easy-to- navigate map, search by category, sub-category, type of business, business name or location.

THIRD – Chamber Master Database Upgrade:

Our Board of Directors has authorized an upgrade to our Chamber Master Database system at NO COST to our Members.

Chamber Master is used by over 1,000 chambers and associations throughout the US. It is a member management system that provides for custom reporting, integrated billing solutions, easy communications, and provides for events management along with marketing and social networking tool and search engine optimized website modules.

While we are not purchasing every single module available at this time, we are most interested in Chamber Master’s business directory search features -- which should facilitate easier search capabilities along with other significant benefits. 

We urge you to do business with one another.  For starters, this upgrade will make it much easier to find each other on our Website directory.

FOURTH – Join our 1001 Membership Drive and Imagine the Possibilities!

We already have over 600 business members representing 45,000 employees.

But what if you could do business with 1001 members?

And they -- in turn -- did business with you?

Here’s how:  BE A MEMBER – BRING A MEMBER!

FIFTH – We love LOVE love Feedback:

We are really interested in what you have to say!

We work hard to provide you with the very best services, activities and events to grow your business – but remember, you can’t just “show up” – you must also “suit up.”

So tell us your wants and needs.

Then, “roll up your sleeves” and help make it happen!

SIXTH – DON’T Do Business with Strangers:

As we say, Keep it in the family.  Do business with fellow HWCOC members.

When there is a business opportunity out there, please try to include another Member(s).

What everyone wants is an opportunity. 

Not a guarantee.

BONUS: Handy Chamber Factoids –

• ·      30+ Years Old, 606 Members, 70% Retention Rate, Representing 45,000 Employees
• ·      $430,000 Annual Budget (60% from Dues & 40% from Events and Marketing/Sales Activities)
• ·      6-10% of the Chamber’s net income is given to Charity each year
• ·      65% of our Members pay dues of $275 per year & have less than 10 employees
• ·      26% of our Members pay dues over $275 per year & have more than 10 employees
• ·      9% of our members are represented by charitable non-profits
• ·      4 Full-Time Staff and 2 Part-Time Sales Staff
• ·      Predominate zip codes: 77024, 77042, 77077 & 77079
•  
• The top ten business categories represented by the HWCOC are: Retail, Financial, Medical, Legal & Professional Services, Restaurants, Schools, Staff, Hotels, Insurance, and Apartments

The Houston West Chamber of Commerce

“In Business. For Business.^TM”

Visibility – Networking – Politics

Blessings and well wishes in the new year! See you all in 2012!

Zest in the West Special Drawings

Purchase tickets to be entered in our two special drawings from Zest in the West! You can win a Thermoelectric Cooler with 18 bottles of wine (that is valued at $1,350) OR an incredible cheeseburger still life painting (valued at $500!) 

Buy 1 ticket for $5 or 5 tickets for $20. Tickets can be purchased by visiting the Houston West Chamber of Commerce's website here. 

The drawings will take place on Tuesday November 8th at 5:30pm! You don't want to miss out on a chance to win some great prizes from Zest in the West!

Coffee Talk - A Business Roundtable

For November's Coffee Talk, The Business Resource Committee will be spotlighting "Local Taxes from the Tax Man." The discussion will be presented by Paul Bettencourt of Bettencourt Tax Advisors, LLC. Paul serves as the Chief Executive Officer for Bettencourt Tax Advisors, which was formed in 2009 to bring Paul's years of public service and knowledge of property taxes, in conjunction with his years of business experience to the private sector. Paul received the "Taxpayer Advocate of the Year" award from the Americans For Prosperity as well as many other recognitions of his statewide effort to reduce property tax increases for all Texas Taxpayers. He also spent ten years leading the Harris County Tax Office as the elected Tax Assessor-Collector in the nation's third largest county. To learn more information on Paul, you can visit his website here: http://btanow.com/

Coffee Talk is held every first Thursday of every month from 7:45-9:00AM

Chamber Office Building

10370 Richmond Avenue, Suite 890 77042

You can RSVP to sarah@hwcoc.org

Food is sponsored by Hill Schwartz Spilker Keller LLC & Shipley Donuts. 

Business Over Breakfast

This morning the Chamber hosted it's monthly Business Over Breakfast at the Westside Cafe. This monthly breakfast is held on the third Wednesday of every month and boasts anywhere from 50 - 75 eager networkers. The Chamber would like to graciously thank Jeanie Henkel of Office Depot #67 for sponsoring and providing breakfast this morning as well as Nate Stockard of Blue Atlas Marketing and Bill Thorne of Edward Jones for co-hosting the networking activities. Another special thank you to Texas State Representative Jim Murphy of District 133 for speaking at this mornings breakfast about recent legislative sessions. This morning networkers were asked a series of random and fun questions to break them into small networking groups based on their answers. Questions such as have you been married for over 20 years, have you ever won over $100 in a casino, and have you ever owned a pet other than a cat or dog were asked. Networkers quickly broke into groups and networked within their small groups for about 30 minutes. In closing Sarah Bardwell, Associate Director of Marketing and Special Events announced upcoming events within the Chamber. You can visit the Chamber website at to learn more about upcoming events.

Next months Business Over Breakfast will be held on Wednesday, August 17th from 7 am - 8:30 am at the Westside Cafe in Granite Westchase II. There is no charge to attend the breakfast, but if you would like to take advantage of sponsorship opportunities please contact Sarah Bardwell at the Chamber office.
sarah@hwcoc.org

Looking Back - Coffee Talk

This morning the Business Resource Committee hosted their monthly Coffee Talk at the Chamber office. This month's topic was part two of a two part Social Media Series focusing on LinkedIn and Twitter. Nate Stockard of Blue Atlas Marketing and Mike Eyre of Apollo Sales and Marketing presented in a discussion form on how to use LinkedIn and Twitter to build your business. The full house of attendees kept Nate and Mike busy by asking questions on how to advertise your business, gain prospects and be seen on the ever growing social media sites. The Houston West Chamber of Commerce would like to again thank Nate and Mike for presenting at today's Coffee Talk as well as Mike Simon of Shipleys Donuts and Hill Schwartz Spiker Keller for providing the donuts and coffee.

Coffee Talk is held on the First Thursday of every month from
7:45 am - 9 am at:
The Chamber Office Building
10370 Richmond Avenue, Suite 890

Houston's Culinary Stars of 2011

H Texas, Houston’s Premiere Lifestyle Magazine has announced their selections for Houston‘s Culinary Stars of 2011 in the Summer 2011 issue. These restaurants were hand selected by the magazine staff and loyal readers from the nearly 11,000 restaurants that call Houston home. Help us congratulate fellow Houston West Chamber of Commerce members, Trattoria Il Mulino and Flora & Muse who have been crowned Culinary Stars of 2011!
Leading the pack in the Best After Dinner Drink category is Trattoria Il Mulino located in the Westin – Memorial City. Featured in the magazine is one of their house specialties, Grappa, made by fermenting distilled spirits with fruits. Flavors include pear, blueberry, strawberry, fig, raspberry, apricot and raisin. Flora & Muse, located in the Town & Country CityCentre, has been named the Best European Bistro in Houston. At this European inspired flower market and patisserie you can enjoy flatbread pizza and tomato soup on the terrace or Sunday Brunch in the flower shop.
Stop by these Houston hot spots to congratulate them on their success and let them know you are a fellow Chamber member!

Women Driving Business 2011 Preview

The Houston West Chamber of Commerce along with it's presenting sponsor, Wells Fargo, and many other generous sponsors is proud to present the 2011 Women Driving Business Series! The series of events will begin with a "Venturing Out In High Heels" Breakfast, sponsored by Clear Channel Houston Radio, will be held at Royal Oaks Country Club and will feature special guest speaker, Carolyn Faulk, CEO of A&C Plastics, Inc. The breakfast will be held on Tuesday, August 2nd and only series ticket holders will be able to attend. Series tickets may be purchased for $125 at www.hwcoc.org

The second event in this empowering series is the "High Power In High Heels" Luncheon held at The Westin - Memorial City. This event will take place on Tuesday, September 6th and will feature a panel of speakers to include, Sue Burnett of Burnett Staffing, Jayne Edison of Office Furniture Innovations and Kristi Chickering of Sirius Solutions. The panel will be moderated by Dulcie Wink of The Wink Law Firm.

To wrap up the series of events is the "Stilettos, Spirits & Sweets with a French Twist" Social held at BMW West on Thursday, October 13th. This exciting social will dazzle you with performers from "Cirque Imagination".

To learn more about becoming a sponsor or purchasing tickets for the series or individual events visit the Chamber website at www.hwcoc.org or contact Jeannie Bollinger at 713-785-4922.

Current Stiletto level sponsors include: Texas Children's Hospital, Sarah's Florist, Allergy, Asthma, and Sinus Professionals, The Wink Law Firm, Granite Properties, Westpark Communications, Wright Business Technologies, PROforma TaCaBu, Prather Kalman, absolutely! Magazines, BMW West, Drummond PR, XCution, The Abbey at Eldridge, and Memorial Hermann - Memorial City

Check out photos from last year's events!!