Category: Small business
By Danielle Walker
danielle.walker@insidebiz.com
In an industry where many fresh-out-of-pharmacy-school job applicants are offered six-figure gigs, bonuses and benefit packages by chain stores, the world of independent pharmacy ownership seems to be a dying breed.
Chris Lawrence, co-owner of MacArthur Good Neighbor Pharmacy in Norfolk, said the perks offered by the chain stores often seem like a no-brainer option for green workers entering the industry.
Lakeshia artis
lakeshia.artis@insidebiz.com
After lunch, most office workers experience the afternoon slump, where productivity starts to taper off.
Accountemps, a division of Robert Half International, a specialized international staffing firm, used an independent research firm to survey more than 1,000 managers at companies with 20 or more employees to assess what times of the day employees are the least productive.
By Bill Cresenzo
bill.cresenzo@insidebiz.com
About 2,500 people came to network with businesses - both big and small - at the sixth annual Black Business Expo.
Eunice Mitchell of Virginia Beach was at the expo, held at the Virginia Beach Convention Center last weekend, and attended a seminar, led by Alvin Payne, a banker with Wachovia, on how to start a small business.
Mitchell, who said she now works for the federal government, wants to start a concierge service for busy people who need someone to run errands, cook or provide other personalized services.
By Bill Cresenzo
bill.cresenzo@insidebiz.com
Four Hampton Roads companies have made the Inc. 500 list of the county's fastest-growing, privately held companies.
Each year, Inc. Magazine compiles a list of the 5,000 fastest-growing private U.S. companies. This year the top 500 had aggregate revenues of $11.3 billion, down from $18.4 billion in 2009. However, median three-year growth stood at 1,231 percent, up from 880.5 percent last year. The four Hampton Roads companies that made the list had combined revenues of $38.9 million. They are:
lakeshia artis
lakeshia.artis@insidebiz.com
Ten years ago, in November 2000, Joseph H. Ludlam Jr., a stockbroker with First Union Securities, walked into the Norfolk brokerage firm and beat his former boss, Timothy K. O'Shaughnessy, with a golf club before fatally shooting him.
Earlier this month Omar Thornton, a driver for a beer distribution company in Manchester, Conn., fatally shot eight people and wounded two others before turning the gun on himself.
By Danielle Walker
danielle.walker@insidebiz.com
The Indian-inspired decor and homey feel of Wink immediately caught the eyes of two MacArthur Center shoppers.
"I've seen it done on Oprah," said Deedra Smallwood, 26, about the threading technique she'd suddenly come face-to-face with at Wink Threading Studio.
Smallwood and her mother spotted the shop while walking through the mall in Norfolk, and her mother decided to get her eyebrows threaded for the first time.
By Danielle Walker
danielle.walker@insidebiz.com
This Thursday through Saturday, Aug. 19- 21, the sixth annual Virginia Black Expo will be held in venues throughout Virginia Beach.
Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling will kick off the event Thursday morning at the Westin at Virginia Beach Town Center, addressing around 250 attendees about "The State of Business for Virginia." Individuals from the business community will receive awards during the breakfast.
BY LAKESHIA ARTIS
lakeshia.artis@insidebiz.com
Mighty Wash brings its detailing and pressure-washing services to its customers, who are often people on the go.
"Customers don't have to go to the car wash and automotive detailer," said Ash Gilpin, co-owner. "They can be at work or at home and we can come over and detail their car."
Mighty Wash, co-owned by Luke Bilger, serves the Hampton Roads area and offers additional services including pressure-washing boats, planes, driveways, decks and home exteriors.
By Danielle Walker
danielle.walker@insidebiz.com
Five years ago, Galiana Lindsey subleased a work space after a fire at her Chesapeake salon. She told her former boss there that if she ever left, she'd only work for herself.
Now, the 48-year-old stylist has her own space at 774-A Hilltop North Shopping Center in Virginia Beach.
Galiana's Hair Studio is just one of 26 salons in her building.
Lindsey works inside Salon Plaza - a suite rental provider for stylists seeking their own space.
by lakeshia artis
lakeshia.artis@insidebiz.com
Leave your worries at the door and get pampered at La Dolce Vita Salon. Massages, hair and nail care, spray tanning and facials are on the menu at the full-service salon and spa, which carries products by Onesta, Sebastian and John Amico.
La Dolce Vita, which means "sweet life" in Italian, has three massage rooms for individuals and couples. There is a facial room and manicure/pedicure rooms with state-of-the-art pedicure chairs, along with two stations in the hair salon area.
