Business briefs
January 26, 2010
Swedish/Issaquah emergency department honored
The Swedish/Issaquah Freestanding Emergency Department was recently named a 2009 Summit Award Winner by Press Ganey Associates.
The department, opened in March 2005, received the award by achieving and maintaining patient satisfaction scores in the 95th percentile or above for at least three years. The Press Ganey Summit Award is the health-care-satisfaction industry’s most coveted symbol of achievement.
The Swedish/Issaquah emergency department sees 24,000 patients per year. It was honored in June 2008 by Consumer Checkbook when it was rated the No. 1 emergency department in western Washington.
Entrepreneur launches clothing line from home
January 26, 2010
Issaquah High School graduate Ryan Atkins displays a T-shirt from his clothing line, Atty Clothing. By Tim Pfarr
Issaquah High School graduate Ryan Atkins has always been heavily influenced by music, and in college he began to take an interest in fashion.
“That last semester, my notes were all doodles,” Atkins said, recalling the end of his college career at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia.
He graduated in 2008 with a degree in political science, and he began working at a Starbucks in Whistler. He transferred to a store on Mercer Island and moved back to his Issaquah home, and after seven months with the coffee chain, he decided it was time for a change.
“I needed to jump in the deep end,” he said. “I needed to do something on my own.” Read more
Issaquah, Sammamish chambers team with Issaquah Schools Foundation
January 26, 2010
The Issaquah and Sammamish chambers of commerce have partnered with the Issaquah Schools Foundation to promote the Great Schools, Great Communities campaign. Read more
Franchise coach maps capital opportunities
December 1, 2009
Phyllis Pieri
Franchise coach Phyllis Pieri clearly remembers her first business venture — a lemonade stand.
“When I was a child visiting my grandparents, I remember us driving past the Grace Cathedral in San Francisco,” Pieri said. “It needed to replace a broken stain-glassed window.”
Determined to help, Pieri opened a lemonade stand and sold an impressive $285 of the thirst quencher.
That entrepreneurial spirit followed her into adulthood. With only a degree earned from the school of hard knocks, Pieri has parlayed years of managerial experience in running local franchises (Sir Speedy and Automotive Lube & Tune) into an international consultation agency, MatchPoint, headquartered in her Issaquah Highlands home.
“I’ve been consulting now for around 20 years,” Pieri said. “My goal is to quit being the best-kept secret.” Read more
Old Allen’s Furniture space will be revamped
December 1, 2009
The former Allen’s Furniture space, at 131 Front St. N., will be the new home for a bicycle shop and restaurant. By Warren Kagarise
The former Allen’s Furniture store — a vacant space in downtown Issaquah — will be remodeled and reopened as a bicycle shop and a restaurant.
City Senior Planner Jerry Lind said the 7,795-square-foot former furniture store would be repurposed. Crews will add restrooms and a dividing wall to separate the bicycle shop from the restaurant. The developer will be required to adhere to Olde Towne design standards in order to blend with the quaint downtown surroundings. Lind said the revamp would be accomplished with “more of a light touch.”
The plate-glass windows will go, and workers will add windows with smaller panes, Lind said. City planners received the site development permit request in mid-October. The building, at 131 Front St. N., was built in the 1950s and needed updates, Lind said. Read more
Chamber of Commerce launches shop-local effort
December 1, 2009
Local business leaders debuted the Shop Issaquah program last week, describing the effort as a way to support the economy, promote businesses and emphasize the role commerce plays in the city’s quality of life. Read more
Chamber debuts seminar series
December 1, 2009
The Issaquah Chamber of Commerce is hosting upcoming seminars on financial management and using the power of social media tools in business. Read more
Senior center seeks new leader
November 3, 2009
Issaquah Valley Senior Center leaders will pick a new executive director in the next several weeks. Read more
Issaquah salon owner faces jail for injecting phony Botox
November 3, 2009
Issaquah resident Xin “Faith” He is guilty of injecting customers with counterfeit cosmetic products at her Bellevue salon, a federal judge ruled Oct. 30. Read more
Issaquah Blockbuster will end run in January
November 3, 2009
Make it a Blockbuster night — but hurry: The Issaquah outpost of the movie-rental giant will close in early January. Read more
