• Submit an application for Leadership Olathe
  Hone your leadership skills, interact with other leaders,
  and learn about community leadership openings
• New businesses opening at the Great Mall, just in time
  for the holidays
• Forbes recognizes NIC as one of the 20 best small
  companies in the country
• Dining Out for Kids
• Kansas WORKReady Certification
  Complimentary Breakfast and Informational Session
• Sampling of Upcoming Events

The Chamber is looking for leaders (emerging or experienced) to join its Leadership Olathe program. If you, an employee, co-worker, or associate would like to be a member of the Leadership Olathe class of 2012, be aware that applications are due December 1.

Members of Leadership Olathe are chosen by a selection committee. If you’re invited to participate, you’ll be in good company. Among the alumni are former Governor Mark Parkinson, Mayor Michael Copeland, Secretary of Labor Karin Brownlee, Heart to Heart’s Gary Morsch, and many, many other well known community leaders.

To learn more about the program, click on the Leadership Olathe brochure. Apply now. If you have questions, please contact
Beth Felski at bfelski@olathe.org or 913-219-3735. 

Six new stores have opened at the Great Mall of the Great Plains or will be opening in the next couple of weeks. The stores follow regular mall hours, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday, with extended hours during the holiday season.

• OK Fashions supplies men’s and women’s casual clothing in sizes small to 5X. Styles include hip-hop fashion, club wear, dresses, sports jackets, shoes, jewelry, cosmetics, and hats. It’s located across from Burlington Coat Factory.
• Sugar Plums, the holiday and Christmas gifts and décor store, returned for its fourth season at the Mall last week. The retailer offers 50 percent off seasonal products, including gift wrap, greeting cards, holiday décor (from ornaments to wreaths), Steinbach Nutcrackers, and more. Additional discounts are offered on Sparkle and Club 223 products. Sugar Plums is located next to Book Warehouse.
• Trendz, which is situated between Payless Shoesource and the DMV, is a complete stop for video gaming and related merchandise, including video games, console accessories, toys, posters, flags, and items for video game fans. Employees occasionally dress as favorite characters.
• Shoes For Less, which will have a four-day grand opening Nov. 17 through 20, offers discounts of up to 50 percent off retail pricing for women’s, men’s, and children’s footware, as well as jewelry, handbags, and other accessories. It’s located next to Aeropostale.
• Technopole Website Services will open this weekend with an appearance by former Kansas City Chiefs placekicker, Jan Stenerud. Technopole, next to the DMV, specializes in web design for small businesses and non-profit organizations, but the business also provides web builders for individuals who are interested in learning how to create and maintain their own websites. Technopole also offers domain name selection and registration, hosting and domain transfers for existing websites, and search engine optimization. It offers consignment and Internet auction services for individuals who want to sell their personal property.
• Treasure Hunt boasts of 30,000 square feet of liquidations, close-outs and discounted merchandise, from furniture to clothing, toys to beauty products, and more. Treasure Hunt’s four-day grand opening will begin Nov. 17. Owner “Crazy Moe” will hand out a limited number of promotional gold coins. Treasure Hunt is a family-owned business and has been in the liquidation business since 1989. It’s located between Group USA and Great Plains Train Station.

NIC Inc., a leading provider of official government websites, online services, and secure payment processing solutions, ranked no. 20 on the Forbes magazine list of the “100 Best Small Companies in America.” This is the third consecutive year the company has made the list, up from no. 92 in 2010. NIC is the only company headquartered in the Greater Kansas City metropolitan area or the state of Kansas to make the list.

The list ranked companies that had been publicly traded for at least a year, with annual revenue of less than $1 billion. Criteria included significant earnings growth, sales growth, and return on equity in the past 12 months and over five years, as well as stock performance. According to Forbes, shares of last year’s members rose 10 percent on average beating the Russell 2000 small-company index by 10 percentage points.

Restaurants: A great way to increase traffic and support Olathe kids!
Restaurants are invited to help generate money for the Mayor’s Christmas Tree Fund this year by participating in Dining Out for Kids Nov. 16 from 5 to 9 p.m. Participating restaurants will be asked to donate at least 10 percent of the proceeds from dinners sold during that specific period of time. If you’re interested in the details, call Karen Hooven, (913) 971-8941. We will publicize a list of restaurants in Friday e-flash, and Olathe School District children will be bringing home 28,000 flyers.

Diners: Boost traffic at your favorite restaurant and
raise money for charities
Eat for a good cause during Dining Out for Kids. With your support—and the help of generous restaurants who have committed to take part—organizers hope to make this creative fundraiser an annual event. We’ll post a list of participating restaurants. All you need do is show up between 5 and 9 p.m. Nov. 16. No need to show a flyer. The restaurant will donate 10 percent of the cost of your meal, and you’ll help the Mayor reach his goal of raising $80,000 for 14 charities that meet critical needs of kids and their families.

Check out more about the Mayor’s Christmas Tree Fund, charities that will benefit, commemorative ornaments, and more.

• Thursday, Nov 3,  8 to 9 a.m. at Workforce Partnership-Johnson County, 9221 Quivira Road, Overland Park
• Learn to improve hiring procedures, reduce turnover and training costs by certifying candidates with foundational skills, and increase productivity and profitability while providing higher morale, career advancement and self-esteem for employees.
• The Kansas WORKReady! is an initiative of the Kansas Department of Commerce to improve the marketability of Kansas’ workforce and drive future economic growth.
• RSVP to Wallace Vaughn at wvaughn@kansascommerce.com or 913-577-5929.

Saturday, Oct. 29, Trick or Treat Off the Street at Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop, 1200 Kansas City Rd., Olathe from 4 to 6 p.m. $3 per person for all ages for trick or treating, games, crafts and a hayride. Parking and access for the event will be at the western parking lot in front of the historic house instead of at the Heritage Center.

Thursday, Nov. 10, 34th Annual Noche de Gala, “The Future is Now,” at Harrah’s Casino. Sponsored by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Greater Kansas City. Keynote speaker: Hector Barreto, chairman of the Latino Coalition. 6 p.m. pre-awards; 7 to 9:30 awards banquet; 9:30 p.m. to midnight, after party. To register, call (816) 472-6767.  Group code S11NDEG.

Wednesday, Nov. 16, Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast, American Legion Post 153, 410 E. Dennis Ave. from 5:30 to 7 a.m. Featuring Dr. Gary Morsch, president and founder, Heart to Heart International. Welcome by Mayor Michael Copeland. $8 each; reserved tables for ten, $100. Tickets at Olathe Christian Book and Gift or call Greg Oswald at (913) 780-9292.

Please send us the names and e-mails of members you know who might not be receiving this e-newsletter or other Chamber e-communications. We do not yet have e-mail addresses for every member representative. Also, please forward this e-newsletter to others you know who might like to be included in our every-Friday distribution!

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