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Small Business Spotlight: How a Bed-Stuy Wine Shop Became the Neighborhood Everything Store
By Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — A small wine shop in Bedford-Stuyvesant is tailor-made for the Brooklyn community it serves.
Happy Cork opened its doors in March 2019 – a year before the coronavirus spread in New York City and changed its business model. Fast-forward two years and Sunshine Foss is displaying her sunny disposition on the WCBS Small Business Spotlight, sponsored by Dime Community Bank.
Foss told Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso she rallied her community amid the business shutdowns and offered to sell their products on the new website she designed herself. She was in survival mode.
“When we opened, it was literally us trying to get people in the doors,” she said.
An average of just 10 people a day patronized Happy Cork for the first few months of the pandemic.
Liquor stores were deemed an essential business, so Foss used that designation to support minority and women-owned businesses in Brooklyn.
“We’re like, ‘Okay, we’re going to have you in the store. We’re essential. You’re going to be essential,'” she recalled saying. “A lot of businesses have been able to grow even just because of that.”
Her wine shop became a destination both in-person and online. She currently boasts dozens of locally sourced selections from women and Black owners who have struggled to stay open, sharing the story of each product she sells.
“We want to make sure that you get that Happy Cork experience,” Foss said.
“If you’re not coming into the store, we’re going to send you an experience in the box.”Along with wine orders, Happy Cork ships coasters, glassware, tea, chocolate, keychains and merchandise from local artisans and vendors.
“Now, with opening up delivery and shipping and a beautiful online presence, we have definitely been able to kind of capture a lot more of an audience so business has been great,” she said.
But, Foss credits her vendors and local business owners for what she has learned along the way. She channels her Bed-Stuy community in brand and spirit.
The Happy Cork website reads, “There’s a difference between a place where you are welcome and a place that was built with you in mind.”
Foss told Connolly and Carousso she wanted to make her shop less “intimidating” from other urban wine shops that featured bullet proof glass where she places flowers.
“It is really a space that was built with the community in mind,” she said.
“It was built for the community to come in (and) feel welcome.”See how Happy Cork is supporting other Brooklyn businesses on the Small Business Spotlight video above.
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Marking One Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — It has been one year since COVID-19 reared its ugly head in New York. On The 880 Weekly Rewind this week, Lynda Lopez looks at the past year in the pandemic from the human toll to the lessons learned and how we recover.
Plus, WCBS reporter Steve Burns covers a tumultuous week for New York Governor Andrew Cuomo whose emergency pandemic powers were rescinded by the state legislature Friday amid dual scandals in how he handled COVID-19 in nursing homes and allegations of sexual harassment from three women.
Neil A. Carousso produces The 880 Weekly Rewind with Lynda Lopez Friday nights at 7 PM on WCBS Newsradio 880. Listen to this week’s full show on the media player above.
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Small Business Spotlight: Software Tailored for Restaurants Hones New COVID Sales Strategy
By Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Restaurants are trying to get control over their destiny.
SevenRooms, co-founded in 2008 by Joel Montaniel, created backend software for restaurants and hospitality companies to streamline ordering and reservations. Now, they are more of a data-driven technology company helping restaurateurs gain repeat customers in a precarious time for eating out.
“The most significant change that restaurant operators need is to have their own platform where consumers can order delivery directly from them,” Montaniel told Joe Connolly and Neil A. Carousso on the WCBS Small Business Spotlight, sponsored by Dime Community Bank.
He emphasized that control over takeout and delivery – the most common pandemic pivot in the food industry – will increase profit margins by saving commission many owe to third-party delivery apps such as Grubhub, Postmates, DoorDash and Uber Eats.
The second key for restaurants to recover, Montaniel believes, is capturing customer data internally, which SevenRooms’ software does, to upsell those who have placed orders. The technology company recently introduced digital menus to establishments that tracks order history.
“If you had opted into their marketing database, the SevenRooms system will automatically email you again, and say, ‘Hey Neil, here’s a complimentary tzatziki when you order delivery or pickup directly from us,’” he hypothesized using Carousso as a customer in his example. “So, it’s a great way to leverage what you’re actually doing inside the restaurant and use it as a benefit for you to order pickup and delivery or come back into the restaurant when you feel comfortable doing so.”
Montaniel told WCBS 880 that 64 percent of SevenRooms users prefer ordering directly from an establishment rather than third-party apps. He said many are eager to support their local eateries since the industry was largely shutdown due COVID-19 and remains open with strict safety restrictions.
That loyal customer base is essential to restaurants’ recovery. The SevenRooms co-founder and CEO labeled Domino’s Pizza the “gold standard” because they own their own application for contactless ordering, pickup and delivery.
SevenRooms counts Wimbledon, Live Nation Entertainment and Topgolf among its hospitality clients.
“They’re thinking about the world the same way, which is how do we create the best, most optimal, and now recently, safest guest experience and I think technology can play a role in that to make everyone feel safe,” Montaniel said of how they are looking to reinvent themselves as local venues reopen to fans for the first time in about a year.
See how SevenRooms is helping this hard hit sector survive on the video above.
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WCBS Virtual Business Breakfast: How to Grow Again Featuring Shark Tank’s Mr. Wonderful
How to Grow Again Featuring Shark Tank’s Mr. Wonderful – WCBS Virtual Business Breakfast, Presented by The First National Bank of Long Island
Streaming Thursday, March 18, 2021 – 9 AM
Be part of the program! Share your questions for Joe Connolly and Kevin O’Leary here.
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) – Businesses are looking to rise up from the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic and offer solutions in the post-pandemic economy. WCBS 880 is producing a premier virtual event for entrepreneurs, owners, managers, and dreamers to tackle critical areas where opportunities lie for growth despite the unprecedented global pandemic.
WCBS Business Reporter Joe Connolly will host a virtual video conversation with “Shark Tank” investor Kevin O’Leary as part of the WCBS Virtual Business Breakfast series, presented by The First National Bank of Long Island. You can stream the WCBS Virtual Business Breakfast at WCBS880.com or the WCBS 880 YouTube channel on Thursday, March 18, 2021 beginning at 9 AM.
“Mr. Wonderful” will share his keys to business recovery, actionable advice for small and mid-size business owners in various industries, and what they need to be focused on heading into the spring.
“In times like these, you really want to play to your strengths,” O’Leary told Connolly on the WCBS Small Business Spotlight in April, emphasizing decisive actions to grow despite the crippling pandemic.
Photo credit: ABC The “Shark Tank” star will highlight relatable stories of business pivots, explain digital sales strategies that are yielding results for his companies, and reveal the top new business opportunities in growing markets amid the pandemic.
“(Customers) genuinely care about companies and products and services that they’ve grown to trust and they want to support them during this period of difficulty to make sure that these businesses survive,” O’Leary told WCBS 880.
Learn how to survive and grow in this new era at the WCBS Virtual Business Breakfast with Joe Connolly, presented by The First National Bank of Long Island, on March 18.
You can share your questions for Joe and Kevin here or Tweet @WCBS880 and @JoeConnollybiz using #WCBSBizBreakfast in your post.
About Kevin O’Leary:
Photo credit: ABC/Andrew Eccles Kevin O’Leary’s success story starts where most entrepreneurs begin: with a big idea and zero cash.
Kevin O’Leary was born to a middle class family in 1954. The combination of Kevin’s mother’s family heritage as merchants and his father’s Irish charisma truly meant that O’Leary was born for business. Kevin learned most of his business intuition from his mother. She taught him key business and financial insights from an early age. These became Kevin’s core philosophies, and the pillars upon which he would one day build his empire.
Kevin’s approach to business went through major changes as a teenager. During his second day on the job at a local ice cream shop, his boss came into the front of the store where Kevin was scooping ice cream. She looked at Kevin and asked him to scrape all the gum between the Mexican tiles on the floor. Kevin refused and he was fired. That was the moment he realized he never wanted to work for someone else again and charted his path into entrepreneurship as a high school student.
As a university student, Kevin’s innate business sense led him along several different paths – including some very unusual, very entrepreneurial ways of making a profit.
Not long after he finished his MBA, Kevin had a meeting that changed his life forever. He met a man who had a strange idea for a software product – an idea with huge, high-profit potential that Kevin immediately recognized.
After years of ups, downs, sacrifices, challenges, and lessons learned — not to mention a critical phone call that nearly cost him everything — the opportunity that Kevin saw eventually turned into a computer software giant that was acquired for more than $4 billion dollars.
After his extraordinary success at the software company, he founded – and a difficult period of obstacles and legal disputes – Kevin eventually found himself on television, quickly becoming a sought-after host and personality on a range of shows – including Discovery’s Project Earth, CBC’s Dragons’ Den, and ABC’s Shark Tank.
Kevin has since launched O’Leary Funds, an investment fund company; O’Leary Fine Wines; and a best-selling book series on financial literacy.
In 2014, Kevin founded O’Leary Financial Group – a group of brands and services that share Kevin’s guiding principles of honesty, directness, convenience, and above all, great value.
His net worth is estimated at $400 million.
Executive produced by Neil A. Carousso.
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Veterans Organization Builds Remote Talent Pipeline to Fortune 500 companies
By Neil A. Carousso
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — The transition from the military to the workforce is often a challenge for veterans, but the pandemic has exacerbated that challenge. A non-profit organization based in Manhattan is taking up the task to virtually match vets and major U.S. companies.
“We’ve got some super smart people who enlist in the military and we wanted to create those pipelines for them to get into these Fortune 500 companies,” said Lt. Col. Michael Abrams, founder of FourBlock, who is currently serving in the United States Marine Corps Reserve.
FourBlock prides itself on preparing veterans for a career after service. The average salary for its national members is $92,811, according to the non-profit’s 2020 data.
“The companies that we work with are the ones who pay good salaries,” Abrams told WCBS 880’s Neil A. Carousso.
Since the pandemic hit, FourBlock pivoted from in-person networking events to virtual workshops and training on remote interviews.
Maxwell Acker-DeOliveira was looking for a job after recovering from COVID-19 in California where he was visiting family in May. FourBlock helped him prepare for remote job interviews with Deloitte in June – a process that happened rather quickly.
“I’m a social creature,” said Acker-DeOliveira, explaining Zoom meetings presented an obstacle for him to get over.
The Marine sergeant had been used to leading a six-man sniper team for five years. His deployment concluded in March 2018.
“You kind of have to push through that wall,” he said, adding, “You either network or you stay on the bench at Deloitte.”
Acker-DeOliveira was hired at the Big Four accounting firm within the month as a technology services optimization consultant.
Abrams said hiring managers understand they can trust veterans to take the initiative while working remotely.
“They’re not going to just sit around and wait to be told what to do,” he said, continuing, “They’re going to kind of figure out what needs to get done and get it done.”
Abrams emphasized it’s “trust and resiliency,” experience gained through their military service, that makes veterans attractive hires in the pandemic.
Watch the video above for more on this story.
