Day: August 29, 2019

We Do It All; We Get It Done by Melissa LaScaleia Jerribob’s Mail, Print, & Design Center originally began over thirty years ago, strictly as a shipping facility.  Jerri and Bob Bradford started the business in 1989, and over the years it evolved into a print and design center as well. After they retired in 2010, their daughter, Lisa, and her husband took it over.  Now it’s Lisa’s turn to retire, and she’s passed the baton to Rhonda Fussell, who purchased the business from her this past May.  “I was living in Charlotte, and wanted to move to Myrtle Beach,” Rhonda says in speaking about how she came to be the new owner. “I had a home here already.  “I had a real estate background, but I knew I’d need a stable business to feel secure with the move. So I was looking in the papers for businesses for sale in Myrtle Beach. There were a lot of restaurants and entertainment places, but then I saw the ad for this printing and shipping business.  “I didn’t know why, but I was drawn to it. Everybody I talked to about it thought I was out of my mind, so I dismissed it. But I couldn’t put it out of my mind, I kept going back to it. So finally I contacted them, and when Lisa and her husband met me, we all really hit it off. I just knew it was what I wanted.”  Rhonda has been an entrepreneur her entire life, and came from a family of entrepreneurs as well. Her mother was the first woman to ever go into the bathtub industry; her father was a builder.  “I grew up with people telling me, whatever you want to do, make it a reality; go into it 100%,” Rhonda says. “My parents pushed me to do things that I might not have ever done, or been too timid or scared to do— so nothing scares me. If I’m jumping into something, I’m jumping in.  “I never thought I would want to get into the printing and shipping business, but here I am. Everything I’ve ever done in my life, I’ve had to learn, and this is no different.”  “Everything I’ve ever done in my life, I’ve had to learn,” says Rhonda. “And this is no different.” — Photo Meganpixels Parker The transition has been an easy one for everyone.  “Lisa has been great,” Rhonda says. “She’s trained me on everything. I feel like we’re good friends, and I can always call her if I need anything. It was such a hard decision for them to make, whom to sell their family business to. They were looking for the right fit, to retain the sense of community they had created, and someone who would preserve what they had built.  “The employees have been here for a long time, and I think they were a little nervous at first. But we really have the best time. We truly enjoy each other. It’s just so much fun. And that’s the way work should be.”  Today at Jerribob’s, customers are first; the business itself, is a one-stop shop for everything shipping and printing.  “The two things I got when I took over this business,” Rhonda says, “are an incredible staff who can literally do anything, and incredible customers. Some of the customers have been coming here since the business started— and the customers to me are just everything.”  Jerribob’s offers the community an incredible array of services. They can print almost anything. They can design custom gift wrap with your face on it; they have shredding services; notary services; virtual mailboxes; and physical mailboxes for people who are moving or are bi-coastal with no permanent address.  They’ll receive your packages and faxes; sell a comprehensive array of office and shipping supplies, as well as a wide variety of unique gift items; and customize promotional items for companies.  “We have people who operate their entire business from this store,” Rhonda says. “They use our computers, do email— we even write letters for them that they need written up. “From your cell phone, you could email us any document and ask us to print it out. If you needed it scanned, faxed, overnighted, we could do that; if you need us to print up your business cards, your invoice forms, banners, posters or advertisements— we could do that. Just about anything you can name, we can do. We can even put your logo on Christmas wrapping paper, or put a photograph on stretch canvas for framing.  Rhonda has a fearless, can-do attitude, and a joyful personality that makes the regular work day fun for everyone— customers and clients. — Photo Meganpixels Parker “We get a lot of golfers who come in with their golf clubs, asking us to ship them back for them. People are floored when they know everything we do here. We can probably do things your office can’t do. I am absolutely loving it here.”  Another thing Jerribob’s offers is their rewards program for children. During the school year, children who come to Jerribob’s with a 100% score on one of their tests will get a duck stamp on their hand, and receive a rubber duck as a present. Some children collect them.  “All of us employees make a big deal out of how great the kids are doing in school; the children get a real kick out of this place,” Rhonda says.  “People bring their pets in— the dogs know who we are, they automatically come behind the counter, looking for their treats.”  Rhonda wasn’t at Jerribob’s long before applying her entrepreneurial skills to create even more options to better serve her customers.  “I’m developing a service where customers can call, and I can come and pick up their items to ship,” she says. “We already offer pick-ups for most of the hotels and real estate companies in the area, where we pick up items a customer has left behind and package it up and ship it out to them. But we have a lot of elderly clients; oftentimes getting … Read more

Promote, Protect and Improve the Grand Strand by Melissa LaScaleia The Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce is over eighty years old. It is comprised of two parts— a Chamber of Commerce, and a Convention and Visitor’s Bureau— both of which offer a wellspring of resources to the community.  The chamber side helps support the local business community through educational classes, programs, affinity business programs, and networking events.  “These programs have been in place for the past ten years,” says Diana Greene. “But what we do and how we do it has changed dramatically.”  Diana has been working for the Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce for the past nineteen years. As the chief of administration, she assists with a variety of branches within the chamber including: communications, information technology, human resources, the visitors centers, and emergency management.  Last year, the chamber offered ninety-three in-person classes through the chamber academy, their education program. Classes cover a wide range of topics on things like annuities, HR issues, marketing your business, and more. Chamber members have access to all classes for free.  “We also have a Grand Strand Young Professionals Program,” Diana says. “The goal is to help young people ages 21 to 40 to build connections in their industry, to support them as they’re growing in their career so they will stay in our community—and help to build it, to make it stronger.”  The program is currently in its 9th year, and has over 200 professionals involved.  Another valuable resource for small business owners is the chamber’s Advocacy Program, which offers assistance on legislative issues that would be beneficial or applicable to them.  “We’re always advocating for small businesses to help them as much as we can, to make it easier for them to succeed,” Diana says. “We have a staff member who does nothing but advocates for us both locally as well as nationally.” The chamber has an advocacy committee which is made up of chamber members. They establish the year’s goals for the organization and compile a list of things that they want to address, which is then approved by their board.  “Committee members tell us the ways in which we need to go out and advocate for them— we will go to Washington D.C. when required, hold receptions, events, and invite legislatives in at the state and national level,” she says. “We have lobbyists who help us as well. We work in collaboration with the Grand Strand Business Alliance in some matters. We all have the same end result— we want to help the Grand Strand.”  Diana also runs the Leadership Grand Strand Program, which is currently in its 40th year. This is an annual nine-month-long program which combines aspects of leadership training, community service, and community awareness.  “The program is not so much about developing your business as it is about developing yourself,” says Diana. “It makes you stronger and more capable— it broadens your perspective. You receive a lot of self improvement training, so that you have more to work with, to give back.”  The chamber utilizes digital marketing, television and social media, public relations specialists, as well as print media to reach the public with information about Myrtle Beach. — Photo Meganpixels Parker The program was created to connect people with the community, to inspire them to help their community organically.     “We all have talents and skills that we can use,” Diana says. “It’s about helping people recognize what they’re capable of doing, and getting them engaged to do it. We teach people how things work behind the scenes. How things run at a county level— how rezoning works in practice.  “It’s a great feeling to see the people who have gone through the program putting what they learned into practice. Ultimately, we help people build a personal brand for themselves through what they discover as being a part of this program.”  On the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau side of things, the chamber offers assistance to consumers and groups.  “It’s a constant evolution,” Diana says. “As marketing options change and consumer behaviors change, we change too. As a destination marketing organization, we have to stay current all the time.  “Today, there are many different demographics that we cover that extend beyond individuals and families: millennials; millennials with kids; weekend getaways; girlfriends getaways; multi-generational family vacations; grandkids and grandparents traveling together; couples; families; sports enthusiasts; younger generations; weddings; honeymoons; nature enthusiasts; empty-nesters; seniors; golfers; fishing and boating enthusiasts; and those looking for general water activities. We also do a lot of promotions of Myrtle Beach as an autism-friendly destination.  “There are a myriad of ways that we try to reach out to visitors and let them know about the things that would be of interest to them based on what their needs are. It is definitely not a cookie-cutter approach to service.”     The chamber has employees solely dedicated to assisting customers with any kind of group need— like meetings and conventions, sports teams, motor coach groups, and tours.  To reach their customers, the chamber employs a variety of techniques: everything from digital marketing, television and social media, to public relations and attending travel and trade shows. They also do some print advertising.  “We’re high-tech, but high-touch,” Diana says. “We run the gamut. We utilize highly sophisticated digital elements, but we also we have a very strong public relations element, where we’re always trying to tell a story about our area.”  The chamber has a lot of partnerships with major brands, and they do a lot of in-person promotions at festivals and sporting events where they can promote their brand— VisitMyrtleBeach.com. They also do initiatives with air service, especially non-stop flights to the Myrtle Beach International Airport, which has the most direct flights— arriving and departing— of any other location in South Carolina.  “We have a very strong team; we have a mobile visitor center which we send out to work at consumer events and sports games, and discuss with people who we are and what we’re all about in person,” Diana says.  “We have a ton … Read more

Servicing the Grand Strand Area Since 1984 by Melissa LaScaleia Ka-Nol Insurance Services is a family owned and operated full-service insurance agency in Myrtle Beach.  They were formed in 1984 to provide insurance services to individuals and businesses throughout the Grand Strand and the Pee Dee areas.  They offer full benefit plans—including group health insurance— to businesses, and represent the top insurance carriers that are available in South Carolina.  Their president and director of operations, Corbett Shoemaker, has specialized in the field of employee benefits and group insurance since 1970. Corbett and his late wife, Brenda, started in the insurance business in Johnson City, Tennessee, but vacationed often in Myrtle Beach with their two daughters. Their love for the beach made their decision to move here in 1984 an easy one, and the family has called the Myrtle Beach area home since that time.  Their youngest daughter, Stephanie Haynes, started working with them in 1993, and is now the vice president and office manager. She is involved in the day-to-day activities of the office and works very closely with servicing clients.  Stephanie’s husband, Chris Haynes, is from Sheffield, England, and has been working with the company since 2014. He manages Ka-Nol’s  life insurance and Medicare departments, as well as handling all of their social media accounts and the website. He is also involved in the day-to-day activities of the office.  Ka-Nol is passionate about the service they provide their clients.  “We are very hands-on,” says Corbett, “as in we will resolve a problem ourselves instead of asking a client to resolve it by calling the insurance carrier.”  The Ka-Nol family team has personally created the Coastal Chamber Plan, which offers dental, vision, life, and short term disability insurance to groups with as few as two employees, with great benefits and very low rates.  For seniors aged sixty-five and over, Ka-Nol can help navigate Medicare. They can help you decide if a Supplement or an Advantage plan is right for you. They can also help those sixty-four and younger determine if a Health Insurance Marketplace plan would work for them. Ka-Nol has personally created insurance plans to help their clients. — Photo Meganpixels Parker “We have customers who have been with us for thirty years, ” Corbett says. “Once we write the policy, our work with the group or individual does not stop. We are there to assist if a question or problem arises. We find out what the solution is rather than placing that burden on the individual. We also sign up new employees on a monthly basis, and educate the employee and individual on the options that are available to them. It’s very important to us that we take care of both old and new customers alike.”  “With this being a family business,” says Chris, “the main goals that we pride ourselves on are our ethics and the value we place on our customers of Myrtle Beach and the surrounding areas. We focus totally on what the customer wants and needs. We want to make sure that we can sleep well at night knowing that we’re doing the best we can for them.”  Several months ago, Corbett celebrated the beginning of his 50th year in the employee benefit business.  “Putting the people first, serving our clients, and working for individuals is what I’m passionate about,” he says.  “In this business, every day you meet different people from all walks of life,” Stephanie says. “For me, the most rewarding thing is to give someone an insurance policy they’ve never had before, so they can go get the testing and care they need.” “All of our services are free of charge to you, and we will work hard to get you the best possible benefits at the best price,” says Corbett. “We are very thankful to all of our clients for allowing us to serve them, and hope you will give us the opportunity to serve you, too.” Ka-Nol Insurance Services 4549 Highway 17 Bypass South Myrtle Beach, SC 29577 M-Th 9am-4pm; F 9am-1pm 843-293-5514 www.kanolmarketing.com Facebook @ Ka-Nol Insurance Services