The Palo Alto Daily News recently asked their readers who the best businesses were in Palo Alto, and they recognized 11 PEA businesses!

Congratulations to the following PEA businesses for being voted the 2013 People’s Choice winners:

Best Auto Body Shop (Paint and Body work): Yeaman Auto Body

Best Florist: Stanford Floral Design

Best Jewelry Store AND Best Watch Repair: Gleim the Jeweler

Best Auto Mechanic Shop: Larry’s Autoworks

Best Home Contractor: GR8WORK Builders Inc.

Best Optometrist: Mountain View Optometry

Best House Painter: Pro-Staff Painting

Best Plumber: A&A Plumbing

Best Realtor AND Best Real Estate Broker: John W. King, Keller Williams Realty (check out John’s blog UNreal Estate here!)

Best Mortgage Banker: Julie Fukuhara, Wells Fargo Private Bank

2nd Place for Best Local Market: Mollie Stone’s Palo Alto

Congratulations again to all of our PEA businesses! Click HERE to read the article and see a full list of winners.

Long time PEA members Larry and Laurie Moore, Larry’s Autoworks was recently featured in a nationwide magazine, Shop Owner Magazine!

In the article, Larry describes how he first got into the auto repair business and the ways he adapts to the changes in his industry.  He emphasizes in the article how important networking has been for him over the last 30 years.

Being a member of local business groups has helped me stay on top of what is going on locally and also make ­adjustments. Business is constantly changing, so it’s important to stay in touch with others in the same boat. Some of my most effective business practices have come from discussions with other business owners.

Their article can be found in the featured articles section on Shop Owner Magazine’s home page, or you can click to read the full article here!

Congratulations Larry, Laurie, and the whole team at Larry’s Autoworks!

PEA member Payroll City was recently featured in an article on AccountingToday.com!

Payroll City Launches QuickBooks Interface

COLORADO SPRINGS (FEBRUARY 14, 2012)

BY SETH FINEBERG, ACCOUNTING TODAY

Payroll processing company Payroll City has developed an interface module to help users transfer all of their payroll data with QuickBooks.

The Payroll City QuickBooks interface can map all of the payroll data to the correct class, job or item within QuickBooks. The interface is designed to eliminate redundancy and retain the integrity of payroll data as it is transferred to QuickBooks.

Upon running Payroll City’s QuickBooks interface tool, Payroll City outputs an Intuit Interchange Format file for import into QuickBooks. Users can see every check posted to a register, view an employee-level history of paycheck distributions, reprint checks, and query past payroll information. They can also view and print garnishment checks, automatically input every employee into the QuickBooks employee list, assign wages to different departments, and import by payroll batch or custom date range.

The Payroll City QuickBooks interface module resides in the Payroll City cloud environment and supports all versions of QuickBooks from 2000 to present.

“We have created a superior payroll platform that that makes it easy to integrate with accounting,” said Payroll City president Kathleen Fox. “Our goal is to continue to design easy, robust, affordable solutions that bridge the gap between payroll and other critical business systems.”

Great job Nichole Fox and Payroll City!  Click HERE to see the original article.

Carol Garsten, Nature Gallery is moving to Los Altos after being located in Palo Alto for the last 17 years.

Picture by Elliott Burr- Source

Carol is featured in an article in the Los Altos Town Crier, introducing her and her shop to her new community.  Carol’s new store is more than twice as big as her old one in Palo Alto, and Carol is looking forward to getting involved in the Los Altos community.  Here is a small piece of the article, written by Diego Abeloos:

Garsten told the Town Crier a key factor in her decision to move to the corner of State and Second streets was the positive energy she felt in the downtown area. Calling downtown Los Altos “a place that’s on the upswing,” Garsten said it was a case of going to the right place at the right time.

“I really want to be a part of something that’s positively changing, where it feels like there’s a positive energy,” said Garsten, who is planning a grand opening. “There are good things happening (in Los Altos).”

Read the whole article here!

Nature Gallery‘s grand opening will be held on February 10th, 2012 at her new location, 296 State Street, Los Altos, CA.  Congratulations and good luck in your new location Carol!

Sam Harding, Retirement Administration recently won a community service award at the 29th annual Los Altos-Los Altos Hills Joint Community Service Awards luncheon.  The award ceremony was written up (with accompanying picture) in the Los Altos Town Crier.

“Nominated by non-profit groups and selected by a 12-member committee, honorees represent involvement in a variety of areas, from schools to libraries and youth sports. The nine honorees selected this year include:”

…

“Sam Harding, a longtime Los Altos Rotary Club member who has been involved in a wide range of activities, from coaching baseball to involvement in the YMCA, the Community Health Awareness Council and the Palo Alto veterans’ hospital.”

Congrats Sam!

To read the full article and see his picture click here.

John King, Keller-Williams Realty was once again among the Keller-Williams top producing agents!  From John:

“In the recent Keller-Williams Out Front Magazine, I was named as one of the top 20 agents nationwide out of 85,000 Keller-Williams agents.  I came in at #19 and I appreciate the trust my clients have given me to assist them with their home selling and purchases.”

John also told PEA members that the he sold 14 homes for the #19 spot, contrasted with the #17 guy in Arizona who had to sell 135 homes to beat John.

Congratulations John!

Kaye Sharbough, Senior Seasons was recently featured on ABC7′s show “Beyond the Headlines,” hosted by Cheryl Jennings.  This particular episode focused on elder care and Kaye was one of four studio guests.

Kaye describes Senior Seasons and their role as a referral agency for senior housing.  Click here to read Kaye’s post on Senior Seasons‘s website ‘Affordable Housing is Not Just a Dream’, the article Kaye refers to in her interview.

To see Kaye’s interview click here and start watching at the 13:10 mark.  Great job, Kaye!

Jonathan Ong, Ambassador Services, has been elected to become Ambassador of the Month for September.  This is a prestigious honor given out by the San Carlos Chamber of Commerce. Congratulations to Jonathan for his hard work and dedication. ‘Ambassador’ Services now has a new meaning!

The results are in!  PEA is happy to announce that four of our business were voted the Best of Palo Alto!

Congratulations to the following PEA businesses:

Larry’s AutoWorks was voted Best Auto Care!  Larry’s was also the runner-up for Best Auto Repair in the Best of Mountain View 2011 voting.  Congratulations Larry and Laurie Moore!

Cardoza-Bungey Travel was voted Best Travel Agency!  Congratulations Karen Olson!

Stanford Floral Design was voted Best Florist!  Congratulations Werner Rogmans!

Finally, Palo Alto Hardware was not only voted Best Green Business, but also Best Hardware Store!  Congratulations Larry Hassett!

For the full list of Best of Palo Alto businesses and the source of the above images, follow this link.

PEA member Larry Moore, of Larry’s Autoworks, was featured recently in a Reference Point (KMTV) talk on how you as an individual can help the environment.  Reference Point is a Mountain View TV station.  Check out the interview on YouTube.

Larry and Laurie have been pioneers in the auto repair industry in finding more environmentally friendly ways both to run and to service your car.  They believe a successful business is dependent on a healthy environment.  They have been a green business since the program’s inception in 1992.  See the Larry’s Autoworks web site for details about their environmental program.