https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events Latest news and upcoming events from Our Milwaukee, local business advocate and information resource. en chuck@alterracoffee.com Copyright 2009 2009-04-30T20:53:06-06:00 https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/our_milwaukee_spring_09_buy_local_live_local_and_save_promotion/ https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/our_milwaukee_spring_09_buy_local_live_local_and_save_promotion/#When:20:53:06Z It’s time to spring into action and support local independent businesses with the Our Milwaukee Buy Local, Live Local and $ave campaign. From May 18th -24th, participating Our Milwaukee businesses will be offering specials, deals, and discounts celebrating the Buy Local Movement. Remember that by patronizing local businesses you create a positive economic impact in our community as well as showcase the one-of-a-kind goods and services that make Milwaukee like no other city!Press Release (PDF) Check out the great offers from these Our Milwaukee member businesses: Laacke & Joys In combination with our 165th Annual Anniversary Sale, TAKE AN EXTRA 10% OFF all products in our clothing, footwear, camping, travel, and patio furniture departments (excludes paddlesports). In our Paddlesports department, come by and take advantage of Paddlefest pricing early: all canoes and kayaks will be on sale and take 15% off all boating accessories. Soaps & Scents Thank you for 25 years of patronage. Please take 15% off your May 2009 purchase as a token of our gratitude for supporting Milwaukee’s own Soaps & Scents. (Not valid on previous purchases or in-store promotions). Chartreuse If you mention Our Milwaukee Buy Local week - you get 10% off your total purchase and a free Chartreuse organic cotton tote bag with any purchase over $50.00. The National The National Cafe and Takeaway offers 20% off any dine-in/takeaway orders over $20 for Buy Local & Save week, May 18 - 24.  Just tell our barista that you want to take part of the ‘Buy Local and Save’ offer and spend $20, and we’ll give you 20% off, but only from May 18 to 24 and only one to a customer, please! AJ Ugent Furs “Spring Fur Cleaning” – Spring Special. $69.00 (plus tax) includes cleaning, glazing, and storage. Free pick-up and delivery. Stephanie Bartz Photography Get a reprint package($65 value) when you book a photo session between May 18th-24th. Date of photo session TBD between client and Stephanie Bartz Photography. Maxie’s Southern Comfort Bring a receipt of purchase from any OUR MILWAUKEE business from May 18th - 24th and Maxie’s will buy one drink or one dessert ($6) on any tab over $25. Multiple receipts may be used but a maximum of $6 will be taken off for every $25 spent. Sprecher Brewery Mention “Our Milwaukee” and receive $1 off the Sprecher Brewery tour on Friday May 22 and Saturday May 23 ’09. Must call 414-964-2739 to make a reservation for the scheduled tour times. Flynn Fleming LLP Our law firm will make a special offer of a free power of attorney for health care when clients retain us to provide a will and a power of attorney for finances. Spring City Flowers Free flower delivery within the entire Milwaukee area, May 18-24. Eco Hatchery Eco Hatchery will offer 10% off all of our Eco Kits for the promotion period. Please use the following link to take advantage of this offer: http://www.ecohatchery.com/actionpack?setpromo=OURMILW17&join=eh49ef452240d63 Freckle Face Buy local, Save local, Read local. We know that you can purchase your books from many national retail stores. Why not shop your local children’s boutique instead, where we have hand picked a great selection of timeless classics as well as modern day favorites. Stop in today and browse our collection, sit in our cozy reading corner and pick a book or two to take home. Just mention the Buy Local campaign and receive 15% off all children’s books. Buy 5 or more books and receive a free book bag. Diablos Rojos - Café Hollander FREE COFFEE during our breakfast hours from 7am-11am, Monday thru Friday the week of May 18 - May 22nd with the purchase of any breakfast item. Outpost Natural Foods Click here to receive a coupon for one FREE mystery grab bag - while supplies last! Beans & Barley 10% off select made in Milwaukee products! Chocolates from Northern Chocolate, Greens from Growing Power, Crackers & Granola from Caroline’s, Popcorn from Jane’s, Iced Teas from Rishi, Pizza from Palermo’s and more!  Look for signs throughout the store. Stone Creek $1 off 1LB bags of Milwaukee Blend SHOP With every purchase May 18-24, pick a necklace or bracelet from SHOP’s jewelry tree! The Tool Shed + FREE special-edition Milwaukee Beersoap with every purchase over $20! Limit one per customer while supplies last. + Buy a product made in Wisconsin or Illinois and get 20% off a second item purchased at the same time. We carry locally-made bath and body products, massage oil, lingerie, wooden paddles, leather cuffs, floggers, greeting cards, jewelry, menstrual care products, and more. Look for the sexy cow symbol highlighting these goods in the store! Ink Designs 10% Off All Custom Orders placed the week of 5/18-24. Free Delivery within Milwaukee County. Pest Management Solutions LLC $20 discount on any new service or $20 cash for a new customer referral. Offer expires June 30, 2009. Referral fee is paid after new client’s first service appointment. Troy Freund Photography Business to Business Offer! For the week of May 18-24, Troy Freund Photography will donate 10% of any booked commercial or editorial photo shoot to one of the following organizations:  Artists Working in Education, the Urban Ecology Center, the Milwaukee Public Library, or Slow Food Wisconsin-SE.  To reiterate, a shoot only needs to be booked, not necessarily completed, during the week of May 18-24, in order to be eligible for the donation to occur. So, hire Troy Freund Photography during this week and not only will you support a local business, but you will also support a local social organization! The Establishment Salon May 18-24 FREE Eyebrow Wax w/ Any Haircut* FREE Haircut w/ any Color* *new clients only please Visit http://www.establishmentproductions.com and submit a haiku for your chance to win a $1000 Gift Certificate! Indulgence Chocolatiers Complimentary box of 4 of our signature truffles with every purchase of a 12 Truffle Gift Box or larger. Pabst/Riverside/Turner Hall TICKET DISCOUNT! $5 off the below shows Use this discount code when ordering:  LOCAL Third Eye Blind - Riverside, May 30th http://riversidetheater.org/thirdeyeblind Capitol Steps - Pabst, August 8th http://pabsttheater.org/capitolsteps Dar Williams - Turner Hall Ballroom, August 22nd http://turnerhallballroom.org/darwilliams It’s a good reminder that during these tough economic times, local businesses: + are less likely to leave when experiencing change and growth + are more invested in the community’s future + are the largest employer nationally + give back an average 250% more to local non-profits + keep our community unique 2009-04-30T20:53:06-06:00 https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/check_your_web_stats/ https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/check_your_web_stats/#When:19:51:56Z One of the most important things you can do once your business’ website is up and running is to keep track of the visitors that visit the site. About 95% of Our Milwaukee members have websites and hopefully they all have some sort of statistics tracking software installed, as the information it provides can be invaluable. For example, we know that the Our Milwaukee website had 729 visits in the last month with a huge spike in visitors on Dec. 28th. The spike was tracked to an article on usaweekend.com that linked to OurMilwaukee.net. It was exciting to see that almost 100 people came to check us out that day and about 70 came the day after. Our average is about 20-30 visits a day so we effectively tripled our exposure online over that time. Of course without a stats tracker we would have no idea of what was going on with our site. For a site that is e-commerce based, statistics are even more important and an amazing way to benchmark the success of your ad and marketing campaigns as well as the overall flow of traffic on your website. Some of the simpler things you’ll find stats on are location of visitors, landing pages, exit pages, time spent on the site, incoming links, click count and keywords that were used to find your site on search engines. All of these things can allow a business owner to become more aware of web trends and allow them to make more solid decisions when tweaking their website for maximum performance and search engine rating. I use the stats tracking service from Google (Google Analytics) but I am sure there are many other just as effective options out there. If anyone in the OM group needs more information or has any questions about online stats tracking please feel free to contact the website committee using the email address found in our directory in the members only area. - Posted by: Chuck - Website Committee Chair 2009-01-15T19:51:56-06:00 https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/our_milwaukee_in_the_news_-_2008/ https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/our_milwaukee_in_the_news_-_2008/#When:20:32:27Z 2008 was the first year of OM’s existence and not only did we see our membership exceed 50 businesses but we found ourselves mentioned in quite a few media outlets throughout the year, online and off. Online: OnMilwaukee.com - “OM Presents Buy Local Campaign” OnMilwaukee.com - “How and why to Buy Local for the Holidays” UsaWeekend.com - “Local and Loving It” About.com - “Keep it Local During Celebrate Your Independents! Week” AlterraCoffee.com - “Celebrate Our Milwaukee Local Businesses” BizJournals.com - “Milwaukee retailers pushing consumers to buy local” StoneCreekCoffee.com - “Our Milwaukee Buy Local Fair” VitalSourceMag.com - “Milwaukee merchants in the pull to keep it local” CooperativeGrocer.coop - “Co-op Helps Build Local Business Alliance” ExpressMilwaukee.com - “Pledge to Buy Local This Holiday Season” Offline: Shepherd Express Outpost Exchange Magazine Vital Source Magazine 88.9 Radio Milwaukee 91.7 WMSE Radio Fox 6 Wake-Up News These lists are a work in progress - if you know of any other Our Milwaukee mentions in the media, please let us know. Overall, it was a great year with a good amount of press for both the “Buy Local” movement and Our Milwaukee. We look forward to spreading the word about local living even further in 2009! 2009-01-15T20:32:27-06:00 https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/buy_local_fair_2008_-_recap/ https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/buy_local_fair_2008_-_recap/#When:19:35:47Z Thanks to everyone who participated in the very first Our Milwaukee Buy Local Fair this past December. We were thrilled to see it well attended by OM member businesses and the community. Shoppers enjoyed samples, great products, information and giveaways from Radio Milwaukee, WMSE Radio, Beans & Barley, Outpost Natural Foods, Rishi Tea, EcoHatchery, Chartreuse Ltd., Stone Creek Coffee, The Milwaukee Rep, Pabst & Riverside Theaters/Turner Hall Ballroom, Alterra Coffee and Stephanie Bartz. The event was held at the Urban Ecology Center in conjunction with Outpost Exchange’s Alternative Gift Fair, a great pairing for those looking to spend their money with the community in mind. Several hundreds of people made it to the fair (dispite of some cold, snowy weather) eager to shop and learn more about local Milwaukee businesses. Overall, the event was a huge success and we look forward to making this year’s fair even bigger and better! 2009-01-16T19:35:47-06:00 https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/our_milwaukee_a_proud_sponsor_of_pecha_kucha/ https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/our_milwaukee_a_proud_sponsor_of_pecha_kucha/#When:17:31:42Z We are happy to be sponsoring the 4th in the Milwaukee Pecha Kucha series. For more information on what Pecha Kucka is please visit http://www.pecha-kucha.org/. Come on out to see some poignant presentations and enjoy an excellent beer at Sugar Maple in Bay View. Pecha Kucha - Milwaukee Volume #4 at Sugar Maple 24 February 2009 START 8:00 DOOR $10 in advance, $12 at the door Marquette vs. MIAD Expect this to be a Pecha Kucha Milwaukee highlight, as some of our city’s brightest minds talk about their ideas. From Marquette University faculty and staff: Bill Henk, Laura Kestner, Linda Menck, Bill Cullinan, and Ed de St. Aubin. From Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design faculty: Leslie Fedorchuk, John Caruso, and James Weyenberg. Pecha Kucha #4 will take place at Sugar Maple: 441 E. Lincoln Bay View 2009-01-20T17:31:42-06:00 https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/2008_recap_pam_mehnert_board_president/ https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/2008_recap_pam_mehnert_board_president/#When:15:33:18Z There were many high and a few low points for Our Milwaukee during our first twelve months as a member organization. On the “high” side, we grew the organization from 8 to 59 members strong – clearly beginning to define Milwaukee’s true local landscape. We held two networking events for Our Milwaukee members, two Buy Local events in the community, and co-sponsored two local activities -  the Art vs. Craft and the Outpost Exchange Alternative Gift Fairs. We also got our website off the ground as a great resource for the community – now complete with a local business directory perfect for making those local choices. On the “low” side of the year, we lost two of our members who decided to close and/or sell their business. Atomic Records had been in business since 1985 and became a member of Our Milwaukee in March of 2008. To the dismay of many diehard fans, they announced the closing of their store in November, and are planning on their final day sometime in February 2009. Harry W. Schwartz Booksellers was one of the founding member organizations of Our Milwaukee and is a Milwaukee landmark (icon), operating for more than 82 years, in five area locations. News of the upcoming closing of Schwartz books shocked the community in mid January, and deeply saddened the members of the Our Milwaukee board who will be losing a great board member in Nancy Quinn from Schwartz. Two of the store’s locations will be sold to two HWS employees who will reopen the Downer Ave. and Mequon stores under new names. We would be honored to welcome them both as new members in 2009. – Pam Mehnert, board president 2009-01-23T15:33:18-06:00 https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/goals_for_2009/ https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/goals_for_2009/#When:15:47:09Z Our Milwaukee’s first planning session was held this past fall with member representative from more than twelve businesses. From that session Our Milwaukee’s board set some primary goals for the organization in 2009: 1. To achieve a renewal rate of 80% of current members 2. To grow new members by 50 in 2009 In order to achieve those primary goals we discussed plans of continuing to build value for our members through our programs, networking and public events. We also are working on improved communication processes with members and hope to get greater participation, which will foster our message of advocacy for local independent businesses. - Pam Mehnert, Board President 2009-01-23T15:47:09-06:00 https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/our_milwaukee_banner_available_for_use/ https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/our_milwaukee_banner_available_for_use/#When:15:18:24Z You’ll tell the world the world about the benefits of shopping local when you use our genuine Our Milwaukee large format banner at your next public event! Your Our Milwaukee alliance has one custom banner to loan, on a first come, first serve basis. If you’re interesting in borrowing this for your event, please contact Lisa Freed at lisaf@outpostnaturalfoods.coop or by calling (414) 431-3377 ext. 100. There is no fee for the use of the banner, but you do have to return or you’ll be responsible for replacement costs… that seems fair, don’t you think? 2009-01-27T15:18:24-06:00 https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/our_milwaukee_on_facebook/ https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/our_milwaukee_on_facebook/#When:15:22:50Z More than 100 million people around the world use facebook, and that number is growing every day. All the cool kids - and grown-ups too - use this amazing social networking tool daily and Our Milwaukee does as well! The next time you’re trolling the pages of your friends, take a second and check out our group. Join, upload your favorite photos and write on the wall. Then tell your friends to spread the word that Milwaukee cares about local businesses! 2009-01-27T15:22:50-06:00 https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/atomic_records_heinemanns_the_social_schwartz_bookshops/ https://ourmilwaukee.net/index.php/news_and_events/news_single/atomic_records_heinemanns_the_social_schwartz_bookshops/#When:15:24:54Z These and other locally owned businesses have closed or announced their final day of business. We wish this list didn’t exist, but it does, and unfortunately, the list keeps growing. No one is really immune to our changing economy, not even big business, but it hits particularly hard when our dearest local places have to shut their doors. One of the ways to strengthen our local businesses is to patronize them. It seems simple really, but we’re asking you to choose local first too! Another way to make us all stronger is to grow membership in Our Milwaukee. Please take a moment to talk to your favorite local places and invite them to become a member of our alliance. For the price of a small print ad, a business can join our nationally recognized buy local first alliance, increase the visibility of their business and continue to educate our community about the benefits of choosing local. Our heartfelt gratitude goes out to Atomic Records and Schwartz Bookshops. Both were early adopters of Our Milwaukee and Schwartz in particular was instrumental in developing the Our Milwaukee business alliance. We really can’t express the depth of our sorrow that these vibrant, long-standing locally owned businesses won’t be with us much longer. 2009-01-27T15:24:54-06:00