Across the Globe

United Kingdom
BNI to the Rescue

The new owners of Kingston House Hotel, Jo Horton & Will Moody, recently were rescued by a whole host of Torquay BNI members after finding that the hotel they had just bought needed a bit more work than they originally thought. When they contacted BNI member Paul Hall of Colour Works Print and Design for details of local contractors, they had no idea how useful the BNI Brunel Chapter would turn out to be.

They were put in touch with Andy Spalding of AC Electrifix Ltd (an electrician), Richard Skitch of RSBC (a builder), and Rob Pethick of SRP Chartered Accountants—all members of the BNI Brunel Chapter. After being subjected to a series of unfortunate problems, the Kingston House was in capable hands.

Jo and Will are now happily enjoying a successfully growing business. Says Jo, "We are delighted with the service we received from all of the BNI members; they were all very helpful, friendly, and professional, going out of their way to help us out of sticky situations. If ever we need anything in the future, we will always turn to BNI first!"

Submitted by Fiona Wellstead, The Olden Group


United Kingdom
Castle Chapter Member of the Year

In a memorable ceremony, Chris Greenfield was presented the trophy for Castle Chapter Member of the Year 2007 by Caroline Martin, chapter director and director of Photostatic.

Chris was chosen over 25 other members due to his diligence and his overall record as a member. Chris has just completed a term as membership coordinator and the previous term as secretary treasurer. Whilst he regularly has a handful of referrals each week, you can also tell he is passionate about BNI. He is a regular at training events and social occasions. Quite often, he has the liveliest 60 seconds each Wednesday, one time coming dressed in a wet suit.

Chris' company is called "The Best of Norwich" (http://www.thebestof.co.uk/norwich). It's an online directory of local businesses and events. He used the wet suit as a play on words saying that "The Best of Norwich" is the only place to go surfing in Norwich.

Submitted by Paul Barrs, Primary Consultant, Norfolk Contracts Ltd


United Kingdom
Kitchen Deal Is a Recipe for Success

Photo by Sue Kennedy - Portrait Photographer Blue Eyes Kids Photography

The kitchen is becoming the most popular room in the home—and the trend has prompted two North London businesses to form a partnership.

Enfield-based Montana Kitchens, which opened its first showroom this past February, has teamed up with audiovisual specialist Bang & Olufsen of Winchmore Hill to offer customers a complete package for the "heart of the home."

The pioneering partnership has enabled the firms to meet increasing demand for designer kitchens with built-in LCD televisions and music systems.

Andy Widger, Co-Owner of Bang & Olufsen of Winchmore Hill, said: "The days when people only wanted televisions and music systems in their living rooms are long gone. They want entertainment sources spread around the home to suit their lifestyle—and kitchens are increasingly popular, so it makes good sense to be joining forces with a local business with the same high standards as us."

Angie Montana, who has 15 years' experience in kitchen design, and Andy met through the Heartsleigh Chapter of BNI and are confident that their association will be mutually beneficial.

The Heartsleigh Chapter officially started in December 2007 and passed 137 referrals between 20 members in January—almost double the national average.

Angie said: "Andy and I hit it off straight away—it's so encouraging to know that you have the support of other businesspeople in the area."

Montana Kitchens can be contacted at www.montanakitchens.co.uk

Submitted by Graham Cove, Hertsleigh Chapter Director


India
BNI CEO Visits India

BNI CEO Norm Dominguez made a whistle stop tour of India for the first time. Norm visited four chapters in three cities that BNI India currently operates in—Bombay, Bangalore, and Pune. He also had an opportunity to see India National Director Niiraj R. Shah and conduct a referral skills workshop in Bangalore. BNI India members rolled out the red carpet and made sure that Norm had a remarkable time. He also sampled the Indian cuisine, which he seemed to enjoy. BNI Pune members bestowed a great honour on Norm by presenting him with a turban and shawl.

India's Regional Director Team

Norm was impressed by the progress made by the BNI India team, particularly the consistency with which chapters follow the BNI agenda and the respect that members and directors show for each other. He is excited by the enormous potential of the country and believes that there is a solid foundation for BNI to build on.

Submitted by Niiraj R. Shah, National Director - BNI India


UAE
Bizlinks and Aurora Launch in UAE

Bizlink Chapter Core Group with Bijay Shah

I'm pleased to announce that BNI has launched its 1st chapter, Bizlinks, in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the UAE. A simultaneous launch of Aurora, the 6th Chapter in Dubai, has increased the number of UAE members by 50 percent!

Aurora Chapter Core Group

Both chapters were launched during the International Networking Week in February 2008 and generated some great media coverage:

Click here to read a newspaper article and listen to a radio interview featuring BNI's new chapters in the UAE (United Arab Emirates).


Germany
Financial Times Article Gives BNI a Boost

An article was published at the end of January 2008 in the Financial Times Germany, which has generated a tremendous response from interested business people.

BNI membership in the German-speaking countries, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, has now reached the 3000+ members mark with more than 130 chapters.

Click here to read the article.

Submitted by Harald Lais, National Director - BNI Germany - BNI Austria - BNI Switzerland


Malaysia
A Great BNI Chapter

Pictured at left are members of Zun Oriental (Chinese) Chapter after I gave them a 28-point presentation on how to create a great BNI chapter. Zun Oriental is a Malaysian chapter, but we have translated a lot of BNI materials into Mandarin, as local business here is often conducted in Mandarin.

In addition, we ran a Member Success Program.

Submitted by Robert French, Executive Director - BNI South East UK, Spain, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Korea


Canada
Coldest Chapter Meeting

Courtesy of Photography by MJ

The BNI Business in Motion chapter was in slow motion as the City of Regina had freezing temperatures of -41 C (-41.8 F) with a Wind Chill Factor of -52 C (-61.6 F). This picture was taken on January 29 at 8 a.m. in Regina, Saskatchewan.

Over half of the members' cars did not start, yet 25 percent of them still found a ride to the meeting. It was recommended that people shouldn't travel that morning, but we met anyway. We weren't about to let a little cold weather stand in our way.

Submitted by Stephen Bell, Executive Director - BNI Saskatchewan



United States
Female Whale Shark Tagged in the Galapagos Named by BNI Sponsor

The Thousand Oaks Chapter has chosen a name for their adopted female whale shark. The gentle giant, tagged in the Galapagos Archipelago, has been named "Maya."

On October 28, 2007, Iemanya Oceanica, a non-profit member of BNI's Thousand Oaks Chapter in Thousand Oaks, CA, sent a team led by James T. Ketchum, Alex Hearn, and A. Peter Klimley, to set sail to Darwin and Wolf Islands, part of the Galapagos Archipelago. Their mission: to tag whale sharks. The following day, the group succeeded in tagging a female whale shark with a signature tag. The shark was 11 meters long with a noticeably large pelvic area—a possible indicator of pregnancy.

The Thousand Oaks Chapter generously donated $1500 to support shark research and conservation. This shows how BNI helps non-profits and more importantly shows the Givers Gain heart of our members!

"Thank you again BNI for your exceptionally generous support," says Iemanya Oceanica. "Maya is lucky to have such a dedicated sponsor."

Submitted by Linda McCarthy, Executive Director, BNI of Ventura County, Santa Clarita & Antelope Valleys (California)


United States
A Thought-Provoking Question

Are you fun or "unfun" to refer? Nearly 200 members in the BNI Riverside & San Bernardino Counties, CA, region took part in a dynamic regional event on Jan. 15 at the Hilton San Bernardino in an attempt to answer that question!

During the high-energy presentation, "Referral Mindset: Compelling Others to Want to Refer to You," members tried to figure out if they were fun or "unfun" to refer, differentiated between leads and referrals, discussed referral responsibility, and learned how to increase the effectiveness of their referral network.

The interactive presentation was lead by Mike Roberts, BNI National Trainer and Executive Director of the New Hampshire, Maine, and Orlando and Jacksonville, Florida regions.

Hosted by Susan and Ed Bean, Executive Directors for BNI Riverside & San Bernardino Counties, CA, this was the first in a series of three regional events planned for 2008.

"Our goal," says Susan Bean, "is to have members change their mindsets to make BNI not just something they do in addition to their business, but an integral part of their business."

In addition to drawing for donated door prizes, BNI members collected for a 50:50 drawing in which one member won 50 percent of the money and the Region donated 50 percent to the BNI-Misner Foundation.

Submitted by Susan Bean, Executive Director, BNI Riverside & San Bernardino Counties (California)


United States
Kicking Off a Great Start

The Synergy BNI Chapter in Brattleboro, Vermont, kicked off on January 10, 2008, with 37 members, which qualifies them as a "Hall Of Fame Chapter." This is the largest chapter in Vermont!

Synergy had 17 members going into the kick-off meeting, as well as 43 visitors, 18 of which applied at the meeting. Some came back the next week. The chapter now has over 39 members. Their goal is to be at 50 members by March.

Thanks to Tim Roberts from New Hampshire-Maine Region for assisting in the kick-off presentation. Also thanks to Mike Roberts for his help and guidance through the pre-core and core process.

Submitted by Joe Monaco, Executive Director - BNI Vermont


United States
BNI Ad Promotion Brings in Painter

At the end of last year, our BNI Parkville 1 Chapter in the Kansas City area made a list of what business categories we wanted in our group. We passed the list around to all of our members. Each of us wrote down the amount of money we spent in that business category each year.

One of our members tabulated the amount of money by business category, and we scheduled a Visitors Day for January 23.

I ran an ad in Coffee News for about three to four weeks, looking specifically for a painter. The ad basically read, "Painter Needed! Do you need an extra $38,000 in business this year?" I had about 10 to 12 calls the first three weeks!

Four of the painters came to our Visitors Day and one of them even brought along a flooring guy. We chose one that we really liked, and chose a flooring guy, too.

Submitted by Lisa Hatcher, CoffeeNews KC, www.coffeenewskc.com


United States
BNI Houston West Region & Fort Bend BNI Chapter Celebrate 15th Anniversary!

Latrell Harris, Alva Winston, Jeanne Gregory, Executive Director Kathy Mathy, Charter Member Lana Wilson, and Chapter President Frank Jreij

"Fifteen years and going strong" was the theme of the surprise party for the Fort Bend Chapter in Houston on Thursday, January 24, 2008.

The Fort Bend BNI Chapter kicked off on January 23, 1993, in Sugar Land, TX, with 20 members and has remained strong and growing for 15 years. With more than 35 members, the chapter is proud to be the oldest existing chapter in Texas! They have served as the foundation for nearly 40 other chapters in the region. Following the fundamentals flawlessly, they have been awarded the Founder's Chapter Award several times.

Executive Director Kathy Mathy, one of the founding members, presented co-charter member Lana Wilson with a 15-year diamond BNI pin. Also honored with 10-year member ribbons were Jeanne Gregory, Alva Winston, and Latell Harris. Louis Sokol, assistant director, presented congratulatory certificates from Dr. Misner to Chapter President Frank Jreij and ED Kathy Mathy.

Congratulations Fort Bend BNI and BNI Houston West Region! We look forward to the next 15 years of continuing success!

Submitted by Kathy Mathy, Executive Director - BNI Houston West Region


United States
BNI San Diego Region Holds "Come As You Will Be in 2013 Party"

At the BNI International Directors Conference "Members Session" held in San Diego this past November, keynote speaker Jack Canfield challenged attendees to envision where they would like to be in five years. Executive Director Kathryn Lodal made a commitment to San Diego members in attendance. She would provide them with an opportunity to attend a "Come as You Will Be in 2013 Party" at a private estate in Rancho Santa Fe.

As promised, on the evening of February 5, 2008, over 25 successful BNI members arrived to an over-the-top event at the beautiful home of BNI Director Myra Fleischer and her husband, Charles. Exclamations of support could be heard as they greeted one another and learned about each other's dreams for the future.

The group included Grammy Award winners, celebrated authors, New York Times bestsellers, retirees ready to play golf or enjoy the beach, and successful cover stories for Inc. magazine. All were reaping the financial benefits of the businesses they had grown over the last five years through BNI.

BNI San Diego thanks Ivan Misner and the conference programming committee for starting the ball rolling with Jack Canfield's challenge!

Submitted by Susan Almon-Pesch, CME Business Development, Marketing & Public Relations


United States
Marlborough Chapter Wins Local Spirit Award

Thursday, March 6, 2008, the Marlborough Chapter won the Spirit Award from the Marlborough Regional Chamber of Commerce. They received proclamations from the local and state government as well as Congressman James McGovern.

Over 10 years ago, in the summer of 1997, Patti Salvucci, Executive Director of BNI Massachusetts and Susanne Moreale Leeber, President of the Marlborough Regional Chamber of Commerce MRCC, joined together to create the Marlborough Chapter of BNI. The kickoff meeting was held at the Holiday Inn, and Marlborough BNI was launched with 40 members. It has since grown to be the most successful chapter in the United States with 68 members.

The true success of the Marlborough Chapter is the strong collaboration and networking affiliation it has had with MRCC. BNI is built on the philosophy of Givers Gain.

What makes this chapter so special is that the MRCC complement each other rather than view each other as competition (Visibility + Credibility = Profitability). This is the other piece of the equation for successful networking.

Submitted by Patti Salvucci, Executive Director, BNI MA