Small Businesses Can Have Solid Business Practices

Joe's Land Care

I'm passionate about small businesses and fanatical about good business practices. Unfortunately the two not always merge, that’s why I’m always elated when I find small business owners running their businesses with vision. This is the case of Joe Mohar and his eco-conscious land care business, Joe’s Land Care.

Joe started his business in January of 2007 following his passion to work with nature and make a difference in the environment. He knew about plants and had learned a lot from landscaping experts. He was committed to work for himself and to create a green business in the town he loves: Asheville.

“I love our bio region: the mountains, the bio diversity and the fact that I am surrounded by inspiring natural beauty.” Joe says talking about Asheville. “The open minded creative environment of this town makes it my home" Joe adds.

Joe was a smart businessman from the start. He learned how to manage and operate a small business PRIOR to opening his business, Joe's Land Care, something many people fail to do. He enrolled in the FastTrac training program offered by Mountain Biz Works; and most importantly, he put into action what he learned.

So, what good business practices does Joe follow?

• He consistently advertises in Asheville publications
• He has a uniform message and brand
• He has a professional looking website
• He uses QuickBooks for estimates, invoicing and planning
• He has impeccable customer follow up and service

And, his work is true to his mission of “caring for the earth one yard at a time.” You can see the care and love he imbues in all of his projects large or small, by visiting his website http://www.joeslandcare.com/.

You can email Joe at joeslandcare@gmail.com or call him at 828-242-2533.

Lizette Pirtle is a franchise consultant passionate about small business success and helping businesses grow and expand. She runs International Expansion Experts with her husband Bob here in Asheville. Visit her blogs at http://www.smallbizfranchiseblog.com/ and http://www.franchisenewformula.com/

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Cut The Risk in Asheville North Carolina and WNC 1/18/10

MAKE YOUR SALON OR SPA APPOINTMENT FOR CUT THE RISK BENEFIT ON MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. DAY MONDAY, JANUARY 18, 2010

All proceeds go to the Western Carolinians for Criminal Justice Women At Risk program

Asheville, NC - Help change the life of a woman at risk and pamper yourself at the same time. Prominent area salons are donating their time and services at reduced rates on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Monday, January 18, 2010 as a benefit for the Women At Risk program run by the Western Carolinians for Criminal Justice. Women At Risk is a community-based program and offers outpatient mental health and substance abuse treatment, clinical case management and sentencing alternatives to women at risk of incarceration.

“Our mission is to stop the cycle of domestic violence for women, men and children,” said Lorena Wiedeman, President of The Genesis Alliance, a non-profit volunteer organization that once again supports Cut-the-Risk. Created to increase community awareness of the pervasiveness and effects of domestic violence and to encourage prevention through education, the Genesis Alliance works for systemic change and supports local charitable organizations that assist women and children who have been victimized by domestic violence. Said Wiedeman, “the Women At Risk Program does just that.”

Placed at the Women At Risk Program by the Buncombe County court system, offenders begin to address and overcome self-destructive and abusive behaviors that brought them to the brink of imprisonment. They learn how to break the cycle of abuse and make the kinds of healthy choices that lead away from criminal activity. Almost ninety percent of the WCCJ Program graduates successfully complete probation and stay out of jail.

“I feel very strongly that this program has been an essential part of changing my life, practically and spiritually. Because of Women At Risk, legal consequences changed for me, from serving a possible mandatory sentence in prison to only serving one day in jail. I was given an opportunity to leave illegal activities and learn to become a viable citizen. Because of Women At Risk, I learned to take a chance, to trust, to be open.” – Delores – Women At Risk graduate.

This is the eighth annual benefit for Cut-The-Risk Day, and, due to the generosity of participating salons, a real bargain. For $25 participants can schedule a hair appointment. For $35 each, they can treat themselves to a 30 minute massage, manicure or a facial. There are also one-hour services available for $70 each. Certificates for some services can be purchased to use at a later date. Services vary by salon and appointments fill up fast. To schedule an appointment, please call (828) 774-2485.

Participating salons include Advanced Electrolysis and Laser Hair Removal of Asheville ∙ Ananda Hair Studio ∙ Aubergine ∙ Carmen! Carmen! Prestige Salon & Spa at Belk ∙ Center for Massage & Natural Health ∙ Chestnut Hill Spa & Salon ∙ Cottage of Compassionate Hands ∙ Eclipse Salon ∙ L’eau de Vie ∙ Lola Salon & Gallery ∙ Pi Salon.Spa ∙ Salon Dragonfly ∙ Sensibilities Day Spa South ∙ Spa at Biltmore Village ∙ Studio Chavarria ∙ The Secret Spa at The Belvedere.

The event is also generously supported by The Genesis Alliance, (Benefactor); Devereaux & Banzhoff, PLLC ∙ Law Office of Cynthia A. Strom, PA ∙ Wachovia Bank (Sponsors); Allegra Print & Imaging ∙ Broker & Hamrick Law Firm ∙ T. Justin Sigmon, Attorney At Law ∙ Judy Futch Consulting ∙ Mediation Works/Sarah V. Corley ∙ Western Carolina Women’s Special Center (Underwriters).

Article by: Tracy D. Hyorth - Out ‘n About Communications


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December in Asheville

It's one of those typical December days in Asheville, isn't it?

Bright blue sun, a chill in the air with the promise of warmth later on... deep freeze and snow predicted for tomorrow; like everything else, the weather is unsure of itself and so it recreates itself too often in order to please everyone. And only in Asheville can you anthropomorphize weather like that and not have people look at you funny. Maybe. We'll see.

The kids are after me to make good on my promise to take them to see the gingerbread creations at Grove Park, and I suppose eventually I will unwind my legs from the blankets, close the laptop and comply. I want more than anything to lie here and hate the cold until the house grows silent and still around me, but Asheville won't allow it anymore than a restless child will. The energy here, the certain slant of sunlight through the window, make it impossible to be miserable for long, and before you know what's happened you find yourself lifting your face toward the clouds and breathing in the scent of home. The streets seem to roll out in front of you as you drive, dipping and disappearing around a curve or behind a mountain so you feel a little thrill of adventure-or on bad days, fear of the unknown. The sun looks so close you can't help but reach out as if you could grasp it through the windshield and bring it inside with you, skin untouched by fire, cheeks warmed by the heat. This is December in Asheville, tricky and sly and so charming you can't help but love it.

photo by jackey bradbury, asheville nc

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Hello Asheville; Hows the water?

Hello Asheville. I begin my AskAsheville blogging adventure with the hopes of providing readers with useful information and insights of value on a subject that has been my passion for many years; Fresh Water. Fresh water throughout Asheville is distributed, for the most part via three primary transmission lines; 16”, 24” & 36”. They are fed from two reservoirs; North Fork and Bee Tree. Some of this system is pretty close to 100 years old.

The picture below is of a leak on one of these primary lines. Granted the entire system has a lot of leaks, some of which are greater than this one. This one is unique in that the line surfaces in some local woods between Black Mountain & Asheville and that it has been leaking for a long time. I first came across this leak almost 6 years ago. This leak has been reported to and investigated by the Asheville Water Maintenance Department several times at my request.

I have recently calculated the measurable flow rate of this leak at approximately ½ gallon per minute. By measurable I mean what I can catch in a receptacle; which is clearly not all of what is leaking from the joint of this pipe. The loss of water from this leak alone calculates to at least 262,800 gallons per year! OMG!

Call me strange but these are the kinds of things that keep me awake at night. Maybe I can open a water bottling company and send this water to places in the world where they need and appreciate the value of Fresh Water?

Wait, did i say bottled water? Now that’s a whole n’other topic we’ll delve into later.

Regards y’all,
AquaPro

AquaPro@AskAquaPro.com
http://www.askaquapro.com/

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Zoning in Buncombe - A Local's Take

Many of you may not have known this but Buncombe County was un-zoned until just this week - technically. Zoning actually passed last year but was challenged based on a technicality with the county commission vote.Historically Buncombe County citizens have been split on the idea of zoning. this stems mostly from the fact that local Buncombe County residents have had family here for a long time and people who settled here in the mountains around Asheville were wanting to get away from things going on in the "outside world." What you need to remember is that Asheville and Buncombe County didn't even have a railroad into the area until 1890 with the construction of the Buncombe Turnpike. This was considered a rough area and a hard area to get to and so the people choosing to live here were, let's just say, wanting to get away from something. So, the tradition carried forward that people who lived here in the mountains wanted to be left alone. They were hard working and depended on their neighbors to get by, but not necessarily for company.Bring that tradition forward 100 or so years and there is still an idea of "you do your thing over there, and I'll do my thing over here." I don't think that locals are really against the idea of zoning as much as they are against the idea of people who aren't necessarily from the area creating policy for them. Personally, I believe that in the long run zoning will be a good thing in the county but no doubt there will need to be some warming up to it.You can read more about the vote last night here:
Citizen-Times Article


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Constance Ensner in Asheville NC reaches out

I have a little history at Constance Boutique in Asheville North Carolina. I remember the "good old days" when the economy was wonderful and I used to stop by there every other week to grab a special gift for a friend of mine to wear. We used to stop by the shop in downtown AVL on a Friday or Saturday evening, have a glass of wine, listen to some great music, and the ladies would play "dress up" for grown ups, lol. It was like a small community meetup based around friendship, good times, wine, music and awesome clothing. Not just any clothes either. Constance always made sure she had a premium selection, which is a market that suffered greatly in this current economy. I even heard that she had been designing her own clothing line. This is her life and this is what she loves to do. She has 3 shops located in the Asheville area. One is right across from the public library in downtown Asheville called Context, the other is in Biltmore Village (which was flooded years ago when she first opened,) and the third store is in South Asheville right across the parking lot from Pomodoros Cafe. It is hard to hear about anyone stuck in a bad position and having to do what they can to protect their business and life, and we reach out in full support of Constance Ensner and her business. Please do the same.

From Constance herself:
"Just making sure the spin doesn't go awry in light of the current buzz over my chapter 13 filing, which was actually several months ago. One of the hardest decisions ever....... but one i had to make in order to stay in biz while anticipating better times. So would you spread the word.... wide!..... that all 3 of my stores are emphatically open? The good news is that business is picking back up...... the last 3 months have been so much busier. So let's all stay out there and continue to support the local economy and make sure Asheville doesn't lose any of it's unique and hard working enterpreneurs, right?"

Constance Boutique
http://www.constanceboutique.com/


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Christmas Tree Hunting in Jupiter

Here in Asheville, we seem made for Christmastime. The distant mountains are capped with snow from November to March, and downtown is alive with foot traffic, friendly pedestrians trading hellos under bright wreaths and strands of garland decorating the storefronts. It almost seems a sin to drag out a plastic tree for the holiday, and Asheville has no shortage of places to find a real, fresh Christmas tree. You can't get any fresher than a tree you cut yourself, and so last Friday- a rare day when all the kids, social creatures that they are, were home-we headed out to our favorite little tree farm to find the perfect one.

Hope Hollow farm is out in Jupiter, a few miles off 19-23, just north of Weaverville. It's a small place, unpretentious and comfortable, run by an older guy who seems genuinely happy to talk to you and to have your business. We called ahead to let him know we were coming, and soon we were making the trek up the hill to where the sheared white pines sit in neat rows, waiting for homes. The trees are lovely, slightly imperfect and perfect for that very reason. They sit high atop a hill with a view way into Tennessee, and the way the sun hits it almost makes you believe in religion.



I don't care how durable and lifelike your plastic tree may be- nothing compares to the sight of a passel of bundled-up kidlets running from one tree to the next, touching needles and peering deep into the branches for a glimpse of a bird or a bug, chattering about how this is going to be the best Christmas ever. And yeah, you may save a few bucks by using the same artificial tree year after year, but the $15 for a white pine (or $30 for a Norway spruce) is worth the joy in watching your little man make the first cut in the trunk all by himself. Later, of course, they'll decorate it with trinkets from when they were younger, memories hung on memories, and the commercialism and greed that seem to seep into the holiday a bit deeper every year dissipate like the steam from your cocoa. That, loves, is what Christmas is about, and I wish you all a most joyous holiday.


Hope Hollow Farms can be reached at (828) 645-4621; call ahead for hours and directions.

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