The busy season has passed, and now it is time to
evaluate all business practices to ensure for a strong future. This is also the time of year for businesses
to address some much needed deep cleaning and capital renovations/improvement
projects. This is not only true for
businesses, but also true for the Destin Area Chamber of Commerce.
The Chamber Ambassadors have had just a few ribbon
cutting ceremonies recently, Dermatology Specialists of Florida and Workout
Anytime, but both had great turnouts.
During the month of October, we hope to see you at some of the following
ribbon cuttings and events: Westwinds
Conference Center Ribbon Cutting, Emerald Coast in a Box Ribbon Cutting, Destin
Custom Home Builders Ribbon Cutting, Studio Blue Pilates Ribbon Cutting, Leaders
In Business Lunch Sponsored by White-Wilson Medical Center, and Business After
Hours at Emerald Bay Golf Club, just to name a few. Please check the Destin Area Chamber website
for more details on the events. The
larger events include the Destin Seafood Festival, on Oct. 2-4, and the 3rd
Annual Bourbon at the Bay, on Nov. 19, at Regatta Bay Golf and Yacht Club, both
are projected to be great events for the area.
The first person to send me an email after reading this article will receive
two tickets to attend Bourbon at the Bay.
Membership continues to
increase with each passing week, and through August we have 971 active members,
as compared to 881 through August of 2014, a 10.2% increase. If you are looking for a quick way to gain
exposure to your business, contact the staff to find out how you can take
advantage of this great resource. If you
have a change in personnel or with any of your contact information, please contact
the Chamber so we can update your membership file.
The City of Destin will be
rolling out the next step of the “Envision Destin” plan, so we hope that
everyone will attend these critical meetings.
The results of the first two workshops can be found at www.EnvisionDestin.com/?page_id=68.
Be on the lookout for the next set of meetings.
On a related note, the utility work for Highway 98 widening plans will
begin shortly, so please be considerate of the workers along the road ways.
During the August Leaders in
Business Lunch, Trustmark National Bank sponsored and awarded four lucky
winners with accommodation stays with four of our local vacation rental
management companies. We were fortunate
enough to have the honorable Sen. Don Gaetz as our speaker. He encouraged all
residents to be actively involved in the local and state government. Please do not sit by idly, get out and
involved.
Finally, I want to thank
everyone who assisted with the Chamber’s 4th Annual Paddle at the
Porch on Saturday, on Aug. 15. It was a great event. There were more than 100
participants, and a $6,000 purse was distributed to the top performers in the six
mile elite event. We hope to see everyone
at next year’s event.
If there is ever anything we may do for you, please
do not hesitate to call the Chamber at (850) 837-6241. We look forward to serving you throughout 2015 and
together building this world-class community one
business at a time. I hope everyone is “Living
the Dream” in this place we call home, the Destin area.
Sincerely,
Ken Wampler
2015 Chairman of the Board of
Directors
Newman-Dailey
Resort Properties, Inc.
