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32 Portrait: SMALL BUSINESS — BIG IMPACT * March 17, 2011

HOW IMPORTANT IS BELONGING TO A CHAMBER OF COMMERCE?

Most consumers (59 percent) think that being active in the local chamber of commerce is an effective business strategy overall. It is 29 percent more effective, however, for communicating to con-sumers that a company uses good business prac-tices and 26 percent more effective for communicat-ing that a business is reputable.

If a company shows that it is highly involved in its local chamber (e.g., sits on the chamber board), consumers are 12 percent more likely to think that its products stack up better against its competition. When a consumer thinks that a company’s products stack up better against the competition because the company is highly involved in its local chamber of commerce, it is because he or she infers that the company is trustworthy, involved in the community, and is an industry leader.

When consumers know that a restaurant fran-chise is a member of the chamber of commerce, they are 40 percent more likely to eat at the fran-chise in the next few months.

When consumers know that an insurance company is a member of the chamber of com-merce, they are 43 percent more likely to consider buying insurance from it.

When consumers know that a small business is a member of the chamber of commerce, they are 44 percent more likely to think favorably of it and 63 percent more likely to purchase goods or services from the company in the future.

(From the opening study overview of “The Real Value of Joining a Local Chamber of Commerce: A Research Study” by the Schapiro Group of Atlanta.)

there is lot of learning from each other.

“Just think,” she adds, “what a new business owner can learn from someone who has run their own business for 10 to 20 years!”

(Note: Linda Moholt, CEO of the Tualatin Chamber of Commerce, was approached for this story and had expressed eagerness to be included but was sidelined temporarily by shoulder surgery and was unable to take part. It should be assumed that the points made by the other chamber execu-tives would be echoed by Moholt, about her organization.)

THE PARTICIPANTS

Debi Mollahan, CEO

Tigard Area Chamber of Commerce 12345 S.W. Main St., Tigard 97223 tigardareachamber.org / 503-639-1656 Lorraine Clarno, president

Beaverton Area Chamber of Commerce 12655 S.W. Center St., Suite 140, Beaverton 97005

beaverton.org / 503-644-0123 Nancy Bruton, executive director Sherwood Area Chamber of Commerce 16065 S.W. Railroad St., Sherwood 97140 Sherwoodchamber.org / 503-625-7800 Linda Moholt, CEO

Tualatin Chamber of Commerce

18791 S.W. Martinazzi Ave., Tualatin 97062 tualatinchamber.com / 503-692-0780

Continued from Page 28 Size is not everything

These little guys are holding their own against the big boys

By GAIL PARK

ome small businesses competing against the corporate giants are succeeding in the tough economic times. Locally owned AVA Roasteria, Beaverton Healthmart Pharmacy and Consumer Cellular are little guys that are making it, thanks to perseverance and quali-ty products. Their strategies are making a difference in their success.

Offer superior products

It’s 3 p.m. on a Wednesday and it’s hopping at AVA Roasteria. Students nibble on tarts. Musicians review videos and plan their own. Computers rest open at most of the tables. A travel agent helps plan his client’s trip to France. Business is booming.

Every table is taken except for one that needs to be wiped off. The baristas are buzzing about, serving hot bev-erages and making sandwiches. It’s raining, threatening to snow, in fact, and outdoor customers are content sipping tea and coffee. Caffeine surges through the visitors’ limbs. Toes tap. Legs vibrate. Coffee time.

Amy Saberiyan owns the downtown Beaverton coffee-house that caters to a diverse group of visitors. Her bakery, kitty-corner from the roasteria, furnishes the European-style cakes, croissants, tarts, bagels and elegant pastries for the busy coffeehouse.

Black, green and herbal tisanes are listed on the loose-leaf tea menu. A wall menu filled with coffee drink choices interests most customers. The nearest Starbucks is a few blocks away on Southwest Karl Braun Drive. Saberiyan is not worried.

“The presentation of our pastries is the only marketing we need,” says the Beaverton businesswoman. “We’re small, and we are flexible. We see the people, our customers, and can take the business in a variety of directions. Community feedback chisels our direction.”

In June 2006 Saberiyan opened the coffee haven as a place for all types of people to gather 24/7. With free Wi-Fi, she offers a safe place for students to congregate in the evening. Offering fresh soups, salads, made-to-order sand-wiches and AVA’s signature expresso cakes, desserts and pastry items, customers pair mealtime with coffeetime. In the bakeshop, Kam masterfully prepares goodies for the roasteria and its catering business.

Saberiyan, a trained environmental engineer consultant, purchased the lot where an abandoned gas station once stood. After months of work, the eyesore was transformed into the coffeehouse. Starting with coffee in mind, she designed an establishment with a stream out front, live music on Fridays and Saturdays and her own blend of beans. “Our signature beans are not too dark like Starbucks,” says the 17-year Beaverton resident, admitting that she sees the big-name giant as a mentor. “AVA is about the experi-ence. A getaway. It’s our nice environment that keeps people coming back. Our customers bring in their friends and fam-ily.”

The mother of two boys is preparing to take her business to the next level. She’s going to open her second location at the newly developed Progree Ridge Town Square. The next AVA, which means the ‘voice of life and nature,’ is expect-ed to unfold in September.

Create a niche

Listening to customers, developing a niché and offering quality products and services has strengthened AVA’s stance in Beaverton. This strategy has been Beaverton Healthmart Pharmacy’s since 1935.

Tom Herbage is the store’s fifth owner. He carved a solid home for his pharmacy with good guidance from the store’s prior owner.

Right out of Oregon State in the early 1980s, Herbage worked with the drug store’s former owner Don Gartland. Competing against the likes of Walgreens, Rite-Aid and Fred Meyer Pharmacy, he and Pamela, his wife and pharmacy co-owner, strive to offer their customers a sense of confidence and security. To further help improve their services, they are finalizing a plan that will bring orders to their customers’ front door. They are starting a brand new delivery service. Occasionally dropping off orders on his way to his Beaverton home, he is ready to launch his new program. A service will start by making deliveries in a 3-mile radius from the drug store.

Tom likes to give customers what they ask for. “I’ve come to know my customers by name, and I know a lot about what’s happening with many of them,” he says. “Sometimes we can be hard to get a hold of, but we are accessible. We have a tendency to talk a while with the

WE GOT IT — AVA Roasteria barista Miguel Murillo shows one of the signature cakes made at the AVA bakery across the street on Hall Boulevard. Below, Tom Herbage points out that Beaverton Healthmart Pharmacy has aisles of health care supplies.

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