Posts tagged Richmond Business

Going from Blog to Business and Doing it In Style

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606 days
by in Richmond Business

When John and Sherry Petersik moved to Richmond from Manhattan in 2006, they began the transformation of their first house. Young, energetic and terribly creative, they began chronicling that transformation on their blog: Young House Love. A blog they describe as “Two Young People Falling in Love with Their First House.”

They developed a loyal and enthusiastic following by 2008 and opened their own online shop of original art prints. Today that blog has turned into an all family business, John and Sherry work from home, along with mascot Burger and their newly minted daughter.

Clients seeking advice from Young House Love can contract with them for a “customized mood board with color scheme solutions, affordable furniture and accessory suggestions, layout ideas and more to help you totally transform your space with style to spare.” If you’re lucky, and perhaps skilled enough, your project might even be featured in a before and after post on the blog. How does it all come about? The FAQs section of the website says, “We usually start with the requested decorating style along with specific furniture requests.”

Those seeking a mood board from Young House Love need to show some initiative of their own. Each Monday at “buy now” link appears on the website. Available mood boards are gone within seconds. In a depressed economy, it’s rare to find a company that says “we can’t take your business right now, check back next week.” But that’s been the success the Petersik’s have found.

The couple has been so successful that they now have a regular column in Better Homes and Gardens’ Do It Yourself Magazine. And they’ve been featured on HGTV’s “Rate My Space.”

A unique feature offered by Young House Love is their “How To” section. This section chronicles blog post for everything from furniture refinishing, to porch makeovers, to basement redos. Each task upon which the Petersik’s have embarked with their home, right down to the decorating of the Christmas tree, is lovingly blogged and documented so that you can sign off the Internet, go and do likewise.

Young House Love isn’t just about what will look good, they’re both environmentally and economically friendly. Multiple posts will tell visitors how to green your environment. Best of all, they’ll tell you how to do it on a budget. There are also holiday and art projects galore.

It’s hard to check out a business blog like Young House Love and not be inspired. The problem, of course, is finding the time to shut down the computer and embark upon your own project. With page after page of inspiring ideas and instructions, there’s a lot to see.

There’s no shortage of suppliers wishing to advertise on Young House Love. A healthy sidebar full of design ideas and products rests along side the articles. Not to be missed is the Discount-O-Rama featuring discounts and bargains for readers.

Perhaps it was a stroke of marketing genius for Young House Love to create their regular “Fan Freebie” post. Thanks to the generosity of their suppliers, the blog offers a regular contest where the cost of entry is simply commenting on the blog post with the “magic words” provided right there. Then a random drawing determines the winner. You could win anything from artwork to pillows to lampshades, all with a special and unique design flare.

If you’ve been putting of that room, yard or furniture makeover, head on over to Young House Love for some inspiration.

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Richmond Va Business


Mondial Assistance Makes It Easier to Hit the Road, and the Skies

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640 days
by in Richmond Business

When Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano erupted spreading a cloud of ash over much of Europe, Richmond’s Mondial Assistance braced for the incoming phone calls.  Mondial Assistance is a global travel insurance and travel assistance company and the U.S. headquarters are located here.  Thousands of Mondial customers were affected by the travel delays and Mondial expects total claims could total millions of dollars.

“Not since 9/11 have we seen such widespread disruption of air travel,” Daniel Durazo, Mondial’s director of communications said to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Claims were processed on those policies purchased before April 15 when the news broke about the volcano.

Headquartered in Paris, Mondial Assistance has a significant U.S. presence at their Parham Road location.    Worldwide, the company has operations in twenty-eight countries and has a staff of more 10,000 people.   The company is party of Europe’s leading insurance company, the Allianz group.

Mondial traces the history of their company back to Switzerland in 1950 with the creation of ELVIA Travel Insurance.  Twenty-four years later in 1974, SACNAS-Mondial Assistance was founded in France.  In 2000 Elvia Travel Insurance and SACNAS-Mondial Assistance merged and, Mondial acquired World Access in the United States and in 2001 Worldcare in Australia.  In 2001, Mondial Assistance, France Secours, Elvia and SSC merged to become Mondial Assistance as it is known today.

Mondial Assistance is available to clients around the clock, every day of the year.  For travelers who have lost their luggage, stranded in a broken down vehicle or more, the company can offer some reassurance.  Mondial claims 250 million beneficiaries, roughly 4% of the world’s population.

In addition to travel insurance, the company also offers automotive services, health and life care, property and other services.  Details can be found at the company website.  Also at the website, Mondial offers detailed advice to travelers for planning a safe and health journey.

Mondial also seeks to give back to the community and to be socially responsible.  The company says “Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is about being a responsible corporate citizen in all aspects of our business, in all corners of the world. It’s about being inclusive, respectful, aware and dedicated to our employees, partners, stakeholders, environment, local communities and societies at large.”

For Earth Day, 2010 the company identified its “greenest” associates.  Through a company-wide survey, Mondial asked employees about their use of energy, recycling and support of eco-friendly business.  On April 23 Ricky Grubb, of Henrico, and Caroline Alexander, of Richmond were recognized at the Parham Road location for their commitment to the environment

Mondial Assistance is also an official partner of MASSIVEGOOD, a humanitarian aid project launched by the Millennium Foundation on September 23rd 2009 in New York during the United Nations General Assembly.

Jon Ansell, CEO Mondial Assistance USA and a Member of Mondial Assistance’s Executive Committee, says “Mondial Assistance is extremely proud to partner with MASSIVEGOOD and to bring a tangible contribution to such a universal cause. This partnership perfectly demonstrates the mission of Mondial Assistance and the involvement and willingness of our staff members to help people anywhere, anytime.”

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Richmond Dogs In for a Treat

0
1033 days
by in Richmond Business

Richmond Dogs In for a Treat

Seen on Channel 6 CBS News on 4-8-09 local online business Best Bully Sticks was featured from 9:00 to 9:06 on the Virginia Morning Show.

A recent article on the owners and products was featured on RichmondBizsense.com  Here is an outtake:

Best Bully’s has quickly grown as a web-only retailer of organic dog treats. The company sells more than $1 million a year in products (and less than $5 million) and will expand soon from 2,500 square feet to 8,500 square feet on Marshall Street near VCU.

The secret: tasty treats and a website that draws in customers through a blog, Twitter feeds, contests and other search optimizations. “Customers look to the blog for new product releases and to see what’s we’re doing today,” said Avrum Elmakis, who started the business in 2007 with his wife.

The company has 10,000 repeat customers. Revenue for the first quarter is up 40 percent from the fourth quarter of 2008, Elmakis said.

This is the couple’s first business.  “I was watching my wife and what she was spending on all natural treats and chews – several hundred dollars a month,” Elmakis said. “I started to think about it: There had to be a better way to do it and to bring it to a lot more people at affordable prices.”

That was in late 2006. In 2007, Elmakis started the company while working full time for CAA Financial, leasing and financing equipment. Before that he was in medical and pharmaceutical sales.

There is evidence to back up his claim. A pet trade group estimates the size of the pet supplies market at $45 billion. Retailer PetSmart saw sales grow 8.5 percent last year and 2.3 percent in the first quarter of this year.

Best Bully Sticks operates out of a warehouse on Marshall Street. The company has three employees who help manage the orders, and Elmakis is thinking about hiring another in the next quarter or two. The company has no debt, no lines of credit and no outside investors.

In addition to the Bully Stick brand, which is manufactured in Brazil, the site offers a host of other dog-related food and items.

Avrum, 29, and Lauren met at James Madison University and moved together to Richmond. They test all their new products on Sushi and Espy, their two pugs.

Original Article Source:  RichmondBizSense.com

Richmond Va Business


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