The ROCC Pod: Royal Oak Chamber of Commerce

Michael Gordon has the job he's wanted since he was 2 years old -architect.  Today we learn about his experience at MGA Architects and with the Royal Oak Chamber. He started his own firm over 30 years ago, almost by accident.  His prior boss asked him to design a home, and soon he had carved out a niche for himself.   Now he does everything from high-end residential to multi-family homes, but also...

Today, we learn about, quite literally, a hidden gem in Royal Oak.  Habatat Detroit is the country's oldest art gallery dedicated exclusively to glass work.  And their pieces are stunning. Our guest today is art consultant Regina Loutzinger.   She tells us how she came to join the gallery, and how it married her passion for art with her sales background. We talk about several of the featured artis...

Today, Lisa and Jon are joined by Dan Fischer, the President and CEO of Citizens State Bank on Woodward Avenue.  Dan came to the bank in September of 2020 after an illustrious career with financial institutions of all different sizes.  However, he now prefers to be at a smaller bank, where he can build relationships with small business owners and other members of the Greater Royal Oak Community.  ...

Today we welcome Jeff Kong of Tri-Covery Massage and Flexibility.   They started in Novi but have recently expanded to Royal Oak, offering a number of services and therapies. Tri-Covery expanded right at the beginning of COVID, and after the initial shut down, Jeff talks about working through the pandemic.  What they do isn't about luxury and massage, they are about recovery.  When the mind wants...

Today we again turn the microphone on one of our co-hosts, Trish Carruth from Your Personal Jeweler.   Trish frequently mentions that she's a third generation jeweler, but her path to this field may surprise you.  She specializes in custom engagement rings and wedding bands, combining her love of jewelry with the latent wedding planner in her. She explains her design process to us, and how she use...

Jason and Lindsey Eddleston are the new owners of a Royal Oak institution, Ray's Ice Cream.  And after six decades and three generations of ownership, the Stevens family weren't going to sell their family business to just anyway. With Jason's operations background, and Lindsey's sales experience (she's a commercial realtor in her day job), there's now a new local family at the helm of Ray's.    To...

The Royal Oak Leprechauns are back!  Today, Jon, Lisa, and Andrea are joined by their GM, Mark Sackett, to talk all things Leprechauns baseball. Mark tells us about joining the Great Lakes Collegiate League and moving the team from Adrian, Michigan, to Royal Oak - as wwell as the tremendous support they've received.  That's come not just from community leaders and citizens, but one of his former p...

Laura Rizzo, a former teacher and tennis coach, is now the owner of Luv All Coaching, where she offers professional coaching to everyone from divorcees to corporations. You may see many people call themselves a "coach," but Laura spent the time and effort to get the professional certifications in the field.  She explains what went into that. She's also drawn on her experience of going through two...

You'll hear more laughs in this episode than any previous episode of the ROCC Pod.  That's because our guest, Kiman Agee of The Great Escape Room, can really roll with the punches.  He's an actor, and his ad-lib skills are unmatched. We start by asking him to explain the concept of an escape room. Then we get into the specific rooms he offers in Royal Oak.  They include Poker Night at the Presiden...

Today, we turn the tables on our co-host, Jon Gay of JAG in Detroit Podcasts, and put him in the hot seat.  We talk about his radio-turned-podcasting career and get some insight into his personal backstory too! Jon left radio in 2017 after a 15-year career in the industry.  While he saw radio on the decline, he saw podcasting blowing up.  So he started JAG in Detroit Podcasts, creating broadcast-q...

JD Lindeberg is an expert on recycling and the circular economy.   He's been involved with these ideas since the late 1980's through both Resource Recycling Systems (RRS) and NextCycle Michigan.   JD explains the circular economy concept and how it's going to affect Michigan going forward.  In fact, the area could come within 5-10% of the economic contribution that tourism brings to our state! Rec...

The world has been turned on its ear in the last two years.  And that's certainly true in the world of human resources.  Today's guest, Jill Berti, started Workery Consulting during the pandemic.  She provides outsourced HR solutions to small businesses in an ever-changing human resources landscape. Jill explains why company culture is so important.  It's not something you simply dictate  It start...

The Michigan World War II Legacy Memorial is actually the official state memorial, and it will live right here in Royal Oak, in Memorial Park.  Groundbreaking is scheduled for April 7th. Today, we are joined by Judy Maten from the project.  She explains how the idea was born out of the Michigan Honor Flight, used to bring World War II survivors to the national memorial in Washington, D.C.  Fun fac...

The Royal Oak Chamber of Commerce has a great relationship with the city itself, and a big part of that is Todd Fenton, Deputy City Manager of Royal Oak.  Todd is our guest today. We start by exploring looking at the ways the Chamber and the City really help each other serve the residents and businesses of our community.  Todd sees the Chamber as a huge asset.  Next, we start talking about the cit...

We've had some great guests so far on the ROCC Pod, but some of you  have asked to know more about our 4 co-hosts.  Today, we put Lisa Bibbee of Keller Williams Advantage in the hot seat, and pick her brain about the real estate market in 2022. First, Lisa explains why real estate is such a hyper-local business and explains what the numbers have looked like specifcally in Royal Oak. And more gener...

Six and a half years ago, Michael Pesendorfer brought his 37 years of investment experience, and his  team at M3 Investment Services to Royal Oak. He says he's finally found a home here - both personally and professionally.  In fact, when we asked him where he likes to eat, he had a hard time choosing! Michael started out of college working for a large investment firm, but learned that was not the...

Note: In the time between when we recorded this interview with Jeff and when we published the episode, Jeff left ERSI for another opportunity.  We have published this episode with his permission to explain the work that ERSI does. Jeff Selik from Emergency Response Services Inc (ERSI), covering southeast Michigan to talk about the havoc that Michigan can wreak on homes - from water and fire damage...

Today's guest is Peter Boyse of Boyse CPA.  With the new year here, there are many things you need to know about filing your 2021 taxes, so you don't leave any money on the table.  Peter Boyse of Boyse CPA joins us to explain, in laymen's terms, what all business owners need to know.  We cover Goal Setting Employee Retention Tax Credit The Differences between a CPA, and accountant, and a tax prepa...

Ever since she was a little girl, Patt Trama has always been interested in writing.  She's won multiple awards for her work across many different genres.  Today, she sits down with Jon, Lisa, Trish, and Andrea to reflect on her journey. Patt believes if a picture is worth a thousand words, you can take those thousand words and create a picture with them.  We talk about her writing style, her proce...

Today's episode is a bit longer than usual, because there's a lot of important information in it.  Royal Oak Chamber member Kathleen Novetsky of AAA Insurance walks us through the recent changes to Michigan's No Fault Auto Insurance Laws, and what ramifications and choices now exist for you. Kathleen also talks with Jon, Andrea, Lisa, and Trish about what she recommends for auto and homeowners cov...

Ken Aubuchon purchased the Namaste Yoga studio in Royal Oak right at the beginning of the pandemic.  While adapting to this new world was a new experience for him, the studio and yoga itself were not.  The previous owners of the oldest yoga studio in our community were mentors to him, and today, Ken walks us through the world of yoga.  He truly believes "you are your own guru." Yoga is available f...

Michelle Armstrong of TAG Multimedia is at the forefront of internet technology - and sees where the digital landscape is going next. In today's episode, Michelle explains how TAG creates digital versions of small businesses and their owners.  This allows your potential customers to interact with you online.  Not only does it free you up to run your business, but it provides an additional layer of...

Michele Prudhome is the President and principal percussionist of the Royal Oak Symphony Orchestra.  She sat down with us to talk about the symphony, its background, and her own musical background. We talk about what you can expect at a concert, how that's changed over the years, and plans for their big holiday show coming up in December. Resources: Royal Oak Symphony Orchestra Website: http://roya...

Justine Bennett cares about animals and the environment.  With a background in nutrition and food science, she used spent grain from her fiancé's home brewing to create treats for her dog, Oliver.  Soon, she wasn't just making Oliver's Beer Biscuits. She started Oliver's Foundation to help end pet homelessness. Justine joins us today to talk about the many groups she works with to help provide bet...

How does an engineer-by-trade end up running a successful framing shop out of her home in Huntington Woods?  We find out today on the ROCC Pod, with guest Jill Plamper of Distinctive Framing. Jill tells us about the flexibility her business allows for in scheduling clients, and understanding that if a client wants something framed, it has significant value to them.   We talk about the process of c...