Mile High Biz Blog

Welcome to the Mile High Business Alliance blog, where we share the latest news and resources from the local business community and other stuff related to local business and building a stronger local economy.

Please feel free to post comments (you'll have to register or login first) or send us links to more news we can share.

The Colorado Agriculture Council of the Humane Society of the United States

MHBA has been working with the Humane Society (HSUS) and the Council on some great local food/sustainable food initatives (to be released later this year). For now, check out this news from HSUS! 

From HSUS's press release:

“To advance more humane practices on farms and ranches and to promote food producers who share that goal, The Humane Society of the United States announced the formation of an advisory body, the Colorado Agriculture Council of The Humane Society of the United States

We're going to be 1,000 members!

Up to $300 off membership for your friends & colleagues!

As of April 1st, MHBA is on a Membership Drive! Our goal is to have 1,000 businesses working together to make a great city, a city we all love!

The more members in our network, the more valuable it is to all of us.

Who are the vendors you would like to have discounts from and be in a network with? Who do you know that shares our values of  supporting local first?

Small Business Forum - SAVE THE DATE

As you may or may not know, the MHBA is committed to bringing valuable resources to small and local business owners all over the great state of Colorado. In that vein, we created the Small Business Week campaign and Forum last year. This year, we'll be hosting it again in true local style with our wonderful partner and host, Johnson & Wales University.

50% local challenge

Alright, we just had a crazy idea.

How about next week between 3/12 and 3/18 you (and your friends & family and who ever you would like to enlist), try to spend 50% of your cash at local businesses. Not saying you have to spend more than you normally do, just SWITCH 50% of what you would normally spend in a week on food, entertainment, services, products, at locally-owned stores.

Here's a couple good resources to get you started:

Denver Energy Challenge strikes again!

Evolution Salon, one of the Mile High Business Alliance members, recently participated in the Denver Energy Challenge (DEC), a program on which the MHBA and the City of Denver partner.

The Challenge was created to help support small and local businesses in Denver reduce their energy usage and in turn save money on their energy bills and lower their carbon footprint. It's FREE, which is a great reason to get involved.

Where does your $ go?

How about switching one facet of your spending to LOCAL? Here are a few examples of those facets:

Banking, Attorney services, Financial services, Food (or just certain types of food like milk, eggs, or meat), Entertainment, Hair salon/spa, Coffee shops

So if you normally frequent your corner Starbuck's, think about switching to a local spot like Pablo's, Bardo, Fluid, Wash Perk, La Belle Rosette, Rooster & Moon, or Hooked on Colfax. Oh so many local options that offer a huge range of yumminess.

MHBA Retreat

This past weekend MHBA board and staff retreated to the beautiful Colorado mountains for some team bonding, strategizing, and leadership development. Although we worked a bit too hard to enjoy the scenery Estes Park has to offer, we did accomplish many things to be proud of, and started work on new programs we plan to offer in 2012. Our new board members, Jodi, Jennifer, Zanzibar and Richard were fast to jump on board with the planning and make our brainstorming sessions very successful. Dawn, Arthur, and Andrew were a guiding force that helped keep us grounded.

A Directory of Local Businesses

In case you hadn't heard, we have a comprehensive online directory of local businesses in Colorado. Check it out!

When we started the Mile High Business Alliance, there were no resources to identify local companies. So we launched a directory of local businesses in 2008 with public info from the Secretary of State. It has more than 400,000 business listings and hosted 40,000+ unique visitors last year.

Friday wrap-up 2/10

 

Thanks to our Founding Members

Twist & Shout Tattered Cover Book Store The Geek Gene Local Flavor Marketing Group, LLC Grow Denver
Cafe Europa Community Banks of Colorado Mike's Camera 5 Green Boxes Meininger Art Supply

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