Business: Daily Loaf, Creative Loafing Tampa

Tampa Downtown Partnership's Lunch on the Lawn lacking-photos from Friday's event

Chip Weiner — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 08:36:21 -0400

Most tables were empty and crowds were thin for Friday afternoon's event

It makes sense that The Tampa Downtown Partnership would try to meet the needs of restaurants based in downtown.…

Buy Pinellas Park program supports and promotes local businesses

Mina Abgoon — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 12:46:45 -0400

We live in a society where a majority of the population shops at mainstream businesses. For this reason, it's sometimes difficult for local businesses to flourish.…

CL on the Road: SXSW 2012, the future of music, film and interactive

Joran Oppelt — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 10:46:00 -0400

For continued coverage and commentary, follow me on Twitter @joranslane
To see all videos, subscribe to my YouTube channel here.

…

The Lens approved by City Council as new Pier design

Arielle Stevenson — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 18:26:00 -0500

Every member of St. Petersburg City Council except one approved Michael Maltzan Architecture's Lens design today, officially ending the design competition for The Pier. But the Council prefaced the vote with a number of pointed questions about the multiple phases of the project presented by Maltzan.…

Rainbow411 — Connecting the LGBT community with LGBT-friendly businesses

Alexandra Lundahl — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 20:20:00 -0400

Each year, Greg Henchar asked his company for domestic partner benefits. And each year, they said no.…

RNC 2012 & Tampa strippers: Perfect together?

Shawn Alff — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 08:51:00 -0400

Politicians are huge supporters of the adult industry. Former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer launched the modeling and writing career of working girl Ashley Dupre after anonymously donating several thousand dollars to her employer.…

Digby County wind farm: A $9.2 million clean energy investment

Jennifer Meier-Herz — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 09:00:00 -0400

Ottawa has announced that they will be funding a $9.2 million dollar wind farm in Digby County. The government has chosen to invest in alternative sources of energy, and of the many different options, the Nova Scotia wind farm is a way for the country to test new energy sources and contribute to the productivity of their economy.…

Submit recycled/repurposed/upcycled projects to NBC and Etsy's 'The Art of ReUSE' contest

Katie Machol — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 08:00:37 -0400

NBC and their Green is Universal initiative -- which they're now rolling out every year in honor of Earth Day -- has teamed up with Etsy, the handmade online bazaar, for The Art of ReUSE competition.

The contest is asking for submissions of recycled and repurposed creations made from unwanted items that might normally be considered trash.…

Six ways to improve business efficiency online

Selena Narayanasamy — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 11:29:30 -0400

Businesses are always on the look out for new methods to increase efficiency since leaner operations generally mean less cost and more profit.

With many online business operations, companies can find a plethora of means to increase their financial gains.…

From Gucci to Dunkin' Donuts, six brands making smart use of social media

Selena Narayanasamy — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 14:42:34 -0500

The social media landscape is not a forgiving place.

Though opportunities abound, it's tough for business owners to implement a social media idea that pays off and takes root.…

Fresh from Social Fresh: Social Media Hospitality

Andi Graham — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 15:59:50 -0500

The 9th Social Fresh social media conference made its way to Tampa last week, and filled the DoubleTree Westshore with hundreds of social media geeks. Marketers, PR specialists, small business owners, and agency consultants spent two days exploring the latest trends and industry best practices in the realm of social media marketing.…

Publix Super Markets, Inc. leaps into the future with Curbside

Elizabeth Graham — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 15:31:39 -0500

We are bombarded with choices everywhere we go, and supermarkets are definitely no exception.

Looking for the word ‘non-fat’ is no longer the single criteria for health-conscious grocery shopping.…

10/100/1000: Proposals for community gardens, mentoring, local shoppers, persons with disabilities and more

David Warner — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 08:59:18 -0500

The 10/100/1000 Challenge is not even a day old, but we already have an impressive roster of applicants. Go to cltampa.com/ten100 to read about — and perhaps vote for — such projects as the following:

• A contest to find the most community-minded shopper in Tampa Bay

• An art-based employment initiative for people with disabilities

• A mentoring program for youth trying to break the cycle of poverty

• A non-profit organization to develop organic community gardens for families in need.…

Toyota social media case study for 'less successful' auto manufacturers

Selena Narayanasamy — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 16:05:17 -0500

Reaching more than 106 million readers, video viewers, and customers with its social media campaign, Toyota is a perfect case study for other big brands.

Though Ford and GM have also been set aside for their social marketing success, Toyota alone is successful in spite of minor setbacks and brand misconceptions.…

Cigar City Brewing invites local artists to design the 2011 Tocobaga Red Ale label

Sean Nordquist — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 16:00:37 -0500

Have you ever wanted to have your artwork to show up on a craft beer label? Maybe you fancy yourself the next Randy Mosher or Ralph Steadman.…

Top eight social media trends to expect in 2011

Selena Narayanasamy — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 11:24:20 -0500

The social media craze is a hot, trending subject, but also one that constantly changes and updates itself.

It seems like just when you think you've got a pretty good handle on one of the social media platforms, it goes and improves itself.…

CL Auction Wild Wednesday: 18 items closing today

David Warner — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 07:34:39 -0500

It's the next-to-last day in the Creative Loafing Holiday Auction for the benefit of The Children's Home, and it's a big one. Almost 20 items close today starting at 12 noon and continuing until 7 p.m., ranging from amazing gift certificate packages to concert and theater-ticket offers you won't see anywhere but here.…

CL Holiday Auction: New totals, new items, great deals

David Warner — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 19:38:43 -0500

The CL Online Holiday Auction had a very nice Cyber Monday. And Tuesday.…

9 on-the-go business iphone apps

Selena Narayanasamy — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 15:49:12 -0500

I don’t care what anybody says.

You don’t need to be in the office to get work done.…

Cigar City Brewing's Tasting Room threatened by Tampa City Council

Sean Nordquist — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 17:30:05 -0500

Politics in Florida are a tricky thing. From hanging chads to the election of questionable candidates, just when we seem to think we are gaining a little respect again in the country, something ridiculous happens. This is true even down to the local governments. Like Tampa, home of Cigar City Brewing.

Cigar City opened a tasting room last year to much success. By being able to extend their hours of operation and sell and serve beer on premises, this local business was able to increase its employee count from 2 to 22. Serving award-winning craft beer in a comfortable and friendly environment, they have operated without incident, which few other establishments can claim. In a short time, Cigar City has achieved national (and international) recognition for its creative and consistently excellent craft beer. In a state that has been often referred to as a "beer wasteland," the fact that their beers are highly sought after is a testament to what owner Joey Redner and head brewer Wayne Wambles have been doing.…

Four Tools for a Strong Business Presence Online

Selena Narayanasamy — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 10:20:53 -0400

Back in the day, it was all about brick and mortar location – having flashy signs outside, using little stands to show what specials were going on, and trying to catch the attention of window shoppers.

Now, it's not as simple.…

Five Ways to Empower Your Employees to Work Above and Beyond

Selena Narayanasamy — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 10:06:26 -0400

Millionaire entrepreneurs around the globe have all said the same thing: the greatest resource any company has is its employees.

No company can succeed in the long-run if its human resources are not valued, retained and empowered.…

Looking beyond the consumer economy to the integrative economy that will focus on quality of life

Ann Kramer — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:30:46 -0400

“Economics: the study of mankind in the ordinary business of life”. --Alfred Marshall (economist)

From the above definition then, we can say that an economy is mankind at the ordinary business of life. As we enter the 21^st century, we can look back over 3,000 years and see various economies that have evolved over the ages.…

Going Wireless: Freedom from Office Confines

Selena Narayanasamy — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 16:25:05 -0400

When you decide to free your business from the confines of the office, you have the chance to improve your business work-flow. But like an 18 year old who moves out of his parents' house for the first time, you can completely mess up, ruining the transition and disappointing your employees and clients.…

Join Bank of America and Creative Tampa Bay for a Three-Part Conference on Staying Relevant in the Future

Lily Reisman — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 15:39:48 -0400

On Wednesday, Sept. 22, Bank of America and Creative Tampa Bay host a three-part afternoon conference about keeping businesses relevant as technology, the economy, and society continue to grow and change.

The four experts that lead the conversation include: Dave Gray, the Founder and Chairman of visual thinking company, XPLANE; Dr. Snaith, the Director of the Institute for Economic Competitiveness at UCF; Peter Kageyama, an international consultant, creative communities expert and a CTB board member; and the highly-acclaimed Brent Britton, a partner at Gray Robinson.…