Sunday, December 27, 2009

2009, Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow....

Bidding goodbye to the year 2009 won’t be such a difficult thing to do, will it? I hear this sentiment more and more as the new year approaches and at first I laughingly agreed. Yeah, 2009….good riddance with your economic woes, your politics and your generally depressing atmosphere…..we’re ready for something new!

Then I thought about it for a while and my opinion has changed. The new year is inevitable but it was this last year that taught us many valuable things. I don’t want to throw 2009 away completely, because this year saw some very awesome things happening at WFS and in Altadena. How awesome could it have been, you might ask? Let’s take a look…..

2009 saw the Altadena Arts Coalition firm its mission and help increase awareness of the North Lake Business District as not only a convenient shopping destination but as a culture hub as well. July’s Project: Altadena was a huge success that was enjoyed by so many! The Coalition looks forward to planning many more art-centered community functions in the coming year.

2009 taught us how to tighten our belts and taught us resiliency. Never before have we had to strategize so carefully and learn to make correct quick decisions. We’re pretty proud to say that in a year that saw many lay-offs and business closings, we managed to give our employees a small salary increase, and only lost one to greener pastures. 2009 taught us to value our crew members more than ever and that their role in the development of WFS is just as important as ours.

2009 was also the year of the Business Builders Bootcamp at the Women's City Club in Pasadena. Wonderful friends invited me to join the ladies there and I'm so thankful they did! The intelligence, ingenuity and creativity of the women in this group is astounding and I'm amazed every time I attend. A very special shout-out to the members (you know who you are!)....thanks to all of you!

2009 was the year we educated you on the value of shopping locally. It was also the year The 3/50 Project was born, which was fortuitous because it gave you concrete evidence of how money spent locally affects your community’s economic health. Keeping your town’s local character alive is crucial to its survival and it’s a good thing to know how you can help.

2009 saw WFS develop and move more in the direction we’re working toward. In addition to jewelry and art cards by local artists, we added books by several Altadena authors. We’re very excited about this facet of WFS and intend to expand it in the coming months. We’re also pleased to be aiding the Christmas Tree Lane Association by carrying their merchandise all year round and giving them 75% of the sales. We added wonderful fair-trade goods to our product mix and discovered that we like the way that made us feel! We plan to look for more fair trade goods to offer you in the future, and we’re also working on a local artist’s collaboration that promises to be fabulous!

So you see, 2009 wasn’t all that bad. We’re positive, though, that 2010 will be our year, and your year, too…..I feel it right in the center of my heart! Happy New Year to you all!

---Lori & Scott

6 comments:

Monica Hubbard said...

Thanks for all you are doing for our community, Lori. We're rooting for you and WFS! Best wishes for continued success in 2010!

Unknown said...

Thank you kindly, Monica! We value your support and friendship!

Petrea Burchard said...

Excellent post, Lori. My favorite of yours so far. I'm excited, too, about all the things we've learned this past year.

The Sage of Altadena said...

Right on, Lori! Let's leave 2009 behind, smoke and all, and move on to a better 2010! Thanks for all you and the AAC do for our North Lake businesses!

Cinda Baxter, The 3/50 Project said...

Thanks for such a great post, Lori. Although 2009 proved challenging (understatement of the century) for locally owned businesses, it also taught many valuable lessons that will make all of us better and stronger moving forward.

There's always a silver lining somewhere...just need to squint reeeeeeally hard sometimes to see it.

Here’s to big things ahead for all the little guys out there,

Cinda Baxter
Founder
The 3/50 Project
http://www.The350Project.net

Unknown said...

Thank you, Cinda....and thank you for all you've done for small businesses across the nation!