Blount Partnership News and Events

COFFEE CLUB WEEK

Wake up to new business contacts at Coffee Club held at PCS (1720 Topside Rd., Louisville) on August 29 from 7:45-9 a.m. Coffees are designed to offer members the opportunity to build business relationships and to gain exposure for their business or organization in an "open house" setting.

Coffees are open to anyone associated with a Chamber member business. Participation is not reserved to the representative(s) listed on the Chamber membership.

CONGRESSMAN BURCHETT VISIT

Congressman Tim Burchett is scheduled to visit the Blount Chamber membership on August 29 from 2-2:50 p.m. at the 510 Center, 2950 Airfield Services Drive, Alcoa.

This event is limited to 80 people, so please RSVP alawson@blountpartnership.com to secure your spot.

THE SOCIAL BRAND RIBBON CUTTING

The Social Brand, the brainchild of owners, Victory Harbin and Chad Rogers, is having its official launch party and ribbon cutting on August 27 from 4-5 p.m. at 5401 Kingston Pike, Suite 240, in Knoxville and you are officially invited.

Tickled Orange Photo Booth and Best Bites Catering will be on hand to provide entertainment and delicious bites for the guests. Chad and Victory look forward to seeing new and familiar faces at the ribbon cutting and the official launch for The Social Brand.

TASTE OF BLOUNT TICKETS ON SALE

Tickets are on sale for the 18th annual Taste of Blount, a collection of savory food favorites from restaurants, caterers, food trucks and gourmet grocers, at the Theater in the Park in Maryville on Sept. 5 from 6-8 p.m.

Tickets, which are $25 for Blount County Chamber members, $30 for the public and $15 for students 17 and under or those with a college or student ID, are available at the Chamber office (201 S. Washington St., Maryville, Tenn.), by phone 865.983.2241 or online. Tickets are available at the door the night of the event on a cash-only basis. Student tickets are available at the Chamber office only prior to the event date.

TAKE THE DOWNTOWN ASSOCIATION SURVEY

The Maryville Downtown Association is seeking your input. Please take this one-minutes and complete this survey for the betterment of downtown Maryville. The deadline is August 30.

VISIT THE DIALOGUE

Check out The Dialogue in this email where we visit with Mike Presley, owner of Perfect Logo Promotions which can brand and promote your logo with custom apparel and t-shirts, corporate wear, and uniforms with embroidery and screen printing, promotional products, and signs.

SIGN UP FOR SUPERVISOR'S TRAINING

Join us for an HRCI-approved Supervisor's Training workshop on Sept 4 from 8:30-11 a.m. at the Blount Partnership (201 S. Washington St., Maryville). The cost is $30 per person for Chamber members and $50 per person for non-members. REGISTER HERE.

Sponsored by Wimberly Lawson, topics covered are:

FMLA: Identification of recent legal updates in the FMLA as well as proper administration of FMLA leaves of absences for an extended period of time and FMLA leaves of absences that are intermittent.

Manager's Survival Guide: Discrimination, harassment, and Alphabet Soup (ADA, FMLA, FLSA): Learn to prevent and recognize issues with respect to discrimination, harassment, Americans with Disabilities Act, Family Medical Leave Act and Fair Labor Standards Act.

Marijuana in the Workplace: Can you test for marijuana, can you discipline employees who test positive, and what are the ADA ramifications?

CHAMBER BOARD NOMINATIONS

The Blount County Chamber of Commerce is accepting nominations for the 2020 Blount County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors until Aug. 30, 2019. Submit your nomination here.

FREE DIY MARKETING WORKSHOP

Join Epic Nine at the Blount Partnership (201 S. Washington St., Maryville) on August 28 at 9 a.m. for a FREE DIY Marketing Workshop.

A marketing plan is the compass of your business's marketing efforts. Without one, you risk getting lost in the forest of boosting Facebook posts, or stranded on the mountain of inefficient Yelp ads. At the end of the day, you will have a marketing plan that will help you reach your best customers, stay focused, create goals, and measure results. RSVP HERE.

TMA STATEWIDE TOUR

The 2019 Tennessee Manufacturing Association statewide tour makes a stop in Maryville at DENSO Manufacturing (1720 Robert C Jackson Drive) on Sept. 5 from 7:30-9 a.m. Manufacturing is critical to our economic growth and the forum provides updates and discussion regarding important policy topics impacting small, medium and large size manufacturers.

Modern manufacturing is facing a number of key challenges in particular; a shortage in skilled labor, quickly advancing technologies and global competition. The 2019 State of Manufacturing Tour is for, and about, Tennessee's manufacturing workers. TMA will provide updates on the successes and challenges that are facing manufacturers today, including more information on Industry 4.0 and Advanced Manufacturing. Your must RSVP online to attend.

SIGN UP FOR THE LATEST SOFT SKILLS CLASS

It's Your Career! That's the focus of a free soft skills session offered in partnership by the Blount County Public Library, the Adult Education Foundation of Blount County and the Blount County Chamber of Commerce.

Registrations are currently being accepted online at www.blountchamber.com for a class entitled Communicating and Listening Effectively on August 30. All participants will earn .5 CEUs per session for participating. They will also receive an email survey two months after workshop participation to assess application of new ideas.

All classes are conducted in the Blount County Library's learning lab located at 508 N. Cusick in Maryville and limited to 50 participants. A complete class description is located on the registration site. All classes run from 8-10 a.m. with networking beginning at 7:30 a.m.

YOU CAN POST YOUR OWN MEMBER-TO-MEMBER DEALS

Blount Chamber members can now post their own Member-to-Member deals on this page at no charge. Simply login to your account, Click on the "New Coupon" button, fill out the form and click save. It's that easy.

Click here if you need access to your login information.

Of course, we will be happy to add your coupon. Just email information about the product or discount you'd like to offer to the Chamber membership to jmuir@blountpartnership.com. Be sure to include an expiration date.

View the latest deals.

REMEMBER TO SHOP LOCAL

Think local first + Buy local when you can = Being a local!

Find what you're looking for in the Chamber Directory.

GOT AN EVENT OR NEWS? WE'D LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT

Is your organization hosting an event in the community? Submit it here on our community calendar. If it's a tourism event or any good news about your business, please send it to us. We'd love to share it with the community.

REMEMBER WHEN

Topping the Billboard Hot 100 chart this week in 1968 was "People Got to Be Free" by The Rascals. It became a big hit in the turbulent summer of 1968, spending five weeks atop the Billboard Pop Singles chart.

The Dialogue

This feature is a question-and-answer session with a new Blount County Chamber member. So, here we go with our 142nd installment visiting with Mike Presley, owner of Perfect Logo Promotions which can brand and promote your logo with custom apparel and t-shirts, corporate wear, and uniforms with embroidery and screen printing, promotional products, and signs.

Tell me more about Perfect Logo Promotions. I started this company because there was opportunity to begin an embroidery business and the type of work is something I enjoy doing. After starting as an embroidery business, the business evolved over the years to add screen printing, promotional products, and signs.

How did you get started in this business? I learned about the opportunity and need for embroidery in Knoxville and my desire to move back there.

What is your background? I bought an embroidery machine and then received the training necessary to learn to operate it. Then by being in business, learned about all the other aspects of adding other products and services to provide branded products.

Describe your customers. Business, corporations, individuals, events, trade shows, teams, organizations, clubs, schools, churches: anyone needing their logo on a product.

What do you enjoy most about the business? Working with people and providing them with a quality product they need.

View previous Profiles

	Events

	Aug. 26-Sept. 1 August 26 -- Back the Blue Event August 26 -- Southern Appalachian Studies Series: That Good Ol' Mountain Dew: Moonshine in the Great Smoky Mountains August 27 -- The Social Brand's Grand Opening August 28 -- Seed Saving 101 with Ben Cohen August 29 -- Coffee Club sponsored by PCS August 29 -- EnVision's 5th Annual New Frame Trunk Show August 29 -- Hot Summer Nights Concert Series: Knoxville Opera presents a concert of Broadway, Operetta, and Opera Selections August 30-31 -- Barbara and James Dull at the Townsend Visitors Center August 30 -- Tall Tales of Tennessee August 31 -- Good Time Trio at The Townsend Abbey September 1 -- A Gathering of Ancient Sounds: Celtic and Appalachian Musical Roots September 1-5 -- Corinne Coley and Bill Saltz at the Townsend Visitors Center September 2-8 September 2-5 -- Corinne Coley and Bill Saltz at the Townsend Visitors Center September 4 -- Supervisor's Training Seminar September 5 -- Taste of Blount September 5 -- Songs By The Brook Concert Series September 6-7 -- Great Smoky Mountains Half Marathon September 6-9 -- Cathy Coulter at the Townsend Visitors Center Save the Date September 16 -- Women in Business September 17 -- Power Connect Lunch September 20 -- Alcoa, Maryville and Blount County School Superintendents September 26 -- Coffee Club sponsored by United Way of Blount County You can access the Bount County Chamber events calendar here or the community calendar here.

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