BNI member wins store of the year

We would like to congratulate BNI member Bintesh Amin, from the Canterbury chapter in Kent, for winning store of the year:

LOCAL LONDIS SHOP WINS STORE OF THE YEAR IN NATIONAL COMPETITION

 

Bintesh and Reena Amin, owners of the local Londis in Blean, have won the top title of Londis store of the year in a national competition.

Bintesh and Reena received their award at a prestigious awards ceremony at the Londis annual conference and gala dinner in London on 8 March.

Some 2,000 shops across Great Britain were entered into the competition after a year in which the Londis business has sought to drive better value to its shoppers.

Entries have been judged on the essentials of the Londis brand:

• Customer service
• Range
• Store standards
• Value for money
• Promotions
• Services
• Involvement in the community

Judges said: “This store was well merchandised, clean and tidy with great offers. The hot food on offer was extensive (including home-made pizza, which was exceptional!) The fresh foods and chilled range was excellent also.  Above all this however was the fantastic customer service that was evident from Bintesh, Reena and their team. This is an exceptional store.”

You can view Bintesh’s BNI Connect profile at the chapter website.

Bintesh would also like to thank Geordie , Tim Beggs, and Pat Melsop for their help and support in the nomination process, also Chriss Syrett for the supplies we used in the shop while being judged, and to every one that has supported them. (All the people mentioned are BNI members, apart from Pat who is the commercial director of Kent County Cricket,  where the Chapter meet.)

 

Picture shows: (from left to right) Paul Courtney, Londis sales director; Donal Horgan, Londis managing director; Kiran Patel and Meena Patel (Reena’s parents); Bintesh Amin; Reena Amin and Steve Bassett, chairman of the Londis national retailer council.

Networking Evening with Kent Wildlife Trust

Kent Wildlife Trust are holding a networking evening this week and asking you to join them for a networking event with a difference!

Thursday 8th March 2012 – 5pm-7pm at Tyland Barn, Sandling, Maidstone, Kent, ME14 3BD.

Guest Speakers:

Hamish Mackay Miller – Publisher of The Net

Joanne Creighton – Kent Wildlife Trust – Head of People Engagement

Enjoy tea and cakes and a guided tour of their nature reserve.

Minimum donation: £5.00 per person for Kent Wildlife Trust corporate members £10.00 for non-members. Spaces limited.

RSVP to: marion.turner@kentwildlife.org.uk or 01622 662012.

From Necker Island to BNI!

Katie and David Lester are celebrating the 10^th anniversary of the launch of their company Elite Blinds.   Later this year they will also celebrate 10 years of BNI membership and say:

BNI has been crucial to our business success.  I would recommend BNI to anyone”.

David and Katie had a rather exotic early working life.

Katie had stints as a holiday representative in Majorca and chalet girl in an Austrian ski resort.  She also delivered yachts to Greece and theCaribbean.

They met when Katie attended a dinghy sailing course at Cowes where David was her instructor.  Thereafter the emphasis was on warmth and water.   They worked with Richard Branson onNeckerIsland, where they were Assistant Managers.  One rather festive Christmas was enjoyed with the Branson family.

Katie said: “It was great fun.  The Bransons and their guests were all really great people”

They then spent several years crewing yachts for holiday makers in the Caribbean.

On returning to the UK David studied for a BA in Business Administration at KingstonUniversityand then took up a directorship with a print supply company.

David joined Whitstable and Herne Bay BNI in Kent shortly after they launched Elite Blinds.    Katie took a more active role in the company when the children started school and joined Canterbury BNI in 2010.

Elite Blinds offers all types of interior blinds and shutters.  Their customers are schools, businesses of all types and private home owners.

David said: “We give the customer what they want and offer the highest level of service.   Our ethos has not changed whether on NeckerIsland or running a blinds company.  The aim has always been to exceed our customers’ expectations. Hopefully we are achieving this as most of our business is either repeat or comes via customer recommendations.   BNI has been crucial to our business success.  I would recommend BNI to anyone”.

 

You can contact them on 01227 720881 or email katie@elite-blinds.com

www.elite-blinds.com

Referrals with X Factor!

We have just learned of a truly amazing referral story, showing the power of referrals globally:

BNI member and assistant director Paul Cameron was on a charity cycle ride from Angkor to Saigon recently.

On his first day of the trip he was taking in the sights at Angkor Wat Cambodia – one of the wonders of the world and he had wandered off-track into a Buddhist Temple where he was not supposed to be…

…taking a moments silence and reverence to soak up the atmosphere his phone goes off with a number he didn’t recognise.  At the verge of ignoring the call, he took it to hear that it is Elton John looking for a first birthday present for his son [with David Furnish] Zachary who was born Christmas Day 2010 – he wanted a very special first birthday and Christmas present and wanted a treehouse from Treehouse Life to be delivered and finished ready for the special day.

Of course his answer was “yes”, he just needed to work through the design and contract.  By the following Saturday, some wi-fi along the way in Cambodia, photos of the garden and designs by Treehouse Life, he received the confirmation call while laying in his hammock in the jungle at Vinh Long in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam – now in a position to ask why Elton John had come to Treehouse Life, he confirmed that it had been a direct referral from Gary Barlow for whom he had completed a treehouse project over a year ago – referrals work and this one came with X Factor!

And that’s not all…

Returning home early having changed his flight to avoid the strikes at Heathrow, he was able to attend Surbiton Chapter rather than use the substitute that he had arranged.

In the last two weeks before leaving for Cambodia he had been inspired by attending the Phil Berg workshop to deliver a special 60 seconds about the power of ‘6 degrees of separation’.

Phil Berg had talked about this and referred to the idea that everyone is on average approximately six steps away, by way of introduction, from any other person on Earth, so that a chain of “a friend of a friend” statements can be made, on average, to connect any two people in six steps or fewer.

Phil berg was talking about how this underpins the purpose of our 60 seconds in BNI and that we should simply ask for our “dream referral” and by 6 degrees of separation we would always get the connection – Phil Berg’s point was that in our 60 seconds we needed to give the words and benefit to enable and make happen the connection of two people in six steps or fewer.  This was his inspiration point and whilst Phil was talking he wrote his next 60 seconds, here was what he wrote and the 60 seconds he delivered in the two weeks before leaving for Cambodia/Vietnam…

“I went to the Phil berg workshop

I learnt about 6 degrees of separation

I would like to be introduced to Richard Branson

I know that if I met him I could inspire him to see the benefits of Treehouse Life to want to give these benefits to his children/grandchildren

He would want to add a Treehouse Life treehouse to his hotels

He would want to have one for his employees to conference and be inspired

He would want to put a photo of one of our treehouses on the front of his Virgin branded in-flight magazines

He would engage with all our values of family and nature

He will like Treehouse Life so much that he would want to buy my company

We have 2 levels of separation in this room, from me to you and from you to all your contacts.

For Treehouse Life to have the 3rd degree of separation I need to give you a benefit for you to WANT to recommend my company

Just think IF you connect me to degrees 3, 4 and 5 which connects me to Richard Branson – think about how much business I could give to YOUR Company if Richard Branson buys my business”

Yesterday, when Paul returned from Vietnam early and attended the Surbiton Chapter personally guess what happened?

He had a referral introducing him to Richard Branson, his personal mobile phone number – asking for a “dream referral” works, Phil Berg’s BNI take on 6 degrees of separation works and he is certainly a very happy BNI member this morning!

You can find out more about Paul, and his treehouses, at:

www.facebook.com/treehouselife  (Website www.treehouselife.co.uk)

Twas almost the night before Christmas

We would like to take this opportunity to wish you all the best for the holidays, and for a prosperous New Year.

While many people were already winding down for the holidays, this week saw Santa visiting BNI(R) Spitfire – the new chapter in Kent that we have mentioned several times before.

BNI(R) Spitfire chapter launched in April of this year, and has already passed 878 referrals so far – in nearly 9 months, worth £185K.

Keith Edwards played the part of Santa in this weeks meeting, with over £185,000 of business passed within the new chapter already Christmas has come early for the members… and they are looking forward to continuing their growth in 2012.

The Notable Networker award

When members join BNI they are given a grey badge to hold their name card, however you may have noticed people with blue badges and wondered about the significance?

 

These badges are given to members who have made a significant contribution to their chapter, for example:

Andrew Paine, the builder from BNI(R) Spitfire chapter was recently awarded a blue badge due to his exceptional performance – in the last six months he has had zero absences and has also given 64 referrals, of which 53 were external!

Maybe you know someone in your own chapter who has made an exceptional contribution? If so, please do mention them for consideration.

International Networking Week® 2012

The dates for the International Networking Weekd® 2012 are February 6th – 10th.

This is a great opportunity to promote networking worldwide as other networking organizations are invited to participate with BNI in this annual event, which has already been celebrated by thousands of businesses since its inception.

This year’s theme is “Business Networking and Sex: not what you think”.

Remember: we all speak the language of referrals!

Dr Misner would like to thank Referral Institute (www.ReferralInstitute.com) and Entrepreneur Press (www.Entrepreneur.com) for sponsoring International Networking Week 2012.

Member makes sales of £1,000,000 in four years, thanks to BNI

We have just heard some exciting news about BNI member and assistant director Trevor Smith, who is based in Maidstone:

Independent travel agent Trevor Smith is celebrating after hitting an impressive £1 million in sales, which he attributes largely to his extensive business networking alongside the unique level of personal service he delivers to his customers.

Running his own travel business from home with the support of award winning travel company Travel Counsellors, Trevor is a keen networker and since joining the company over four years ago has built up 80% of his sales through his local BNI group as well as other BNI contacts around the UK.

Trevor says: “I am delighted to have reached £1 million in such a short space of times.  I really believe the ‘Giver Gain Philosophy’ of BNI and the relationships I have built up in this time has brought ‘word of mouth’ referrals and attributed largely to this figure. Of course these referrals wouldn’t come if I didn’t provide the right service, and I am so proud that working as a Travel Counsellor I am able to deliver a truly personal travel service to my customers that goes above and beyond. I am available to my customers around the clock and using the company’s award winning technology I can provide expert advice and great savings; from specialist areas such as tailor-made holidays, cruises and business travel to a simple flight or hotel booking. This achievement really means a lot to me and wouldn’t have been possible without all my loyal customers.”

With over 22 years’ experience in the travel industry, Trevor has built a growing following from the region’s holidaymakers and business travellers. He has attended an astonishing 600 BNI morning meetings since he joined in 2007, and has racked up 372 referrals in his own Member Chapter ‘Maidstone Invicta’.

Working from home, Trevor is one of over 1,100 individual Travel Counsellors located throughout the UK and overseas, who all pride themselves on the personal service and attention to detail they offer their customers. Unlike most high street agencies which are owned by a big name tour operator, Travel Counsellors is completely independent, meaning that Trevor is free to recommend the holiday or business travel trip that exactly suits his customers’ needs.

Trevor adds; “I am proud to have built up such a successful business and am extremely passionate about what I do. I really do believe it pays to network and would encourage all businesses to engage in some type of networking, as it really allows you to showcase what you do and there is nothing more powerful than personal recommendation from others. ‘Invicta’ is the motto forKentand is Latin for ‘Unbeaten’, which I feel reflects the way in which I run my business. I even attend my meetings first thing in the morning as I believe the early bird catches the worm!”

Travel Counsellors is one of the top scoring companies in the world when it comes to customer service, having achieved a world beating score of over 90% in its customer satisfaction survey. In addition, the flexibility of working from home allows Trevor to be available at times to suit his customers – 24 hours a day, seven days a week if the need arises.

For more information or to discuss your future travel plans please contact Trevor on 0845 058 7708 or email trevor.smith@travelcounsellors.com.

Feedback from the recent motivational & training seminar

We recently held a special motivational & training seminar in the South East (full details can be found here)

Following the event, we have had very high feedback from attendees with the majority scoring it as 9/10 or 10/10.

Key questions asked, which most attendees have said they achieved are:

• Did the training give you lots of ideas / tips to implement in your Business?
• Did the training give you lots of ideas / tips to implement in your BNI Chapter?
• How would you rate our Guest Speaker Phil Berg?
• Will you encourage the other members of your Chapter to attend future events of this type?
• Will this training have a positive impact on your Business?
• Will this training help you increase your return from your BNI Membership?

We would suggest perhaps arranging a one to one meeting with those members who attended, so that you can benefit from their knowledge and increase your own business and chapter growth.

Have you visited the new BNI South East websites?

We now have three new websites available for people to find out more about BNI, as well as to see where their local group meets.

These are being very well received, and are helping visitors to discover some of the many benefits BNI has to offer.

They can be found at:

http://www.bnisurrey.co.uk/

http://www.bniessex.co.uk/

http://www.bnikent.co.uk/

Please do visit them, and also pass on the addresses to your contacts.