July General Meeting Minutes
General Meeting
11 July 2018
Held at Harrington Grove Country Club
The meeting was opened at 5.38pm
Welcome – Shaun Pereira, Vice President – General
MC for the evening, Shaun Pereira, welcomed Chamber members and guests, life members and Phil from Campbelltown Chamber. He acknowledged and thanked guest speaker, Mark Squirrell, and sponsor, Narellan Town Centre.
Apologies
Maria Scattergood was noted as an apology.
President’s Report – presented by Shaun Pereira for Maria Scattergood, President
- Shaun congratulated the winners announced at the NSW Business Chamber Awards: Wakeling Automotive; Tony Wolf & Son Quality Printers; Coutts Conveyancing; Club Menangle and Campbelltown Chamber.
- Shaun also congratulated winners in the Camden Wollondilly Local Business Awards: Combined Real Estate, Simone Homes, Daniel Simone and Rebecca Gates.
- Christmas in Narellan will be on Saturday, 20 November. The headline act will be Paulini, who will also attend the sponsors thank you event. Maria thanked the sponsors who are already on board. More sponsorship packages are available.
- Chamber has a table at the Youth Solutions Ball on 28 July and at the Narellan Rotary Ball on 11 August. Spots are available on the tables for members.
Minutes of Previous Meeting – Pania Gregson, Secretary
Pania advised the minutes from the previous meeting held on 13 June 2018 are available on the website. The minutes were moved by Brett McGrath, seconded by Sue Robinson and accepted.
Treasurer’s Report – Geoff Rogers, Treasurer
Geoff presented the Treasurer’s Report as at 30 June 2018. The Chamber is in a healthy financial position. The report was moved by Pania Gregson and seconded by Brett McGrath.
Camden Region Economic Taskforce (CRET) Update – Debbie Roberts, Executive Director, CRET
Debbie Roberts advised that a survey is being distributed to get feedback from the local business community and encouraged all members to complete it.
What’s Happening in Macarthur
18/7/18 – Campbelltown Chamber of Commerce meeting
28/7/18 – Youth Solutions Annual Charity Ball
1/8/18 – Premier’s Breakfast at Club Menangle
11/8/18 – Narellan Rotary Annual Ball
18/8/18 – Cirque de Ocagi
14/9/18 – BRAS Charity Luncheon
26/10/18 – Men’s Long Lunch
Business Tip – Belinda McLean, HR Focus
Belinda advised that award rates will increase by 3.5%. Businesses looking to employ a full-time person into a brand new position may be eligible for the Small Business Grant of up to $2,000. Business may apply for the Safety Business Rebate of up to $500 for the purchase of eligible safety items.
Sponsor Presentation – Narellan Town Centre
A video presentation was played of VP, Shaun Pereira chatting with Brad Page, Centre Manager of Narellan Town Centre. On 4 August will be the first-year anniversary of the new part of the Centre. Shaun thanked Pearl Studios for the quality video.
Membership Update – Amy Woodley, Membership Coordinator
Amy advised there are 216 financial members and welcomed our 3 new members:
- Vintage FM
- Nova Employment
- Financial Goddess
The first Welcome to Chamber meeting was held on 4 July at Oran Park Smart Work Hub. There were 13 attendees and the session was well received. Chamber will hold 3 of these meetings per year.
Amy conducted a Member Shout Out, where members were asked if they would like to share any good experiences with other members. The following businesses were mentioned: Absolutely Fabulous, Pearl Studios and Panorama Plumbing.
Event Partner – Grimes Finance and Mortgages
A video was played to highlight this meeting’s event partner.
————— Networking Break —————-
Guest Speaker – Mark ‘Squiz’ Squirrell
Mark took attendees on a journey through his life and career. Graduating as an officer in the Army, he joined the Australian Special Forces and later the World Food Program providing humanitarian aid. The highlight was Mark’s recount of his climb to the top of Mount Everest.
Mark’s message to business was to invest in training the front life staff to ensure that they are prepared for the hard times.
Shaun thanked Mark and presented him with a gift.
Lucky Door Prizes
Donated by Narellan Town Centre – $100 gift voucher, won by George Gatt from Office Builders.
Donated by Grimes Finance and Mortgages – $100 NTC gift voucher, won by Neil Loomes from Imageology Photography.
Donated by Italian Food Project – $50 voucher, won by Stephen Pauley from HR Focus.
Next Meeting
The next meeting will be the Premier’s Breakfast to be held on Wednesday, 1st August 2018 at Club Menangle, arrival from 6.30am for a 7.00am start.
There being no further business, the meeting was closed at 7.40pm.