February 2015 Newsletter - Eat, Drink and Love Local

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February 2015 Newsletter

It’s Time for the Annual Meeting!!

Let’s party like it’s 2005!!

Actually, we’ll party like it’s 2015 because MetroIBA is celebrating our 10 year Anniversary!! A lot has happened in 10 years – we’ve grown from a tiny, grass roots organization to an organization over 300 members strong! And along the way, we’ve never lost sight of who we are and what is important: To support and preserve locally owned, independent businesses in the Twin Cities region.

Please join us on Wednesday March 11, 2015 from 6-9 pm. to help us celebrate in style. The venue is the beautiful and historic University Club at 420 Summit Avenue in St. Paul. We will have the special opportunity to honor those individuals that laid the groundwork 10 years ago for Metro IBA. The original founding members have been invited to join us for a very special tribute which will honor their hard work and vision 10 years ago.

Events like this don’t just happen, and we are most grateful for the support of our fabulous sponsors for this event:

Peace Coffee is providing their delectable, locally roasted coffee for us to enjoy,

Famiglia Messchini Wines will be providing a selection of their distinctive wines straight from their vineyards in Mendoza, Argentina, and

Our friends at Summit Brewing will be providing a variety of their flavorful local brews for our enjoyment.

Most of all, this event will not be successful without YOU! We sincerely hope you can join us for an evening of celebrating, making connections, great food and drink, prizes and much more. Registration is open now on the website:

Members: $20 in advance, $25 at the door
Non-Members: $40 in advance, $45 at the door

March Networking Event

Tuesday, March 3
4:30-6:30 pm

Hosted by:

Uptown Eyeswear
720 W Lake Street #107
Minneapolis, 55408
Join us for Moroccan tea, soft drinks and great snacks!

Members are encouraged to bring business cards and promotional materials.

Guests welcome / No RSVP required

Networking Events are held the first Tuesday of the month at member businesses. Please check our website for upcoming times and locations.

Letter from the President

Consumer Rights, Consumer Protection, the Government, and Small Business

An ongoing debate in our country is the role government should play in protecting the rights of consumers. The groundswell of people pushing for Elizabeth Warren to enter the 2016 presidential race is coming largely from her work on consumer protection issues. While I applaud government efforts to protect consumers from fraudulent business practices, I find some efforts to limit or reduce consumer rights in the name of protection to be disingenuous and, perhaps, fraudulent.

In January, new legislation (www.mnvest.org) was introduced in the Minnesota legislature that would open up business investment opportunities, now available to only wealthy individuals, to all Minnesotans. While this proposed legislation is modeled after similar bills already passed in 14 states, and has the backing of over 2 dozen business groups and associations, including ours, opposition in the name of consumer protection has arisen from some likely places. I’ll discuss this in a minute but first some context.

Following the stock market crash of 1929, Congress passed the Securities Act of 1933 (’33 Act). This legislation was designed to require that companies wanting to solicit the sale of securities (stock, loans, etc.) follow specific disclosure requirements. Prior to the 33’ Act, there was little regulation of these transactions and consumers had little recourse if they were victims of fraudulent business practices. The ideal of protecting the average consumer was certainly noble but the results have not been what those legislators might have wished for.

While the ‘33 Act addressed the issue of disclosure, it also created a system that, for 80 years, has locked the average consumer out of the opportunity for the wealth creation that business investments offer. A strong argument can be made that the ’33 Act has been a large contributor to our current obscene level of wealth disparity.

How is that possible? It goes something like this:

Because of the ’33 Act, companies wanting to publicly solicit securities investment are required to file extensive disclosure documents regarding their business and the securities they’re offering, the idea being that these disclosure documents will somehow protect consumers from fraudulent business practices. In reality, these requirements have made the cost of offering securities so costly that companies can only afford to sell large amounts of securities to wealthy individuals and institutions. How many of you were able to get in on Google’s or Facebook’s initial public offering?

Today, after 80 years of perpetuating the status quo, the proposed MNVest legislation provides an opportunity to break open this rigged system, and allow ANY CONSUMER the RIGHT to benefit from investing in local, Minnesota businesses. And yet the same cry of consumer protection, as voiced in 1933, is being raised by Commerce Department Chairman Mike Rothman and former Director of State Securities Robert Moilanen in MINNPOST articles from 2/4/2015 and 1/29/2015 respectively.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not against reasonable regulation to ensure the proper disclosure, but to restrict the rights of over 90% of consumers in the name of protection is about as Big Brother as you can get. Those questioning MNVest talk about evil companies wanting to bilk grandmothers out of their precious retirement money. Could this happen? Sure, but this already happens. The MNVest legislation would create an investment process that is much more open and transparent than what currently exists. And, more than that, instead of faceless transactions in businesses consumers have no personal relationship with, the companies raising money through MNVest would all be Minnesota companies, the vast majority of those local, small businesses that are not able to secure funding through traditional sources. The owners of these businesses are people we live next door to, your kids go to the same schools. How many of us live next door to the CEO of a Fortune 500 company?

I understand the Commerce Department’s concern, it’s their job to monitor and enforce securities laws and regulations. But why should their concerns trump the rights of consumers? Who are they to say who should and should not have the right to benefit from security investment opportunities? It’s time to break open the stranglehold that the 80 year old Securities Act of 1933 created and let every consumer decide where and how they invest their hard earned money! Let’s figure this out in the name of consumer rights and equal opportunity. Go to www.mnvest.org to find out more and add your name in support of creating a shared equity economy here in Minnesota.

Sincerely,

Chris Hanson
Co-founder & CEO, thedatabank, gbc. (General Benefit Corporation)
President, Twin Cities MetroIBA

Public Policy Committee News

Net Neutrality Forum

Keeping fair access to the internet is critical to our member businesses. New regulations set to be voted on by the Federal Communications Commission on February 26 could change that significantly. Contacting the FCC before that date can have a critical influence on that.

In this YouTube video, John Oliver provides a comical, yet cogent assessment that is worth a view, and look for more information that we will send out in the next few weeks.

For a more thorough discussion, we invite you to attend a forum that is being sponsored by MetroIBA and the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits, in coordination with Senator Al Franken. Guests are welcome.

Thursday, February 19
11:30 am
Magnet 360
5757 Wayzata Blvd
Minneapolis, 55416

Senator Franken is expected to attend as well as panelists representing small business and non-profits that could be affected by changes that have been under discussion by the FCC.

RSVP is not necessary but helpful. Please register at buylocaltwincities.org/events.

We also encourage everyone to submit comments asap at to support net neutrality. It is listed as proceeding number 14-28 – Protection and Promoting the Open Internet.

Webinar

Top 50 Sales Tips

Presented by Scott Plum
Founder and President
Minnesota Sales Institute

Tuesday, February 17
9:30-10:30 am

Change is inevitable; growth is optional. Growth is not automatic; it has to be done every day with intention. Are you updating your selling skills, business development strategy, and sales approach?

Top 50 Sales Tips in 60 Minutes is a rapid-fire, fast-paced seminar. Many tips you will hear for the first time, some will be a reminders of past skills not recently used, while others will serve as a confirmation that you are a member of the salespersons ‘Best Practices’ club. Whether you’ve been selling for 35 years or just starting, this seminar will give you the tips to make the next step in your selling career. Click here to read more.

Scott Plum is the Founder and President of the Minnesota Sales Institute providing leadership development to sales directors, managers and C-level members. He currently serves as the President of the Sales and Marketing Executives (smemn.org) and is the past President of the Professional Sales Association (psamn.org). Scott is also a member of the National Speakers Association and sits on the board of the local chapter. His webinars, weekly sales classes, workshops and seminars focus on teaching salespeople how to overcoming the barriers that hold them back in an evolving marketplace. Scott Plum started his sales career at age 21 and now shares the skills and techniques he has learned with others.

Registration is free but required.

Business Owners’ Roundtable

Friday, February 20
7:30 am
Hosted by CHESS CEO, Carol Keyes
33 Wentworth Avenue
West St. Paul

Metro IBA has developed the Business Owners’ Roundtable discussion program in response to interest from our members. Leading a company, especially a small business, can be a very solitary job. Business owners can benefit from shared experiences of their peers in a roundtable group. Being able to discuss issues, brainstorm solutions to business issues, exchange ideas and get feedback from your peers may be a valuable opportunity for you in managing and growing your business. This is a support group, not a networking group. The roundtable is a moderated discussion where each member will be able to seek advice and provide their experiences to issues affecting other members, an opportunity to learn from the experience of the other group members.

The group will meet monthly to exchange ideas to help each other manage and grow your companies. There will be peer to peer discussion and, depending on the needs and interests of the participants, an expert may be invited to share ideas about a particular issue affecting members.

This is a member benefit and there will be no charge for these meetings.

The group will be moderated by Pat Gebes. If you have questions or suggestions please call her at 763-784-6026 or email at pat@gebesenterprises.com.

Local Food and Gift Show

MetroIBA is sponsoring the March 2015 Local Food & Gift Show and we hope you’ll support our efforts to bring more locally owned companies into our organization.

This curated, private event is designed to connect wholesale buyers with qualified, stable, local providers.

You can register online to attend the show as a buyer at no cost.

The 4th semi-annual Midwest Pantry Local Food & Gift Show is the premier wholesale tradeshow to fill your store’s local product needs. Midwest Pantry, new MetroIBA members in January 2015, invites you to shop the 50 Midwest-based companies and over 250 store-ready SKUs for every section of your store.

Date:
Monday, March 16, 2014
Show times:
9:30am – 3:00pm
Location:
Grain Belt Bottling House
79 13th Ave NE, Minneapolis, MN 55413

Free parking is available in the surface lot near the Bottling House.

Driving directions

More information

If you are interested in growing the event and your business by partnering with Midwest Pantry, please email Chad at midwestpantry@gmail.com

We are pleased to introduce our Eastside Membership Development Representative, Jeannie Farrell!

A little about Jeannie: “I am an Illinois transplant who has now called St. Paul home for the last 12 years. I am a community-minded mother of two who believes that strong communities are built upon people, businesses, schools, places of worship and non-profits connecting through ideas, partnerships, volunteerism, recreation and art. I enjoy facilitating conversations about making my community, myself and world a better place.”

Interested in becoming a member? East side of the river contact Jeannie Farrell; west side of the river contact Harvey Zuckman.

Membership benefits include:

Discounts from other member businesses
Member directory listing on buylocaltwincities.com
Members only discussion group through list serv
Expanded online presence through Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest
Free webinars and monthly networking events

….and much more

Business memberships are only $18 per month or $180/year ($50 for each additional storefront). Choosing the monthly option helps MetroIBA lower our costs by maintaining a consistent cash flow. Monthly payments also reduce administrative costs, and allow us to focus on growing the independent businesses that we represent.

If you have recently received notice that your membership is about to lapse, simply go to buylocaltwincities.com/join and renew online. Or, you can mail your payment to:

MetroIBA
2190 Como Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55108

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