Weekly Village Update 6.13.19

Important Upcoming Chamber Events

·     Ribbon Cutting: El Rincon on Main St., Fri, June 14 at 3 pm - free refreshments! ·     Ginny Stevens Lane Dedication Ceremony: Sunday, June 16 at 4 pm, Edgewood Cottage ·     Committee Meeting Entrepreneurial & Business Dev: Tues, June 18 at 3:30 pm ·     Business After Hours, Tues, June 18 at 5:30 pm: Hosted by 4 Forty Four, Jenkins Realtors & Catered by Moondance Catering. 452 Sunset Drive, Blowing Rock ·     Ribbon Cutting: Village Thrift on Valley Blvd, Wed, June 19 at 9:30 am ·     Ribbon Cutting: Horton Hotel & Rooftop Lounge, Sun, June 23 at 3 pm ·     Committee Meeting Community, Gov't & Education: Tues, June 25 at 3:30 pm ·     Ribbon Cutting: Funky Tulip on Main St., Thurs, June 27 at 5 pm ·     Ribbon Cutting: Chef & Somm on Main St., Fri, June 28 at 5 pm

Business After Hours June 18th at 5:30 pm Hosted by 4 Forty Four & Jenkins Realtors Inc Catered by Moondance Catering 452 Sunset Drive, Blowing Rock Join us for this amazing event! The pair make great neighbors - both located on the corner of Sunset Drive and Hwy 321. 4 Forty Four is a full service custom construction, renovation, interior design and consulting business. Jenkins Realtors has been serving the High Country with real estate and rentals for over 40 years.  * Door Prize for early registration – Vx3 Trail Ride for 2 with Lunch included * Door Prize for completion of punch card received at sign in – Best Cellar $250 gift certificate!

RSVP to win! LOCATION 452 Sunset Dr, Blowing Rock DATE AND TIME 06/18/19 5:30pm - 06/18/19 7:00pm Door Prize for Early Registration: Vx3 Trail Ride for 2 with lunch included I will be there! Maybe I can not make it.

Ribbon Cutting: El Rincon Friday, June 14th at 3 pm 870 Main Street  Free samples and refreshments!! Help us welcome El Rincon to Main Street! Owner Letecia Ruiz has accomplished her dream of opening her own restaurant after years of working at Southern Comforts in the same space. She is offering breakfast, lunch and dinner every day with American and Mexican food on the menu. Please join us!

Ginny Stevens Lane Dedication Sunday June 16, 2019 at 4 pm Friends of Ginny Stevens invite you to the dedication of GINNY STEVENS LANE on the lawn of Edgewood Cottage. Reception to follow at Rumple Fellowship Hall. (Enter across from BRAHM)

Ribbon Cutting: Village Thrift Wed, June 19th at 9:30 am 8332 Valley Boulevard This wonderful addition to our community will benefit the Blowing Rock Women's Club's scholarship program. Save money, find great treasures, and give back. Please join us and plan to shop!

Highlights from our June Board Meeting ·     Chetola Resort has appointed Angus Lamond to represent their seat on the Chamber board. ·     2019 Service Industry Staffing Issues - The board heard from several local businesses in the restaurant, lodging and retail industries who are struggling to find enough employees to be open 7 days a week this summer. Staffing continues to be our biggest challenge in tourism. Business owners shared the multitude of tactics they've used to attempt to find help, retention strategies, and trends that they're seeing with employment which include these interesting takeaways: ·     Our unemployment rate is 2.9%. Further, 3% of the population is un-employable. So most people who are able to work are working. The pool is very small right now. Many businesses are engaging in employee sharing. ·     There is a trend at App State with students taking the majority of their summer courses online. This means less students are around to work during the summer. Student labor rates have fallen drastically and we are seeing less and less students join the service industry workforce during college; and a rise in affluent student populations. ·     Housing continues to be a challenge for workers in Blowing Rock, with most of our workforce commuting from long distances. ·     The Board discussed all of these issues and brainstormed many avenues to resolve these issues. ·     Our workforce issues will continue to be discussed and long term work to alleviate these issues will continue in our EDC committee meetings.

Member News

Electric Vehicle Showcase Saturday, June 22 2 - 5 pm at Tanger Outlets ·     Check out a variety of EV models including Tesla, Nissan, Chevy and more. ·     Talk with local EV owners. ·     Shop the stores of Tanger Outlets while you're there and enjoy their new courtyard, fire pit and games area! ·     Enjoy great music in the courtyard by Strictly Clean and Decent at the Concerts in the Courtyard from 4 - 7 pm. ·     New EV chargers being installed at Tanger this month! ·     Presented in partnership by Tanger Outlets and Blue Ridge Energy Click here for the flyer

Downtown Businesses Decorate for Mile of Flowers We are asking all downtown businesses to decorate their storefronts and windows with a special "Mile of Flowers" theme the week of June 23 - 29. All displays should go up by Monday, June 24th to qualify. Judging will happen on Thursday, June 27th with awards going to 1st, 2nd and 3rd place. Contact Annie Tarbutton with questions. Click here for details on the Mile of Flowers event.

Expert Tip on the Chamber blog this week: The Right Insurance Can Meet Both Short and Long Term Needs If you’re going to achieve your important financial goals, you’ll need to build an appropriate investment portfolio. But that’s only part of the story – because you also need to protect what you have, what you earn and what you’d like to leave behind. That’s why it’s a good idea to become familiar with the various types of insurance and how they can address short- and long-term needs. Read more on the blog.

This week in photos

Grilled Cheese Cafe Ribbon Cutting in SouthMarke

Symphony Tents Available There are a few tent party locations in the center section that are not yet reserved. This is a great opportunity to host a private party or to promote your business or non-profit organization to an audience of 3,000+. More info and pricing can be viewed on the Symphony website. Please contact Sarah for details on availability. This year's event is July 26th.

Upcoming Community Events

·     (John Aldridge) Children's Book Signing at The Blowing Rock, June 15 from 2 pm - 5 pm ·     Concerts in the Park June 16 will feature The King Bees. Details ·     3rd Annual Shagging at the Rock will happen on June 22. Details ·     Blue Ridge Mountain Club hosts its Annual Summer Soulstice day of fun on June 22. Live music, food, fun for kids and adults, all to benefit Hospitality House. Details ·     Movies in the Park will feature "Black Panther" on Thursday, June 27 at 8:30 pm. Details ·     Lees McRae's Summer Theatre Series kicks off on June 27 with Mamma Mia! Details ·     Appalachian Summer Festival kicks off the season with Ben Folds on June 29. Details

More events can be found on our online calendar. To submit your news to our weekly newsletter, email Loni@BlowingRock.com by Wednesday. Our newsletter reaches over 1,000 member contacts each Thursday!