The Chelsea Standard
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Business After Hours brings Chamber members together
By Edward Freundl, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: June 5, 2008
Chelsea Area Chamber of Commerce members had a chance to meet the staff and tour renovated rooms at the Holiday Inn Express during a "Business After Hours" event May 28.
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After Hours is an opportunity for Chamber members to visit another member's establishment at the end of the business day to relax and enjoy some light refreshments, conversation and always-important business contacts.
Donnie Alsdurf, the hotel's general manager, hosted the event and arranged for tours of the rooms and other points of interest for about 60 guests that came and went from 5 to 7 p.m.
"Business is doing wonderful," Alsdurf said, with hotel occupancy remaining steady even with skyrocketing fuel costs and an overall slow economy possibly giving travelers second thoughts.
"Right now I don't find that to be the case," Alsdurf said. "It might do a little bit of damage eventually but right now, not at all.
"It's just the natural cycle of business."
Alsdurf said the hotel had recently switched from winter to summer pricing, but doesn't anticipate any rate increases for travelers.
"We haven't raised our rates," he said. "Winter rates are different than summer rates, but not by much."
Alsdurf noted that the Chamber event was scheduled for the hotel before a corporate ownership change resulted in him being posted here as general manager late last year, but he could see the value of the event.
"The After Hours had already been set before I got here, but either way I would have made it happen," he said.
The economy and rising farm commodity prices have forced an increase in retail prices for another Chamber member, Chelsea Milling, whose signature Jiffy Mix brands use a lot of corn and wheat.
"Business is good; so far we're having a good year," said Ed Hostetter, Vice President of Chelsea Milling Co.
"We needed to raise our prices a little, but we're still a good value," he added.
Hostetter said most of what his company uses for its baking mixes is a soft white wheat that comes from Michigan's Thumb area.
"Wheat prices are falling right now and they'll probably continue to do that," he said.
Unfortunately for Jiffy's popular corn muffin mix, "I think corn prices are going to stay pretty high; there's a lot of demand."
Hostetter said the Business After Hours events are "a good networking opportunity."
"They typically have 65 to 80 people and sometimes more at these things,' he said.
"We had one at Chelsea Milling a few years ago that drew about 85."
Concern about the economy is also affecting clients of Bryan Merillat, a financial planner with the Merillat Financial Group.
"Business on my end has been pretty good, I'm busy all the time," Merillat said.
"A lot of times I get questions about the volatility of the market, and what should we do — I try to educate clients in what to expect."
Merillat said he has about 300 clients encompassing individuals and businesses, and does a lot of business with the public school system.
He even had some free advice for people who have questions about investing their nest egg.
"The important thing is to be diversified according to your tolerance for risk," Merillat said.
"Everybody's situation is different, but that's exactly what I like about it."
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