Buffalo Grove Lincolnshire Chamber of Commerce

The Buffalo Grove Lincolnshire Chamber of Commerce has partnered with leading insurance carrier, Aetna, to provide your business with discounts on Aetna Funding Advantage health insurance premiums.

Discounts include:

• Savings on premium up to 30% lower than Blue Cross Blue Shield
• $100 credit per employee enrolled (if 20 employees enroll, you get $2,000 taken off first month's premium)
• Potential return of surplus premium (annual premium paid into Aetna vs. claims paid out)
• Additional discounts to admin credit for being a member of the Buffalo Grove Lincolnshire Chamber of Commerce
• Apple Watch for $15 - track health and fitness goals (Aetna Attain)              

Offer your employees affordable Health Benefits in 2020!

60% of small business’ don’t offer health benefits

Health benefits are the 2nd largest expense to employers (the 1st is payroll)

The #1 aspect of employment that job seekers look for is health benefits

Calling All Bears Fans… Let’s Make Some $$$

BGLCC needs a few more volunteers to assist with the Bears Fundraiser. 
We need extra volunteers to work the Bears concession stand in the warm climate controlled United Club (Stand #204) for the last three home games.  We earn a percentage of the sales that then goes back into the Chamber. 
*WE ARE IN DESPERATE NEED OF CASHIERS for these remaining games!

Please come out and help support the Chamber and the Bears!  Whether you are cashiering, preparing pretzels or pouring beer, we have a great time bonding together and interacting with the fans! If you are not Bassett trained, we can either get you trained for free (good for 3 years) or have you perform a job that does not require it.

Thanks in advance for your support and participation!

Illinois Implemented a Mandatory Retirement Program for Small Business

Owners Illinois has put into motion a new mandatory retirement program for small business owners named the Illinois Secure Choice Retirement Savings Program (Secure Choice). Starting November 1st, employers with 25 or more employees, full-time or part-time, are required to either start offering employees a retirement plan or start paying into the Illinois Secure Choice program. There are many qualifying retirement plans employers can offer to employees that may be better alternatives than the Secure Choice program. There will also be penalties for employers who do not participate - $250 per employee up to $6,200 per year. It is important now more than ever to look into retirement plans for Illinois businesses. This is both a good benefit to give employees, and it is also now a requirement for Illinois businesses with 25 or more employees starting in a few short weeks.

Contact us to see how we can help you set up your retirement plan or advise on your best options! (847) 459-8850 Manning Silverman & Company Phone: 847-459-8850 ask for Paola or Email Us

By David Orgel - 11/22/2019

It’s predictions season.  This year’s forecasts carry the extra burden of looking ahead to both a new year and a new decade. 
 
That said, it’s not so hard to make predictions in this fast-changing retail industry. The real challenge is making forecasts that are actionable. That’s what I try to do here, with 2020 predictions on topics from e-commerce to health care. Some of my points are curated from other industry forecasts, and I’ve credited those accordingly. 

1. Technology Transforms
Technology advances will bring about more unique consumer experiences, from stores to homes. Especially on the radar now will be advances from augmented reality, or AR, and 5G technologies, as Nielsen states in its forecasts for 2020. One result, as Nielsen pointed out, is that “try-before-you-buy will come into consumers’ homes.”

Retailers need to be ready for all the impacts of these technologies. For example, the in-home trial phenomenon will give new meaning to the concept of sampling, and smartphones will become more useful in-store tools as consumers shop. 

2. E-commerce on Steroids
Consumers are ramping up their expectations about the speed of product deliveries, now insisting on one-day or same-day delivery service, and even within hours. These expectations are fueled by strategies from players ranging from Amazon to Uber Eats, as noted in an August Forbes piece by Daniel Newman of CMO Network. 

All this puts huge pressures on retailers trying to meet customer needs. Retailers should ask themselves essential questions: Will customers pay for the extra services? If not, do we need to make these investments anyway just to remain competitive? 

3. Sustainability Grows Up
Consumers are demanding more sustainable products, and this trend has moved well past fad status. A few months ago, I wrote in DSN about how such retailers as Kroger and Walmart are stepping up sustainability efforts on the food side, making it more central to their missions and communications. 

Likewise, sustainability now is a bigger deal on the beauty side, as well as a driver for trial and brand switching, according to a September Forbes article by Pamela Danziger. The sustainability stakes in 2020 for retailers will become greater because it’s their younger customers who are the most insistent.

4. Health Care Accelerates
Retailers have made large commitments to in-store health care, from pharmacies to clinics. A recent DSN article outlined stepped up retailer commitments to in-store services, ranging from optical to lab work.

Many retailers further will need to accelerate and upgrade such efforts in the coming year or two because retail is on the front lines of making health services more available. Walmart’s recent launch of its “Pharmacy of the Future” pilot is a great example of how to combine technology, services and customer experience into a meaningful effort. 

5. Physical Gets Experiential
By now, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that e-commerce is changing the future of brick-and-mortar retail. In some cases, that will mean fewer stores, but just as important is how in-store strategies will change. Shoppers still want physical stores, but increasingly they want different experiences than before. We’re already seeing new store sizes, layouts and personalized retail approaches. 

But here’s the thing, no retailer has yet cracked the code on what brick-and-mortar retail will need to look like. It’s probable 2020 will bring new and innovative lessons for how in store can transform in the age of e-commerce.

One last point: Predictions don’t help if they aren’t actionable. Retailers can take action on each of the five points I’ve made here. This can lead to competitive advantages in the quickly transforming retail arena.

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