Small Business of the Year Finalist: Senoia Law Office

Steve Mader of SouthTowne Motors, Presenting Sponsor; Crystal Boudreaux of Senoia Law Office; and Ginger Jackson Queener of UBS Financial Services, Presenting Sponsor

We hope you've been enjoying our series of blog posts on the finalists for this year's Small Business of the Year Awards, coming up tomorrow, August 25, 2016 at The Newnan Centre. Today, meet Senoia Law Office!

Chamber membership philosophy and involvement: I recently joined the Chamber in the 2016 membership drive. I joined because I believe the Chamber to be a group of business owners who want to better their companies and the community. I plan to be invested and involved in Chamber functions. I have had some previous contact with the Chamber through my Coweta Community Foundation Board membership. Involvement is investment in our community, which is the role I see my business and myself having in Coweta County.

Community involvement: I am Treasurer of the Senoia Downtown Development Association and work on the board to improve Senoia's booming downtown. We focus on community events, beautification of the town, cultural art events, economic growth and overall community appeal in the downtown area of Senoia. I also serve as Board member and Fundraising co-chair on the Coweta Community Foundation. We work through fundraising, volunteering and community giving to help improve local nonprofits in our community. This is close to my heart as I see the work of our nonprofits daily in my job as an attorney representing children and families in Coweta County. I also work with my children's school to donate my time and skills as an attorney to donate Will and Power of Attorney preparations at school events throughout the year. For the last three years, I have been involved at Eastside Elementary School to help teachers and administrators improve their classrooms and programs.

How Senoia Law Office differs from competitors: I believe my office is different in that I try to have an inviting and open-door policy as much as possible. I tell my clients that I will be their greatest advocate, but I also owe them the truth, and sometimes that may not be exactly what they want to hear. I also have designed my practice to be a small-town attorney's office where people can call and have an ally to find a solution to their question or problem. I make it a point to tell people that while I cannot possibly practice all areas of law, I can help them find a lawyer who does what they need. I also sponsor self-defense and firearms training classes with licensed instructors to enhance my business within the community. The personal self-defense classes have helped many of my clients work through issues of fear and self-doubt and have allowed professionals to further arm themselves in businesses which can expose them to different threats, such as in home nursing and real estate. I do not make a profit on these classes. They are offered to the public at a reduced cost thanks to the instructors who choose to come and donate time to teaching students to be safe and knowledgeable in self-protection.

If you haven't yet registered for the Small Business Awards and Celebration,

click here to do so now!

Small Business of the Year Finalist: Penco Restoration

Steve Mader of SouthTowne Motors, Presenting Sponsor; Joey Pendley of Penco Restoration; and Ginger Jackson Queener of UBS Financial Services, Presenting Sponsor

We have two more finalists to introduce you to before this year's Small Business of the Year Awards coming up August 25, 2016 at The Newnan Centre. Today, meet Penco Restoration!

Chamber membership philosophy and involvement: Our philosophy on the Chamber is that it exists to connect businesses within the community, as well as assisting in recruiting and encouraging business and industry to choose Coweta County. As a member, we agree to operate as a community-minded business, showing support to citizens, organizations, schools, and other businesses within Coweta County. We are proud to have been a member since Penco was started in 2013 and have participated in numerous ways. We have displayed multiple times at the small business expo, we have provided the golf towels two years in a row for the Chamber golf tournament, we attend breakfasts, lunches, etc. to promote and help build the Chamber. We are a fan of the Business-After-Hours and hope to host that later in 2016.

Community involvement: As a Coweta resident 27+ years, I am well versed in this community and am aware of many needs. One commitment I made when opening Penco Restoration was to invest in our community always. I am proud to say that in the last 2-1/2 years, we have given back over $50,000 in financial support, contributions, scholarships, and donations to multiple different schools, clubs, nonprofits and civic groups. We take great pride in our community involvement and support, and plan to continue growing this part of our business.

How Penco Restoration differs from competitors: One of the main goals when I opened Penco Restoration was to operate a Christian-based, community-involved company that supports local nonprofits and civic groups. In doing this, we look at each job a little differently. Profit is a necessity to keep the lights on and the bills paid, however, it shouldn't be the "drive" of your day. I firmly believe that if we "Do The Right Thing, Always," the rest will work itself out. This has proven to be a profitable business plan, as shows in our growth numbers as well as our contributions back to the community.

If you haven't yet registered for the Small Business Awards and Celebration,

click here to do so now!

Small Business of the Year Finalist: Liberty Tax Service

Steve Mader of SouthTowne Motors, Presenting Sponsor; Amer Awad of Liberty Tax Service; and Ginger Jackson Queener of UBS Financial Services, Presenting Sponsor

As we're counting down the days till next week's Small Business of the Year Awards, we'd like to introduce you to our finalists for this year's awards, to be presented on August 25, 2016 at The Newnan Centre. Today, meet Liberty Tax Service.

Chamber membership philosophy and involvement: While we haven't been to many Chamber gatherings, we have attempted to reach out to other Chamber members to participate in activities we have for the community.

Community involvement: Since we opened our doors in September 2014,we have worked with the community to help those in need. Whether it be giving out 100 backpacks full of school supplies to children in need in 2015 (we have already upped our goal to 120 this year), giving out 110 full Christmas dinners to families who otherwise might not have been able to enjoy that all-important dinner during the holiday in 2015 (we expect to give out 150 this year), organizing a Trunk or Treat candy giveaway with a live DJ, costume and pumpkin carving contest, and handing out prizes to give children a safe place to get candy, or holding a community outreach party with carnival games, a bounce house, free food and drinks to raise money for Community Welcome House (we were able to raise over $500), we are determined to be a company that gives back to the community that allows us to come to work.

How Liberty Tax Service differs from competitors: It all starts and ends with customer service. We don't want our clients to just feel like another number. We get to know them and know their story. Nobody cares what you know until they know that you care. We force our clients to ask questions so they know what information is on their tax return instead of following the status quo of grabbing a W2, putting it in the computer and telling the client to have a nice day. Taxes were never taught to us when we were younger, so our office does its best to do that teaching now.

If you haven't yet registered for the Small Business Awards and Celebration,

click here to do so now!

Small Business of the Year Finalist: Kason Industries

Steve Mader of SouthTowne Motors, Presenting Sponsor; Burl Finkelstein of Kason Industries; and Ginger Jackson Queener of UBS Financial Services, Presenting Sponsor

As we're counting down the days till next week's Small Business of the Year Awards, we'd like to introduce you to our finalists for this year's awards, to be presented on August 25, 2016 at The Newnan Centre. Today, meet Kason Industries.

Chamber membership philosophy and involvement: Kason is a Bronze Enhanced Investor. We belong to The Chamber to have a more intimate connection to the local business community and for the political clout the Chamber has.

Community involvement: The family that owns Kason operates the KATZ Foundation that funds medical research in stem cell and blood banking. Kason also sponsors CEC robotics and several employees' children sports teams.

How Kason Industries differs from competitors: Kason is leading our industry with two major factor: 1) Innovation 2) Customer service. Kason has almost 100 patents for new products and keeps an R and D staff working full time to develop new products that better satisfy our customer needs. Kason has expanded our production facilities and on-site warehouses to service customer orders with very short lead times while shipping over 2,500 finished products.

If you haven't yet registered for the Small Business Awards and Celebration,

click here to do so now!

Small Business of the Year Finalist: Infiniti of South Atlanta/Heritage Automotive

David Watts of Infiniti of South Atlanta/Heritage Automotive

Over the next few weeks, we'd like to introduce you to our finalists for this year's Small Business of the Year Awards coming up August 25, 2016 at The Newnan Centre. Today, meet Infiniti of South Atlanta/Heritage Automotive .

Chamber membership philosophy and involvement: We try to maximize our Chamber involvement at every opportunity and feel it is our duty to help the Chamber succeed and grow. We recently were heavily involved in the Chamber membership drive As Team Black, and our team pushed hard to raise as many new members as possible for the Chamber. We are also diligently trying to bring new dealerships to Coweta to provide new jobs and tax revenue. We have spent endless hours over the last year to try to achieve these goals. We try to target 80 percent attendance of Chamber functions and provide additional support over and above our annual membership dues. An example of this is our support and underwriting of the Chamber printing costs as well as supplementing events throughout the year, such as Enhanced Investor luncheons and Annual Meetings.

Community involvement: We are involved in raising funds for charitable organizations on a monthly basis and feel this is a key component of our corporate governance. By way of example, Infiniti of South Atlanta has acted as the lead and raised funds for Community Welcome House, Children's Village, Christian City, Assistance in HealthCare, as well as numerous schools and afterschool programs, all within the last twelve months. In addition, to increase awareness and encourage additional donations, Infiniti of South Atlanta aired over 6,000 commercials last year to support charitable organizations. Our entire management team and the majority of our staff have been active in these fund-raising endeavors. On average, we are working on multiple fund-raising projects each month.

How Infiniti of South Atlanta/Heritage Automotive differs from competitors: Our management team is continuously searching for new ways to gain an advantage over the competition. We believe that the hallmark of a truly exceptional dealership is one that can not only provide a pleasant experience for its clients but a memorable one as well. Our experience has taught us that pleasant and memorable customer experiences ultimately result in greater customer retention and higher customer satisfaction. Our organization believes that the difference between providing a mediocre customer service experience and a truly memorable one is in the details. Every program and process that we put together is created with this philosophy in mind. Whether we are working with a potential sales customer or an existing service customer, we strive to make sure that all of our customers feel like they are receiving elite customer service. In addition, as an organization, we are always on the lookout for other unique and innovative operational processes to incorporate into our existing ones. We are regularly looking to the top providers of elite customer service like The Ritz Carlton, The Four Seasons, Chanel and Nordstrom.

If you haven't yet registered for the Small Business Awards and Celebration,

click here to do so now!

Small Business of the Year Finalist: Fine Lines Art and Framing

Steve Mader of SouthTowne Motors, Presenting Sponsor; Cecelia Hilton of Fine Lines Art and Framing; and Ginger Jackson Queener of UBS Financial Services, Presenting Sponsor

Over the next few weeks, we'd like to introduce you to our finalists for this year's Small Business of the Year Awards coming up August 25, 2016 at The Newnan Centre. Today, meet Fine Lines Art and Framing.

Chamber membership philosophy and involvement: The Chamber is a vast resource to connect my business to other businesses and to the community. The Chamber does the work of creating an avenue for strengthening business development; it is my job to open the door and walk through it. In the past, I have connected to other people and businesses through the various Chamber events and look forward to future involvement.

Community involvement: Fine Lines is a sponsor of the bi-annual Simple Pleasures Photography Contest and has been named as the program's framer for the participants. As well as offering framing discounts, we provide presentations at the opening show on proper framing techniques. We also give the People's Choice Award, a gift certificate for framing. As a member of the subcommittee of the Newnan Artist in Residence Program, we organize artists' demonstrations for the community and provide the resident artist gallery space for their work. Fine Lines has donated custom framing of original art for the silent auction of the Communities In Schools annual fundraising event, and we were selected by the Newnan-Coweta Historical Society to paint a horse for the Buggy Shop and a truck for the Coweta Community Foundation. Other groups and projects we have supported with contributions, discounts, and/or special lessons or demonstrations include the Southern Living Idea House in Senoia, the Senior Center, the Newnan-Coweta Art Association, the Fayette Community Art Association, Angel House, Coweta Pregnancy Services, Main Street Newnan, Girl Scouts and the Coweta public schools. We have also provided an internship for Art Major student interns from the University of West Georgia.

How Fine Lines Art and Framing differs from competitors: Our area competitors are Michaels and Hobby Lobby, both of which are not truly comparable to Fine Lines, as we are a specialty custom frame shop. We specialize in using all archival and conservation materials and techniques. Our staff is trained in the proper handling of any item or project, no matter how complex or detailed. Customer service is of the utmost priority, and every order is guaranteed to the customer's satisfaction. We also offer frame repairs and restoration, art restoration services, and an art gallery of original works from the finest artists locally.

If you haven't yet registered for the Small Business Awards and Celebration,

click here to do so now!

Small Business of the Year Finalist: Dogwood Veterinary Hospital and Laser Center

Steve Mader of SouthTowne Motors, Presenting Sponsor; Dr. Wayne Morris, Shelby Tidwell, Dr. Cher Canaday, and Dr. Pam Johnson, all of Dogwood Veterinary Hospital and Laser Center; and Ginger Jackson Queener of UBS Financial Services, Presenting Sponsor

Over the next few weeks, we'd like to introduce you to our finalists for this year's Small Business of the Year Awards coming up August 25, 2016 at The Newnan Centre. Today, meet Dogwood Veterinary Hospital and Laser Center.

Chamber membership philosophy and involvement: Dogwood Veterinary Hospital and Laser Center fully believes that being a member of the Chamber is a mark of excellence and integrity. Engagement with other members identifies a number of opportunities and business enrichment. Our hospital's objective is to help generate ideas, enthusiasm and dynamic business opportunities within our community and in turn feed this back through the Chamber and onward to the county's businesses as a whole. Through our attendance at appropriate events, networking forums and business expos, Dogwood demonstrates its belief in the Chamber. Through ongoing membership, we commit to maintaining the highest standards. Dr. Cher Canaday attends periodic meetings including Women of Prosperity, Early Bird Forum and other special interest meetings. Dogwood even sponsored a hole in this year's golf tournament, and our practice manager, Shelby Tidwell, was selected to participate in this year's Leadership Coweta class.

Community involvement: We have become known for our annual "Paws and Claws Fall Festival" in which all members of the community are invited to attend and participate in several activities. We focus on pet health care, education, vendors, local businesses and organizations in a fun and energetic environment. We also feel honored to be the veterinary provider for the USDA National Detector Dog Training Center located in Newnan, as well as the Coweta County Sheriff's Department canine unit. We donate to several organizations, including Newnan High School and the Coweta County Health Department, and offer discounts for nonprofit animal rescues. We have created a "Genie Jar" that we use in our hospital for pets of families in need.

How Dogwood Veterinary Hospital and Laser Center differs from competitors: Dogwood Veterinary Hospital and Laser Center belongs to a small, select group of veterinary hospitals who are AAHA accredited. This is an honor that we do not take lightly. Only two other hospitals in Newnan are also accredited. We want to practice the best medicine, and one way we have accomplished this is to have state-of-the-art multimodal laser therapy, including surgical and therapeutic laser. This enables us to offer advanced surgical procedures, particularly in the area of orthopedics. A newer concept that we are implementing is fear-free training for all of our staff to encourage a less stressful visit for pets, while emphasizing wellness and preventative based care.

If you haven't yet registered for the Small Business Awards and Celebration,

click here to do so now!

Small Business of the Year Finalist: Crezent #Managed Marketing

Steve Mader of SouthTowne Motors, Presenting Sponsor; Chris Doane of Crezent #Managed Marketing; and Ginger Jackson Queener of UBS Financial Services, Presenting Sponsor

This week, we continue to introduce you to our finalists for this year's Small Business of the Year Awards coming up August 25, 2016 at The Newnan Centre. Today, meet Crezent #Managed Marketing!

Chamber membership philosophy and involvement: Our involvement regarding Chamber functions and the opportunities to volunteer and serve are major priorities for us. Our philosophy goes beyond simply being an Enhanced Investor. 1) We will continue to "Think Chamber Members First." Our IT support company, accountant, maid service, office supply company, printer, sign company, and financial services provider are but a few of the many Chamber members that we purposefully do business with. 2) We go beyond this concept and "Think Coweta Citizens First"' by hiring local citizens as employees. The nature of our business provides many options to outsource both out of city and out of state/country. We stay local. 3) We also "Think Coweta Students First" by continuing a longtime commitment to work-based training and interning high school students through the Central Educational Center. We also participate in several mentorship programs that benefit Coweta County students.

Community involvement: Chris Doane, founder of Crezent #Managed Marketing, actively volunteers in the development of Cochran Mill Park and most recently was recognized by Mayor Tom Reed, City of Chattahoochee Hills, for contributions to the park. He serves on the board of Friends of Chattahoochee Bend and volunteers in trail development activities at the park as well as marketing activities on behalf of the park. Chris is an active member of the Peachtree City Rotary Club and volunteers in the Chattahoochee River Keeper Sweep the Hooch effort. He organized the Coweta Composite high school mountain bike team and mentorship program, and he has provided nonprofit support, services, sponsorships, and donations to a variety of organizations, including the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce, the Newnan Junior Service League, Meals of Wheels of Coweta, Coweta's Dancing Stars, New Beginnings Store, Coweta Area Trail, Chattahoochee Bend Trail Fund, Fayette's Dancing Stars, Whitewater High School in Fayette County, Team Pedal for Pets Cycling Team, Newnan-Coweta Small Business Showcase, and Communities In Schools of Coweta County.

How Crezent #Managed Marketing differs from competitors: Crezent #Managed Marketing is positioned as an outsource provider of marketing services for businesses that desire a full line of marketing functions without the obligations of hiring a full-time employee. Many of the organizations that Crezent competes against are à la carte and limited in their expertise and menu of services.

If you haven't yet registered for the Small Business Awards and Celebration,

click here to do so now!

Small Business of the Year Finalist: CMIT Solutions

Steve Mader of SouthTowne Motors, Presenting Sponsor; Doug Bates of CMIT Solutions; and Ginger Jackson Queener of UBS Financial Services, Presenting Sponsor

Over the next few weeks, we'd like to introduce you to our finalists for this year's Small Business of the Year Awards coming up August 25, 2016 at The Newnan Centre. Today, meet CMIT Solutions!

Chamber membership philosophy and involvement: I am proud to be a productive contributor for the Chamber and participate in the functions and events to support membership and continued growth for Coweta County businesses. I continue to participate in numerous Business After Hours, March Madness, the Annual Golf Classic, Power Networking Lunches, and NuLink Early Bird Forums.

Community involvement: I am on the board of Woodland Christian Camp, on the CTE Advisory Committee for FCBOE, and we provide free IT services for Community Welcome House, The Healing Bridge, and the Fayette Care Clinic. We have also reached out to the Coweta Samaritan Clinic with the same offer. CMIT Solutions is also a Charter Member of Experience Coweta, Fayette, Spalding.

How CMIT Solutions differs from competitors: We focus on customer service first and the goals of our client second. That is what dictates the products or services that are needed. We never go into a client with a predetermined answer or solution.

If you haven't yet registered for the Small Business Awards and Celebration,

click here to do so now!