Want to make social media work for your business?  The Berkeley Chamber of Commerce is continuing its series of workshops this summer on social media and what it can do to help generate more interest in your business.  The third of five workshops is entitled “How to Effectively Market Your Business Against Larger Competitors Using Social Media.”  This workshop will focus on how to develop effective messaging and proven social media techniques that will deliver the greatest return for your marketing dollar.  The workshop takes place on Thursday, August 19th, from 8 AM-10 AM.  For more information and to register, check out the Chamber’s website.

The OneCalifornia Foundation staff continues to search for fun and unique items listed on Oakland Unwrapped!  Here are some of our favorites for the month of July:

Shea Butter Cream from Skincare by Feleciai

This smooth shea butter cream scented with lemon, orange and notes of sweet basil is a must have.  Skincare by Feleciai is all natural and handcrafted with love in Oakland.

Glass Pendant from Bridgland Studios

Check out this beautiful orange, purple, and pink disk from Bridgland Studios.  The color selection is unique with a striking result and the design is gorgeous.

Memberships at Chabot Space & Science Center

Searching for something fun to do this weekend? Visit Chabot Space & Science Center, which hosts events and exhibitions for people of all ages. And don’t forget to visit the observatory-in the afternoon, you can view the sun, moon, or Venus from the telescopes, and at night, your view of the sky is spectacular. Families looking for a fun outdoor adventure should check out the new family/group overnight event, Slumber with the Stars.  Memberships are available at the Center and online.

Find these and other cool items on Oakland Unwrapped!

Attention all small businesses!  The Berkeley Chamber of Commerce is hosting a series of workshops this summer on social media and what it can do to help generate more interest in your business.  The second of five workshops is entitled “What You Can Learn from the Big Brands Best Practices with Social Media.”  This workshop will take place on Thursday, July 29th, from 8 AM-10 AM.  For more information and to register, check out the Chamber’s website.

Did you know that there are stimulus dollars that will reimburse you for 80% of wages and other employer costs for the first 6 months of employment?

If you are interested in filling an existing vacancy or expanding your business during these recessionary times, the Alameda County Social Services Agency currently has highly qualified individuals ready to come to work for you! 

Missed the information session?  The Alameda County Social Services Agency has a great brochure with more information here.

 This is a great opportunity to find out how to employ more people and save money!

As the holiday season approaches, we all want to show how much we love our family and friends by impressing them with gifts on the top their wish list. Yet, I urge you to resist the temptation of spending outside your means. The easiest way to spend only what you can afford- make a budget and STICK TO IT!

Before you hit the stores plan out what type of gift you would like to get each person on your list. Then comparison shop online for the cheapest options. There are many small businesses in the Bay Area that have amazing deals on locally made products. To view over 160 local stores click here. The more planning you do BEFORE you set out to shop, the more likely you will follow your budget.

Here are a couple tips from nonprofit financial literacy site, www.feedthepig.org:

• Many stores offer one-day or weekend money-saving sales during the month. Plan to shop your favorite stores on these days.
• Don’t be tempted to overspend on last minute purchases. Planning ahead could prevent night-before emergency shopping trips.
• Exchange favors as gifts or make handmade gifts such as baked goods and ornaments. A great online gift-exchange site is www.elfster.com.
• Send e-cards. Savings could be significant depending on the length of your mailing list.
• Pay with cash whenever possible. Interest charges accrued by not paying off your credit bill in January may offset any savings you received.

Amy Thomas, owner of Pendragon, for the East Bay Express Indie Revolution

We have recently profiled new, up-and-coming small businesses in Oakland, many of which sell exclusively online.  But Oakland is also home to small, independent businesses with storefronts that have been around for years, some even decades.  These are the stores that you grow up with, that add character to your community and childhood memories.  They are also the stores that set examples for other small businesses in how they treat their employees and serve their clients and community.

Pendragon Books in the Rockridge neighborhood is one of these independent businesses.  Pendragon has been in its same location for nearly forty years.  They have been there so long that the children who used to come with their parents to check out the books continue to come back as adults with their own children.  Many staff members have also grown up with the independent bookstore-several have worked for Pendragon for a decade, some even two decades.

Having been in the independent book business for so long, Pendragon knows a thing or two about operating a successful small business that is competitive with the services offered at any chain bookstore.  All staff members are trained to do everything in the store, from helping customers find a book to buying high-quality used books.  Staff members also earn a living wage and get full benefits.  This partly explains why so many have stayed with Pendragon for so long, but it also demonstrates Pendragon’s commitment to sustaining small businesses.  As Amy Thomas, Pendragon’s owner, says, the store is putting its money where its mouth is in terms of advocating for supporting small businesses.

Many new customers come to Pendragon unaware of the top-notch service they can get at an independent book store.  Pendragon’s shelves are well stocked with a wide variety of titles, both new and used, and anything that isn’t in its stockroom can be ordered and shipped to the store within a few days.  Their prices are comparable to the ones you would see at a big book store.  Pendragon’s staff is also knowledgeable about the books they offer, and can suggest book titles and recommendations the way staff at a big book store cannot.

But Pendragon is more than just a bookstore in Oakland; it acts as an engaged member of the community.  Pendragon features local authors and sells beautiful gift cards, many designed by local artists.  It gives discounts to book groups in the area.  It donates books and gift certificates to local libraries and schools.  It is an active member of the American Booksellers Association and supports national literary events, such as Banned Book Week and National Novel Writing Month.

Pendragon, while a stalwart, is also changing with the times.  They have greened the water filtration system in their store and recycle all their packaging materials.  They also buy and sell used books, which is, as they say, perhaps the greenest thing they do.  They also sell all their books and products online, so you can browse their book collection from the comfort of your own home!  To shop online at Pendragon Books and to learn more about their role as an independent bookstore in Oakland, check out their website.

The Women’s Initiative is hosting their Taste of Success event on Monday evening, November 9th, at the Claremont in Berkeley.  This event will honor the 2009 Woman-Owned Business award winners and graduates entrepreneurs from the Women’s Initiative program.  You’ll want to come to check out the goods and services these new women-owned businesses have to offer, as well as the food and drink!  Click here for more details.

The Rockridge District Association is pleased to bring you “Rockridge Out & About” on Sunday, September 27th.  This event will showcase the best of the Rockridge and North Oakland neighborhoods, including local businesses-from boutiques to restaurants to book stores and more-as well as health forums, live music and dancing, cooking demonstrations, children activities, a fashion show, and more!  Check the event website for more information.

“Please feel free to jump on the Fatboy,” says Marie Deleris, owner of Entrez! Open House, a gifts, housewares and furniture boutique in uptown Oakland. I try to suppress my revulsion at the thought of crushing an overweight toddler, but my face betrays me. She notices and quickly adds, “it’s a beanbag chair!” Relieved, I go inside under the pretense of perusing the store’s offerings with every intention of double-checking the oven behind the front counter to make sure Hansel isn’t peeking out at me. Now, fully pacified, I am able to relax and take in my surroundings. Upon taking my first glance around Entrez!, I was afraid I had just been poked in the eyes with a kaleidoscope—in a good way. The store erupts with color and wild designs, shelves are stocked with neat gadgets, and there is a kitchen in the showroom, the island of which serves as the checkout counter.

You’re probably thinking, “Man, that store sounds nuttier than squirrel poop.”

Maybe you’re right, but the pervading thing on my mind while there was, “This place is so cool! Why don’t I have more colorful stuff decorating my place! Why haven’t I been shopping here!?” It sounds like my sentiment is in line with Marie’s customers’, from whom she hears at least once a day that her store is a “getaway” or a “sanctuary”. Entrez! has become the place for many toiling in downtown Oakland to escape from the workplace and let off some steam. This is a result of many things, all of which add up to one very cool, very unorthodox, design store.

Marie Deleris came to America from Paris six years ago to improve her English, and she never went back. While looking for opportunities that would allow her to extend her visa, Marie’s friends would keep commenting on her knack for design. She took their compliments to heart and ran with them, the result being Entrez! Open House. Marie comes from a family that was always interested in interiors, and she says it’s very important to have a good home, a relaxing place to return to at the end of the day. Her store is a microcosm of the environment Marie envisions for her customers. At Entrez! you are allowed to pick up and touch everything, and sit on the furniture. Besides being important to test drive a chair before you buy, this really makes the store much more homey and friendly, a stark contrast to other design galleries where the pieces are reserved strictly for visual enjoyment.

Marie wants her customers to feel at home in Entrez!, the kitchen on the showroom floor helps, and her trust in her customers has been rewarded—in three years only one piece has been broken. This is a testament to the durability of the products that Entrez! carries. Marie likes the idea of things that will last forever, as the most sustainable products are the ones that never need be replaced. One of the most popular lines at the store is Elbow Grease Designs, currently a selection of bags made from recycled convention banners and other recycled materials, made by Oakland’s own Jenny Hurth.

Along with the home and the environment, community is also important. When Entrez! first opened, Marie would see the same people walking past her doors every day on their way from their lattes to work and back. Three years later, the neighborhood is a host to joggers and families pushing strollers on the weekends, and there are new faces coming through to check out all of the cool new stores that have opened on the block. And now those people who trudged past Entrez! every morning are the regulars who stop by to relax and have a coffee or eat their lunch on the tables out in front. This trend in revitalization has not gone unnoticed, as Entrez! was named the Neighborhood Dynamo Oakland Indie Award winner for the Uptown district in 2007.

To help lure people downtown, and probably more just for fun, Tammy at Entrez! hosts Neighbor Knit Meetings twice a month, and Marie holds a French conversation night monthly; every October Entrez! invites people to its pumpkin carving extravaganza, with the one rule that pumpkins must be cleaned out on the sidewalk and the innards disposed of before moving the pumpkins inside to carve.

This summer, Entrez! is also holding a summer design series so that anyone interested can learn more about design and design companies. The first of three lectures, given by a representative from Alessi, has already past, but you can still make it out for the last two: Entrez! will be hosting Kartell on August 13^th, and Iittala on September 4^th. Click here for more information on the summer design series.

With so much going on at Entrez! Open House you should definitely stop by and check it out for yourself. Marie and her staff are a lot of fun to hang out with, so drop by and share your lunch hour with them, and please, feel free to jump on the Fatboy.

To learn more about Entrez! Open House, visit their website. And to see more independent Oakland businesses online, check out the Oakland Unwrapped website.

Many businesses claim to be green or market their products as environmentally friendly, but how does the consumer know if they are actually supporting a company that is truly eco-friendly?

How do companies that have a double or triple bottom line differentiate themselves from those who see social and environmental issues as a marketing strategy?

How can these businesses network and learn more about running a socially and/or environmentally responsible company?

The San Francisco Bay Area has developed several organizations that certify businesses as green and socially responsible or furnish networking for businesses that are making honest and serious attempts to be as green or socially responsible as possible. Many cities and states have their own green business programs, and Oakland is the home of the Bay Area Green Business Program (BAGBP). The BAGBP verifies that businesses meet certain standards of environmental performance by conducting in depth reviews of business operations. So far, over 1,600 Bay Area businesses have been certified green since 1997 in the nine Bay Area counties. The San Francisco Bay Area is also home to the Green Chamber of Commerce, a center that fosters “the success of businesses committed to environmental and social responsibility.” The Sustainable Business Alliance also has over 250 participating Bay Area businesses. The Sustainable Business Alliance facilitates networking, education, technical services, and partnership opportunities for sustainable Bay Area businesses. San Francisco Green Drinks also makes possible the networking and socializing of area green business professionals. Once a month, environmental professionals get together at 111 Minna to socialize and discuss issues related to the environment. Another sustainable business networking group is EcoTuesday, which is held across the nation and locally in San Francisco on the fourth Tuesday of every month. EcoTuesday gives sustainable business leaders a chance to network and discuss current issues both in person and online.

There are also ways to know that the business you are supporting is socially responsible—look for the B-Corporation certification and you know that the company you are purchasing from has a triple bottom line. In order to be a certified B-Corporation, businesses must go through a series of tests and meet various standards, which are vigorously enforced. A growing number of companies are realizing that social and environmental responsibility is more than just a marketing scheme, it is important for the future that we develop sustainable business practices for the long run.