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Member Spotlight:

Grand Slam Toys & Games

By: Sarah Phillips

Grand Slam Toys & Games has been a long-time Kodiak staple, and owners Beth and Zach Koehler are proud to be a part of its history. "Everything in our lives has led us to this" explains Beth. As a Coast Guard family, they struggled finding their next steps with Zach retiring next year. Although they have lived all over the world, nowhere has ingrained itself so deeply as Kodiak. Kodiak has truly become “home” and they weren’t ready to leave, but they needed to find a way to make a living. A little over a year ago, they stopped by Grand Slam to pick up a few goodies (it was still owned by the previous owners). Leaving with their goodies, they were overcome by excitement and ideas and began discussing how much fun it would be to own Grand Slam. A few days later, Grand Slam was for sale... Five days after that, Beth and Zach were under contract to buy! They walked through the doors as new owners a year ago on Black Friday.

Beth and Zach see their ownership of Grand Slam Toys & Games as a way to give back to the community that has given them so much. In the last year, they have worked hard to make a place for all ages and interests in the Kodiak Community; a place to come together for fun. What does it take to bring fun to Kodiak? A complete commitment to fun, that’s what! Beth and Zach attend toy and game conventions, Zach watches hours of people playing games, and Beth is working to become a certified play expert. All this so they can offer the best toys & games to Kodiak. Each item in the store is hand-picked to meet standards of quality, fun, and/or sensory needs. When Beth gave me a tour of the store, it was easy to see her excitement, attention to details, and love of fun! Grand Slam Toys & Games has a complete array of offerings, from beautifully illustrated Harry Potter books, and children’s books to toys targeting development and sensory needs to games for all. If you’re anything like me, you may come in for a gift for someone and walk out with a gift and something special for yourself!

Partnering with the Kodiak Historical Society/ Baranov Museum for story times and offering the Angel Tree has brought holiday magic into an already bright and magical shop. Grand Slam Toys & Games is a place for children of all ages to play and gamers to game. Kids and kids at heart should be sure to stop by during one of their weekly game nights on Friday’s from 5-10. Try out all sorts of games, it’s fun for the whole family, and you can come and go as you please!

Come and be a part of all the fun by coming to this week’s Business After Hours on December 6th from 5-7. See below for full details. Be sure to support Beth and Zach by shopping locally this holiday season and throughout the entire year. 

Business After Hours is a social/networking event that is free and open to all!

When: December 6th

Time : 5:00-7:00 PM

Where: Grand Slam Toys & Games

1420 Mill Bay Road

Suite A

This month, Grand Slam Toys and Games will be hosting an evening of (what else) Fun and Games! Join us on December 6th to learn all about this unique Kodiak shop, and why they love what they do. We'll be playing games, eating yummy snacks, and giving away door prizes. Don't miss out on this exclusive opportunity to have fun, play games, and do a little holiday shopping while you network!

We'll also have the ever popular Split-The-Pot for your chance to win half the Chamber collected cash at the end of the evening. The other half of the proceeds go to the Kodiak Chamber of Commerce Scholarship Fund.

Come out, have fun, learn a new game or two, and do some good by supporting one of our locally owned businesses.

2019 Relocation Guide Ads

Advertising spots are due December 12th for our 2019 Relocation Guide!

Each year the Kodiak Chamber of Commerce produces a booklet filled with information on our community. We're making a few changes this year. The newest edition of the Relocation Guide will feature narratives for purchase which highlight details to make your business stand out. The Relocation Guide still includes business and organization listings, facts about Kodiak, and local photography!

Our guide is distributed throughout the year at Chamber events, on the Coast Guard Base, and to anyone requesting information on Kodiak through our office. We are expecting an even wider distribution than ever before, as the guide will be available for all new visitors and those going to and coming from the ferry terminal.

A variety of ad sizes and additional business narratives are available to fit your needs and your budget. Space is limited, so click HERE for more information and to sign-up!

As a reminder, all of our PIKE sponsors receive a free ad and narrative in the Relocation Guide. If you are interested in becoming a PIKE Sponsor, reach out to Sarah .

Please direct questions to Sarah Phillips , Community Relations Director (907) 486-5557.

Chamber of Commerce organizes expert panel to help protect Kodiak shops

By: ALISTAIR GARDINER

[email protected] 

Following a spate of break-ins and burglaries, a small crowd of local business owners gathered to hear advice from a panel of local law enforcers and security experts in the Kodiak Island Borough Assembly chambers Wednesday.

 

Prompted by the flurry of crime, the Kodiak Chamber of Commerce organized the meeting to inform business owners how to best protect themselves from break-in attempts.

 

On the panel were Sgt. Daniel Blizzard, from the local Alaska State Troopers post; Lt. Francis de la Fuente and Chief Tim Putney, from the Kodiak Police Department; Daniel Eubanks, a consultant on personal protection, workplace violence and active shooters; and Jay Baldwin, a representative from Kodiak Crime Stoppers and a local security systems expert.

 

“In the last couple of weeks, we’ve definitely noticed an uptick in commercial burglaries — especially in the business districts in town, Mill Bay Road and downtown,” Putney said. “We’ve had extra officers working overtime at night … even with extra officers on, we’ve still had some break-ins.”

 

According to Putney, KPD have “a couple of suspects in mind” who have “probably been arrested for this in the past,” and are chasing down leads.

 

“Unfortunately, they seem to have a little more knowledge than the typical person, as far as, how they’re going about their activity,” he said. “It’s something we haven’t seen much of in Kodiak. It’s probably someone who’s been arrested for this before, gone to jail and learned what not to do.”

 

Putney said that the video footage that the department is receiving from a number of businesses is useful, even if all it provides is the specific time of the crime. He reiterated that businesses should invest in some kind of security system and video systems. Audible alarms in particular, he said, have proven to be effective in deterring theft locally.

 

“We’ve found that a lot of places have had people come in through secondary doors and not just the ones you might think of — not necessarily a back door, but they’ll come in through a boiler room door, break a hole in your sheet rock and come into your business,” Putney said. “So just a traditional alarm on just your front door and just the windows probably isn’t going to do much good.”

 

Putney went on to say that if a business owner notices that they may have been broken into, the best course of action is to leave the premises immediately and call the police, in order to preserve any potential evidence that may have been left at the scene.

 

Sgt. Blizzard said that, although most of the recent break-ins hit businesses in town, that doesn’t mean that businesses outside of the city aren’t targets. He suggested that those thinking about setting up video surveillance systems should use cloud-based storage, rather than a physical hard-drive that can be stolen or damaged. He also advised business owners to remove all cash from the premises.

 

“Another thing I would mention is: don’t try to take things into your own hands, stake out your own business at night,” Blizzard said. “We’ve been running into people and they are armed … whether it’s a fake gun or a real gun.”

 

Baldwin distributed a pamphlet that featured tips to reduce a business’s chance of being targeted, such as clearing the surrounding area of shrubs or other objects that could be used by criminals for cover and installing outdoor lighting.

 

Eubanks spoke at length on the importance of taking private and personal security into your own hands. While he praised the work of Kodiak’s local law enforcers, he noted that some burglaries take place over mere minutes — in which case, dialing 911 is not necessarily an effective preventative measure.

 

Putney later corroborated this, saying, “one of these places in town that was broken into, the guy was in and out in 25 seconds.”

 

Eubanks went on to advise that all business owners train their staff to be aware of potential thefts and analyze shift structures to ensure that there is always an employee present to keep an eye out.

 

Representing Aksala Electronics, Curt Law asked the panel how much of the recent crime is related to substance abuse. Putney replied that he suspects it’s “hand-in-hand with substance abuse,” noting that most of what has been stolen is cash.

 

Another business-owner asked if there was some way to set up a system by which business owners could communicate with each other, to share photographs of suspicious individuals and other useful information.

 

Putney replied that there is a business equivalent of the Neighborhood Watch program, which KPD would be happy to launch locally if there was enough interest.

 

“That would probably be a good point for people to periodically get together with fellow small business owners and we can have those conversations together,” he said. “You know, if you’ve got four outside cameras and your neighbor only has three, maybe you could kind of get together and decide how they could best be utilized.”

 

The same business owner asked what happens to burglars if they are arrested. Putney replied that they will “most likely” be out of jail within days, which he commented is “frustrating for all of us.”

 

“But hopefully they’ll have a bracelet that tells us where they’re at,” he said. “Believe it or not, we’ve had people that are dumb enough to break into a place with a GPS monitor on their ankle. Those are pretty easy to solve.”

2019 Crab Festival Logo & Poster Contests

“Seas the Day – Crabè Diem”

Make your mark on Crab Festival History! Enter your designs in the 2019 Kodiak Crab Festival Logo & Poster Contest! 

Logo Contest - If your design is selected, you will have your artwork displayed on the 2019 Crab Festival shirts, buttons, pins, and promotional advertising. Winner receives $200 and a selection of Crab Festival Merchandise. Be sure to follow full contest details to be considered.

Poster Contest - Artwork in all mediums will be accepted, including and not limited to paintings, prints, photography, digital illustrations, and high-quality photographs of a 3D piece. Work should be representative of Kodiak and marketable to a wide audience. The winner will receive $200! Be sure to follow full contest details to be considered.

The Crab Fest Committee has selected the slogan “Seas the Day – Crabè Diem” for 2019 Kodiak Crab Festival.

All submissions for the 2019 Crab Festival must reach the Kodiak Chamber of Commerce office, 100 Marine Way, by 5pm on Tuesday, January 8th, 2019.

ComFish Exhibitor Registration has Begun

Are you interested in becoming an exhibitor at Alaska's Premier Commercial Fisheries Trade Show? In its 40th year, this long running trade show brings together gear vendors, government agencies, and nonprofits involved in every aspect of commercial fishing.

Each year ComFish features fishing industry leaders with cutting edge technology and information, a list of ComFish 2019 exhibitors will be released in early March. Those interested in exhibiting during ComFish 2019 should register .

Registration began November 30th, 2018.

Board of Directors

Contact Us

Phone: (907) 486-5557

Executive Director: Frank Schiro

Community Relations Director: Sarah Phillips