Monthly Archives: December 2013

By Allison Fletcher

We welcome Doug Chaffee who will serve as Mayor of the City of Fullerton for 2014. He will be joined by Mayor Pro Tem Greg Sebourn and Council Members Jennifer Fitzgerald, Jan Florey and Bruce Whitaker. The Fullerton of Commerce looks forward to working with the new Mayor and City Council. The Chamber will work to ensure that the City Council remains committed to furthering the business interests of the greater Fullerton Community in 2014. The Fullerton City Council meets on the first and third Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers,

Please mark your calendar for the 2014 State of the City presented by the Fullerton Chamber of Commerce which will take place on Friday, April 4, at CSU Fullerton.

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Source: Fullerton Chamber of Commerce

By Allison Fletcher

You may have heard that starting in 2014, most people will be required to have health insurance as part of the federal health care law, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The new law, sometimes referred to as “Obamacare,” recognizes that most people who don’t have insurance would like to be covered but their job doesn’t offer it, they can’t afford it or they’ve been turned down because of a pre-existing medical condition. The Affordable Care Act provides sliding scale financial help so almost all Americans can get high-quality health coverage at a fair price. One of the most important ways that consumers and small businesses will purchase health insurance is through state operated marketplaces, like Covered California™.

The Affordable Care Act is changing insurance plan requirements. All health plans now must cover the Essential Health Benefits that people expect such as hospital care, physician services, medication, emergency, preventive and rehabilitative care.

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Source: Fullerton Chamber of Commerce

By Allison Fletcher

If you get your groove on with classic rock, then the 21st Annual “First Night Fullerton” New Year’s Eve party is the place you want to be! Helping to ring in the New Year, Saturday, Dec. 31, will be the group “Spare Change,” which specializes in classic rock from the last 50 years. “First Night” is the city’s annual New Year’s Eve party, offering family oriented, alcohol-free activities at numerous locations in the streets, sidewalks and buildings in Fullerton’s historic downtown. A 10-minute fireworks finale will cap the celebration at midnight.

The festivities begin at 7 p.m., and admission is free. For “First Night,” “Spare Change” will perform at the Wilshire Avenue Community Church, 212 E. Wilshire Ave., which is appropriate as all the band members are part of the church’s congregation. Performance times will be at 8:00, 9:30 and 11:00 p.m.

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Source: Fullerton Chamber of Commerce

By Allison Fletcher

Learn how to use accounting records and Financial Statements to manage and grow your business. In this interactive case study you’ll see how The Widget Company builds its Balance Sheet, Income Statement, Cash Flow and Ratio Analyses as well as how to use them to create a healthy, profitable business.

Click here to register!

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Source: Fullerton Chamber of Commerce

By Allison Fletcher

Recent record cold weather across the United States has placed a strain on natural gas supplies. SoCalGas is asking customers to take simple precautionary steps to conserve natural gas to help ensure supplies are sufficient to meet demand created by this severe winter.

“We know a typical home’s natural gas use for heating increases, sometimes up to three times more during colder months. SoCalGas is asking our customers to conserve energy to help ensure we have enough natural gas supply to get us through this cold weather,” said Rodger Schwecke, vice president of customer solutions for SoCalGas. SoCalGas advises the following energy conservation tips:

• Use extra blankets and sweaters to stay warm and lower your furnace thermostat by three to five degrees (health permitting). This can save up to 30 percent on heating costs.
• Limit use of non-essential gas appliances, fireplaces and spas.
• Reduce your water heating usage: use less hot water, turn down the water heater thermostat or insulate your water heater.
• For additional conservation tips, visit SoCalGas.com

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Source: Fullerton Chamber of Commerce

By Allison Fletcher

Volunteer workers are invited to the Fox Fullerton Theatre at 9 a.m., Saturday, December 14 for a work party to help perform general clean up and wash down of the theatre’s lobby and courtyard. Volunteers will also ascend the iconic Fox sign atop the building to start chipping away at the rust in preparation of its eventual overhaul. “Coffee and donuts for everyone,” said Leland Wilson, president of the Fullerton Historic Theatre Foundation (FHTF).

The 88-year old former vaudeville venue and motion picture palace received good news from the Fullerton City Council on December 3 when the council unanimously voted a lease with Dripp Coffee, a boutique coffeehouse located in Chino Hills. Dripp Coffee will become the first tenant to occupy the attached Firestone Building on the northeast corner of Harbor Boulevard and Chapman Avenue. Dripp has reportedly agreed to put $1 million in upgrades to the property.

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Source: Fullerton Chamber of Commerce

By Allison Fletcher

The U.S. Zero Waste Business Council will host a workshop Thursday, January 16 at 8:30 a.m. on the future of commercial food scraps. This workshop will take place at Orange Coast College-Student Center, 2701 Fairview Rd., Costa Mesa, CA. Join stakeholders from Southern California businesses, service providers, local governments, non-profits, food banks, schools, and more on Thursday, January 16 2014 for “The Future of Commercial Food Scraps II.

The workshop will provide food scraps reduction tools and tips, updates on all the exciting food scraps processing and zero waste developments, in Southern California in 2013, and brainstorming on the best solutions for reducing food waste in our community for 2014 and beyond!

Click here to register!

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Source: Fullerton Chamber of Commerce

By Theresa Harvey

The Internal Revenue Service recently issued the 2014 optional standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes.

Beginning on January 1, 2014, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:

Visit the IRS website for more information.

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Source: Fullerton Chamber of Commerce

By Allison Fletcher

Thursday, December 12 at 6:00 p.m., Fullerton Library will host a SCORE workshop on growing your business with email and social media. This workshop is designed to give small businesses and nonprofit organizations some simple ideas for growing their organizations using email marketing, social media (Facebook), and mobile-friendly content for higher engagement. This class is best suited for beginners in online marketing. MJ Finstrom & David Finstrom, a sister-brother team of HUTdogs, a creative services business, present this workshop.

Click here to register!

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Source: Fullerton Chamber of Commerce

By Allison Fletcher

Branding Personality is launching a new program for small to medium-sized businesses this coming January and is now accepting sign-ups. This program teaches in-house staff how to professionally navigate social media to be successful in growing an engaged community and converting this community into sales.

The agency is accepting sign ups now and offers Fullerton Chamber of Commerce members a 10% discount for signing up by December 20. The course follows an online format with a members-only area accessible through Branding Personality’s website. This area offers resources, tutorials and guides on all social media platforms and the professional execution of social media strategies and campaign.

For more information:
Anne Pelczar
anne@BrandingPersonality.com
877-747-3263 (office) – 310-694-4341 (cell)

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Source: Fullerton Chamber of Commerce