the staff of REW was treated to an evening of creativity at All Fired Up in Winter Park, FL. REW employees showed a little of their artistic side as they painted and glazed pottery while unwinding after a very busy month at the office.
While all pieces displayed talent and creativity, the REW staff staged a small competition for best artist in the office. Each piece was closely scrutinized by each member of the REW team as they voted for their favorite.
And The Winner Is…
First place winner Kevin B. was awarded a gift card to Mellow Mushroom for his multi-colored Dragon. Honorable mentions go to Yoly C. and Telma D. for their 2nd and 3rd place finishes.
Thanks to REW’s Patty Nuzzo and the staff of All Fired Up for organizing the event!
Ok, so the weather in Green Bay isn’t that great right now. I guess that’s just our sense of “weather superiority” as Floridians coming through a little. This image of the sacred ground that is know as Lambeau Field was sent to us by a REW employee that was lucky enough to get away from the office for a little while and attend some great training sessions in Sturgeon Bay, WI put on by our friends at Hatco.
Last night, members of the REW team went to Hard Knocks Laser Tag in Oviedo, FL to blow off a little steam and celebrate their hard work as they recently reached some company goals.
We would like to extend a very special thank you to the management and staff of Hard Knocks as well as our very own Vice President, Patty Nuzzo for setting up the event.
Or at least they have been for a little while now….
Restaurant Equipment World, a proud sponsor of the 2011 Orlando Magazine Best Dining Awards and the BEST restaurants in Orlando, wants to congratulate all winners on their achievements.
Once a year, the very best restaurants that call The City Beautiful home come together and compete for coveted titles in many different categories. While only the top restaurants in each category will win, many Orlando establishments and their delicious fare will receive honorable mention.
This year’s winners represent the very best that Orlando has to offer in terms of food and culture. Many visitors to our area rarely get a glimpse of what life in Orlando is like beyond the borders of The Mouse, leaving much of our local flavor unnoticed and untouched. Those of us who are lucky enough to call Central Florida home have access to fine restaurants and unbelievable food that embody our way of life year-round.
If you’re one of the fortunate few who can be called a “local,” pick up a copy of Orlando Magazine and rediscover our great city, one dish at a time.
Here’s a short release from REW’s Vice President Patty Nuzzo:
On Sunday, May 15th, Orlando Magazine’s 2011 dining awards were
held at the historic ballroom at Dubsdread Country Club in Orlando. REW was a proud sponsor of this event for the 2nd year in a row. Our President Brad Pierce and Vice President Patty Nuzzo and their spouses attended the event to show their support of all of the winners and runners up. Winners were chosen by readers of Orlando Magazine who voted on their top dining choices in 60 categories. Many REW customers were among the winners. In addition, Orlando Magazine honored several 2011 Hall of Fame winners during the event.
It never ceases to amaze me how much “bad advice” there is out there when it comes out to suggestions about how to improve a web site’s search engine optimization (SEO). Here are three common site development strategies to avoid:
1. Generate Hidden Text: Here’s what has been widely considered a brilliant idea – Developers work to fill their web pages with lots of ‘hidden’ keywords to improve a site’s ranking. They do this by coloring all text the same hue as the background of their web pages. That way, search engines “see” the text, but visitors to the site never know it’s there. That was a quick way to rocket a restaurant’s or foodservice department’s web site to the top position of search engines… back in 2000. Unfortunately, many people still errantly advocate using this development technique. Major search engines have gotten much smarter and now see tricks like this as spamming and will downgrade a site’s ranking rather than upgrade it.
2. Stuff “Meta Tags” With Keywords: Here’s the reality – meta tags are dead. They’re no longer recognized by search engine ranking algorithms, due to spamming techniques that made meta tags too easy to exploit. As a result, inserting meta-keyword tags will no longer help to improve a site’s ranking. However if foodservice operators do choose to use meta tags, don’t stuff them with keywords. Instead, keep the list of keywords to a minimal size and never, ever repeat keywords or phrases multiple times or you’re likely to be labeled as a spammer.
3. Guarantee To Position Sites As #1 On Google, Yahoo Or Bing: Many restaurants and foodservices have been pitched by companies selling search engine optimization services “guaranteed’ to place their web sites in “the #1 position.” If you ever hear this promise again, run! Sure, there are reliable ways to get a site into a number one position, but the results of those techniques are very short lasting and almost always will get a site banned from the search engine for violating their business practice terms. These bans can run anywhere from six months to forever, depending on how sneaky the tricks were the optimization company used to get a site into that coveted #1 position. Overall, It’s simply not worth it. Operators will be much better served by going with a reputable search engine optimization company that doesn’t “guarantee” pie-in-the-sky results.
Now that I’ve shared several common SEO mistakes to avoid, I’ll leave you with the magic key to improving the ranking of your site: Develop strong content. Yes, it really is that simply. Content is king. Build it and they will come (and your site will rank high up in search engines rankings, too!)
NAFEM is giving you an opportunity to apply for a complimentary badge and up to $500 to help defray travel and lodging costs to/from Orlando for The NAFEM Show-February 10-12, 2011.
Eligibility criteria and application instructions can be found at the following link: application instructions
Hello, I’m Brad Pierce, President of Restaurant Equipment World. I would like to invite you to join myself as well as other foodservice industry professionals at The National Restaurant Association Show May 22nd through the 25th in Chicago. This is a world-class event that allows our dealership to keep up to date with the latest products and innovations in our industry. While the scope of products and manufacturers represented is enormous, the number of industry leaders in attendance is even more impressive. The NRA Show is clearly the place to be if you are serious about growing your business and increasing your bottom line. Our dealership could spend weeks meeting with individual manufacturers throughout the year, but that would be costly and inefficient. Instead, we spend our resources and time productively at the NRA Show where we are able to have dozens of quality interactions in just a few short days. The NRA Show is the place where new relationships are formed, existing ones are taken to new heights, and our business gains a competitive edge. I look forward to seeing you in Chicago at the 2010 National Restaurant Association Show!
It was an evening of “Artful Expression” for REW employees at All Fired Up in Winter Park last Thursday. Staff showed their creative side painting pottery and even a few “Chicken Pitchers”. It looks as if some employees took a little inspiration from Cezanne and Mondrain, while others may have been influenced by Duchamp or Jack Daniels. Either way, its all very creative! The event was a thanks to the staff for reaching another lofty sales goal and served as a nice distraction from a very busy week. A special thanks to All Fired Up in Winter Park and to Patty for organizing the event.
Testimony of Brad Pierce, President of Restaurant Equipment World ™ (A Pierce Sales Co., Inc.)
at the hearing by the Subcommittee on Competitiveness, Innovation, and Export Promotion of the Commerce Committee
United States Senate
October 6, 2009
On Tuesday, October 6, 2009, Brad Pierce, President of Orlando based Restaurant Equipment World ™ testified before a United States Senate Subcommittee in Washington, D.C. regarding increasing global export trade for small businesses. Over the past several years, Pierce has grown his export business substantially which now accounts for more than 30% of his company’s annual sales volume and spans more than 100 countries internationally. While Pierce has accomplished this without the aid of government assistance, he certainly is interested in programs the government has available to help him increase his and other small businesses’ export volumes. Pierce stated, “There are 24 million small businesses which create approximately 80% of the new jobs in this country. In this troubled economy I see how much our business has been aided by exports, to not only survive, but to grow as a business. I would certainly like to see other companies benefit in this same manner.” The content of his speech and subsequent question and answer session with numerous Senators and other government officials continued to drive home the importance of increased global exports for small businesses. He concluded his testimony by stating, “I truly believe that as partners with the US government working hand in hand together, we can certainly increase our export trade. This will save U.S. jobs, provide an increase in revenue, help for us to recover faster from the current economic downturn, and make us stronger as a nation.” Pierce was testifying on behalf of the National Federation of Independent Businesses at the invitation of United States Senator George LeMieux of Florida.
Restaurant Equipment World ™ (A Pierce Sales Co., Inc.) is an industry leading dealer of commercial restaurant equipment and supplies. They are a family owned company based in Orlando, Florida and have approximately 45 employees. Over the past 33 years, the company has sold goods to more than 75,000 customers in all 50 states and more than 100 countries internationally. The company was the first in their industry to embrace the e-commerce market more than 13 years ago and currently operates a network more than 200 online websites dedicated to foodservice equipment and supplies. The company’s online catalog available at www.REWonline.com boasts over 26,000 products from more than 200 manufacturers.
As you already may know, we all scream for ice cream- especially when it’s in celebration of reaching a sales goal. This week Ben & Jerry’s of Melbourne was nice enough to cater an afternoon ice cream social for the employees of REW. Though there were some that could not partake in the events for various reasons (sorry Melissa, no lactose for you!) most of the staff enjoyed a well-deserved break from their daily activities.
Ben & Jerry’s set up a small ice cream stand in the building’s party room as we all looked on with bated breath. Well, not really, but we were excited about the ice cream. And who wouldn’t be? Matt Solomon, playing the role of Ben, and Heather Solomon co-starring as Jerry, served their franchise’s four “flagship” flavors. It was here that REW employees were faced with an important decision; four flavors but only two scoops. And between Chunky Monkey, Cherry Garcia, Mint Chocolate Chunk, and Phish Food, it was a miracle that no one cracked under the pressure. But the tough choices didn’t end there. A spread of toppings that would have made even made young Charlie Bucket pause for thought were also available. The possible combinations were seemingly endless.
I personally wanted time to go home and sleep on my decision, but due to time constraints was forced into making a rash and ultimately regrettable decision. Two scoops of Phish food with no topping. Even though Phish Food is my personal favorite, I can help but think- ah, what could have been. I’m sure that there are others like me who stay awake at night and wonder about the other flavors, therefore a future trip to Ben & Jerry’s of Melbourne may be in order. It’s my new life’s mission to try them all.
A very special thanks to REW customers Matt and Heather Solomon, owners of the Ben & Jerry’s in Melbourne for taking the time out of their busy schedules to serve us their delicious ice cream. And thank you Patty for organizing the event!
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It never ceases to amaze me how much “bad advice” there is out there when it comes out to suggestions about how to improve a web site’s search engine optimization (SEO). Here are three common site development strategies to avoid:
