chamber celebrates small business
The Greater Shelby Chamber held a reception for the Small Business of the Year nominees as part of its Small Business Week Celebration last year. Pictured are John Collier, Brooke Story, Butch Byrd, Ballantrae Golf Club and Jeff Brown.
The Greater Shelby Chamber of Commerce has lined up a month of events to celebrate the county’s small businesses.
More than 70 percent of Chamber members are classified as small businesses, and the Chamber’s Small Business Work Group will host events this month to recognize their impact. Events, sponsored by Regions Bank, will conclude with the 2014 Small Business of the Year awards luncheon on June 25.
On June 23, the Chamber will host the Small Business nominees’ reception at Ballantrae Country Club in Pelham. The event is invite-only, but nominees and recipients will later be recognized at the luncheon.
During the luncheon, the Small Businesses of the Year, in four categories, will be recognized, and the recipients in each category will be announced. The event will also feature comments from Nick Pihakis from Jim ‘N Nick’s BBQ, sharing a local success story.
The luncheon will be 11 a.m.-1 p.m. on June 25 at the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena. Cost for members is $20 per person and $30 per person for nonmembers. Reservations are requested by noon on Monday, June 23. Call the Chamber at 663-4542 or register online at shelbychamber.org.
Recipients of the 2013 Small Business Person of the Year were:
- Walker Backflow and Fire Protection Services LLC: 1-10 employees, open one year or longer.
- Donut Joe’s Inc.: 11-20 employees, open one year or longer.
- Sav Mor Food Outlet: more than 20 employees, open one year or longer.
See more events celebrating small business as they’re announced at shelbychamber.org.
Small Business in Alabama
About 394,000 Alabama businesses have fewer than 500 employees.
They account for 96.9 percent of all employers.
They employ 49 percent of the private-sector labor force.
81 percent of all businesses in the state have no employees.
Most employers have fewer than 20 employees.
Source: 2010 sba.gov figures
