January 26, 2023

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Out & About with Donna

Dr. Jin Hee Kwak (center) and her team at ClearWave Orthodontics

Donna Visits ClearWave Orthodontics

The South Bay is home to many extraordinary businesses, and behind those businesses are extraordinary individuals. This week I had the opportunity to visit Dr. Jin (Jinny) Hee Kwak, owner of ClearWave Orthodontics. I immediately felt welcomed entering the office, and it did not take me long to recognize that Dr. Jinny is one of the South Bay’s extraordinary individuals.


Opening ClearWave Orthodontics in 2022, Dr. Jinny and her team have welcomed 160 new patients. ClearWave provides leading edge orthodontic care with Invisalign, traditional braces, clear ceramic braces, and lingual braces. With a staff of two full time and two part time employees, Dr. Jinny is proud of what her staff achieves as a team. She also acknowledges the quality of health care providers in the South Bay community and the opportunity to partner with many of them. Read More...

News

Consumer Spending Drops

Retail sales fell a sizeable 1.1% in December. That is after a 1% drop in November. Consumer strength is wavering.


Why it matters: Surprising consumer strength has buoyed the economy since COVID, but it finally seems to be buckling under the weight of inflation. The broad weakness in the spending data shows no sectors are being spared from consumers pulling back. Read More...

State of the Region to Address Relevant Issues

The Torrance Area Chamber of Commerce will hold its 21st annual State of the Region on Friday, February 17th. This event will begin at 12:00 PM at the DoubleTree by Hilton Torrance - South Bay.


Congressional representatives Maxine Waters, 43rd District and Ted Lieu, 36th District will speak to issues and topics of importance to businesses including economic health, housing supply, antitrust legislation, gun restrictions, transportation, healthcare, veterans, infrastructure funding, and immigration.

Click here to RSVP for State of the Region

Chamber Welcomes Torrance Police Chief Hart

Torrance Police Chief Jeremiah Hart engaged with several Torrance Area Chamber of Commerce members yesterday to listen to business concerns. Topics included quality of life crimes, homelessness, thefts of cars or parts of cars, commercial burglaries, organized retail crime, and street vendors.  

California's Wealthiest Residents Could

Pay More Taxes Under New Bill

Multimillionaires and billionaires would face new taxes on their wealth under a bill pushed by a group of California Democrats, who argue the state needs to aggressively crack down on “extreme wealth.”


Similar proposals have died in recent years, but the lawmakers backing the plan this year say they hope coordination with other states, an influx of new lawmakers in Sacramento and a looming budget deficit will give the proposal better odds. Read More...

Meet Board Member Karen Pryor

Karen Pryor began her mortgage lending career as a broker associate in 1993. Focusing on referral-based business, she grew her loan production, became a retail branch of a direct lender, then in 2017, took on a regional role, managing both wholesale and retail channels for another direct lender.


Ultimately, she realized she had drifted far from her original passion: helping to make a difference on a personal level. Deciding to focus on reverse mortgage lending, she opened her own company, Pryority Lending Group, and immediately joined the Torrance Area Chamber of Commerce as a way to reconnect with local businesses. It was through her Chamber membership that her own business took off. Obtaining her Certified Reverse Mortgage Professional designation (one of less than 100 in CA), she then joined Mutual of Omaha Reverse in July of 2022, acknowledging that they had superior brand name recognition! Read More...

Karen Pryor

Mutual of Omaha Reverse

Upcoming Events

Tuesday, January 31st, 7:45 AM - Business at Breakfast

Thursday, February 2nd, 8:30 AM - Small Business Council

Tuesday, February 7th, 8:30 AM - Chamber 101

Thursday, February 9th, 12:00 PM - Government Affairs Policy

Online Calendar
New Members: Welcome!

Buckingham Investments | Sweetgreen

Renewing Members: Thank you!

1 - 10 Years

Happy Hats for Kids in Hospitals

InForm Notary Solutions

Prime Source Project Management

Fantastic Sams

Guaranty Escrow

Sunrise Palos Verdes

James W. Mellert D.D.S. & Associates

Minuteman Press Torrance

Rotary Club of South Bay Sunrise

10 - 20 Years

South Bay Hyundai

Discover Torrance Visitors Bureau

South Bay Hearing & Balance Center

Friendship Transport, Inc.

FILTEC


20 - 35 Years

California State University, Dominguez Hills

Bluestem Hotel Torrance

Sumitomo Electric U.S.A. Inc.

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For more information about the Torrance Area Chamber of Commerce, call (310) 540-5858 or
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