Emporia Main Street
E-Newsletter |
It's the first week of March, and we have a mingle on the horizon, LOTS of activities starting next week and some new businesses getting ready to open. Keep reading for some ideas on how to improve your cash flow, community questions and more in this week's e-news! |
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A Very Special Main Street Mingle
March 13th, 6:00 p.m. at IM Design Group
101 West 6th Avenue
Start Your Own Business Class Graduation AND the Launch of the Lyon County E-Community Loan Fund!
Congratulate new class graduates and potential small business owners while you find out more information about a zero interest loan fund for businesses starting up or expanding in Lyon County!
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Quarter Mania
March 13th in the Granada Theatre
Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and the event starts at 6:30 p.m.
CLICK HERE for a video explaining this fun event that helps local businesses AND provides great prizes for you!
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Click HERE for the Dinner and Taste Ticket Click HERE for the general Taste Ticket |
The Taste is April 12th from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. in the Civic Auditorium. This classic event features Kansas Wineries, Breweries and Distilleries, local restaurants, live music and a lot of fun! We also have a Taste AND Dinner option. Dinner starts at 5:00 p.m., and dinner attendees gain early access to The Taste. We sold out of tickets the last three years, so remember to get your tickets EARLY!!! Click the links above to reserve your dinner ticket or your general ticket (we will hold on-line tickets at the door). Don't wait! Get your tickets TODAY!!!
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Do you enjoy taking photographs? Why not enter our photo contest celebrating National Historic Preservation Month in May? We want to see your talent and you may win Emporia Main Street gift certificates!
CLICK HERE for Contest Details
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Main Street Merchandise
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You can order the items listed below at a variety of local merchants, at the Emporia Main Street office or on-line at www.emporiamainstreet.com
Emporia-Opoly Game Boards are in and moving QUICKLY! This Emporia version of the classic Monopoly board game features local businesses, historic sights and special Emporia Tokens. This is the perfect gift for current or past Emporians. Because there is a limited quantity, we suggest you get yours soon..
Emporia Main Street Gift Certificates are always the perfect size! Give the gift of shopping local this year with the gift of Emporia Main Street gift certificates, good at our member merchants throughout Emporia.
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Learn more about local amenities, organizations, businesses, events and more with the E-Town Mobile App! The ETown App is a joint project among Emporia State University, Flint Hills Technical College, USD 253, The Emporia Gazette, the City of Emporia, the Emporia Convention and Visitors Bureau and Emporia Main Street.
For IPhone Users, click here:
For Android Users, click here:
For the NEW iPad Version, click here:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/e-town-app-emporia-kansas/id712001984?mt=8
New additions AND a Web version COMING SOON!
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Get 'Em Ready to Read
Instructor: Holly Aranda & Angie Schreiber
Cost: $19; resource materials included!
$25 for couples; shared resources
Schedule: Tuesday, February 25, 7:00-8:00pm
What do three and four year olds need to know to learn to read? And read well? This fun evening will provide hands on activities and up-to-date information on current reading research. Join Holly and Angie from Cradle to Career Literacy Center, and find out what your child needs to know to be school ready.
Farmers Market 101: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Farmers Market Vending
Instructor: Tracy Simmons
Cost: $5
Schedule: Tuesday, March 4, 6:00-8:00 PM
If you've ever considered selling produce, baked goods, or homemade crafts at a farmers market, this is the place for you. Emporia Farmers Market manager, Tracy Simmons, will cover the ins and outs of selling at the market, state and local regulations, creating a niche, and tips and strategies for successful vending. As well, you will learn about the Emporia Farmers Market history, operations and guidelines for selling. If you already know your product, or you've just had an idea that selling at the market is something you might like to do, sign up for this presentation. Sponsored in part by the Emil Babinger Charitable Trust.
Seed Starting Basics
Instructor: John Crisp
Cost: $5
Schedule: Tuesday, March 11, 6:00-8:30pm
Don't get overwhelmed with all the technical stuff - you can do it! From direct seeding in the garden to starting seedlings for transplant, you will learn all you need to know to get started raising your own food. Students will work with seeds, potting soils, flats, cells, soil blocks, grow lights, timers, watering devices, and transplanters, learning all the aspects of growing through hands-on activity. John has been gardening for over 50 years and his experience can help you get through the learning curve, and on your way to success.
Online Moodle 2.5 Boot Camp
Instructor: Kim Dhority
Session 2: Schedule: Modules open March 24-May 26. (Must be registered by March 15).
Cost: $25; graduate credit is available through Baker University at an additional cost.
Do you want to offer online classes? Do you want to be able to give handouts or presentations to your students anywhere? Join Kim Dhority for an informative and helpful "boot camp", and learn how to use the open-source learning management system called Moodle. Through seven interactive and informative online modules, the class will cover course set-up, maintenance, resources, activities, advanced features, and more! This course is ideal for college instructors and administrators, and is available for graduate credit through Baker University for an additional fee. Please contact 620-341-1392 for additional details.
Eating in Season
Instructor: Tracey Graham
Cost: $5
Schedule: Session 1: Tuesday, January 21, 6:00-8:00 PM
Session 2: Tuesday, February 18, 6:00-8:00 PM
We all know that locally-grown foods (from your garden, your friends' and neighbors' gardens, the Farmers Market, etc.) are the very best. Even in the depths of winter, there are many lovely foods available locally. Tips for creative ways of consuming high-quantity foods while they're at their peak is the focus of this class. Explore how to take advantage of the abundance that is available at different times of the year, and sample some recipes whipped up from what's available right now. Sponsored in part by the Emil Babinger Charitable Trust.
Enroll today! Visit http://flinthills.augusoft.net or call 620-341-1392.
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Dirty Kanza Sponsorship Opportunities
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The Dirty Kanza 200 is fast approaching (May 31, 2014). We at Dirty Kanza Promotions would like to extend an invitation to you to combine our resources.We are looking into expanding our store and we would like to partner with your business! Anything that can be sold with the Dirty Kanza logo on it during that time would benefit both businesses. If you are interested in meeting to discuss merchandising options, please contact LeLan Dains at [email protected] . We hope to hear from you soon!
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Property Availability Guide
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For property owners with property available for rent or sale, this is a free service to collect information and post it on the Emporia Main Street Web Site. With other market information available, we hope this site makes it easier for potential businesses and property developers to find spaces they need.
CLICK HERE to enter information about your available property and view previously submitted information.
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Business Investment Guide |
Do you know a business that should locate in Emporia? Maybe you know an entrpreneur looking for resources or a business owner looking to expand? The Business Investment Guide is community information designed to help you point your contacts in the right direction!
CLICK HERE for the INVESTMENT GUIDE |
Improving your Cash Flow
Take some steps now to grow your bank balance later
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About 99.99% of all businesses we work with would like to improve their cash flow position. There are several ways to do that, and we cover various strategies that can help improve profitability for local businesses on regular basis within these newsletters. But, it is always helpful to review some basic strategies.
Without a strategy, your business is subject to hope and luck, and those aren't two consistent cash generators. Today we will cover six basic ways you can improve your cash position in business, but first:
Remember that the key to identifying areas of needed improvement or successful activities is record keeping. Accounting software, a daily ledger (covering daily sales, the day of the week and other pertinent information like events occurring and weather), Point of Sale Register Data, and other basic information can help you make more informed decisions as a business person. Your personal preferences can taint business decision making, so start your improvement strategies with a solid basis in facts generated from complete records.
Now, on to the strategies:
1. Increase Margins- Although it is easier to assume that all merchandise or services should have the same margin or "mark up", it is important to distinguish a perceived customer value and appropriate price strategy for independent items or services. To improve overall gross margins, businesses should emphasize the sale of products or services with higher margins built into their price. Through display, marketing, bundling items or presentation, higher margins on certain items can allow businesses flexibility in other areas. When businesses can reduce product costs through efficiency, sourcing, buying practices or other strategies and maintain retail pricing, margins can be enhanced. Occasionally, prices must be adjusted to reflect the reality of costs associated with products or services and allow for the profit necessary to maintain and grow a business. Additionally, prices for "the same thing", especially within a small geographic region, must be competitive to maintain sales volume.
2. Decrease Costs- This is easier said than done, but businesses should make a detailed list of costs incurred for products or services sold (or other costs) and prioritize importance. Find efficiencies in variable costs while being cognizant of the impact of cost cutting moves on your brand and market presence. When applicable, seek cost saving measures with suppliers. However, be cautious of buying programs that tie up more cash in inventory than you can sell over a reasonable time frame. If necessary, renegotiate fixed business costs. Look at your low Return On Investment (ROI) items and phase them out of your business model.
3. Increase volume on existing profit centers- If you have something that makes you money, sell more of it... This sounds simple, but it is surprising how many businesses fail to think in these terms as they are making buying or marketing decisions. Concentrate on increasing the quantity of products or services you are selling on a per customer basis. For many businesses, increased sales per customer strategies are directly linked to increasing the time duration a customer spends in a business. Some businesses, like restaurants, are more concerned with "turning over" their customers to allow for more sales. Encourage "group" buying or consumer referrals to your business to increase sales volume, and remember to market to your existing customers to improve buying frequency. It is a lot easier (and cheaper) for a business to encourage an existing customer to spend more often than it is to establish a new customer relationship. Increasing visit frequency can be as easy as educating your sales force about upcoming activities and encouraging them to relay the information to customers.
4. Find additional profit centers- The only thing constant in the world of business is change. Businesses must constantly seek new profit centers that improve their cash position. Innovative businesses develop new products or services, update existing lines and track industry trends. Smaller businesses can form mutually beneficial relationships with other small businesses that allow them to consign products or services and create unique offerings with better profit potential (without tying up cash). Look at other businesses in like size cities within your industry and employ an R & D (ripoff and duplicate) strategy for things that create profit potential. Updating your professional skills through industry specific training programs may help you identify ways to make or save funds through innovation.
5. Create new basis generators- Sometimes changing how products or services are offered can alter your costs and/or profit margins and produce a better cash position for a business. Term contracts, clubs or exclusive offerings over an extended period can front load a consumer cash expenditure while offering a business the opportunity to plan for future goods or service delivery more effectively. Gift certificates are rarely used by 100% of the individuals the certificates are issued to, and thus they create the potential to increase your overall margins while avoiding additional product costs. Find ways to work with organizations or other businesses to create a stable frequency of use for your business (a restaurant meeting every second Tuesday of the month, for example). Concentrate on finding ways to create traffic for your business on "off" days or seasons.
6. Assert market dominance- Identify external volume generators and implement plans to capture the market. If there are events, activities or wholesale changes that can improve the volume your business can take advantage of, you need a plan to convert those those opportunities into sales. Find ways that you can expand your presence outside your own four walls. By working with different agencies and businesses to showcase your products, services and expertise, you can expand your brand presence. The old marketing rule was that a customer must see your brand three times before they recognized who you were and what you did. The new rule is that a customer must interact with your brand 30 times before you gain consistent market recognition. Small businesses are generally more involved with the community, and they need to use that involvement to generate a competitive advantage. By planning and executing strategies that take advantage of exterior market drivers, you can assert a level of market dominance that provides additional sales.
Within your specific industry, you may have some strategies listed above that are more applicable than others. The goal of a short newsletter article like this is to get you to look at these different areas and apply relevant strategies to your business model. As the market continues to change, a strategic review for a business is important, and constant reviews can help keep your business relevant and your cash flow healthy.
The most important theme above is the need for businesses to set aside a little time to think strategically about increasing their market share, and then follow up with execution of your strategy. Create work plans, work through a calendar, assign responsibilities for executing tasks and record the impact of your different activities. Over time, you will find that a little extra attention to your cash flow will ease your stress and generate higher inflows. If you need to bounce some ideas of people (or you want to determine the health of your current cash flow) you have some good local resources available locally, including the Small Business Development Center at ESU and Emporia Main Street.
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Did you know???
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Last week we met with some county officials to talk about various projects, worked with a local businesses to go through the E-Community loan process, held a technical
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The first parade of 2014 is next Saturday! Come downtown to check it out!
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communication training with another state interested in how Emporia handled projects, attended a City Commission Study Session to talk about Community Initiated Development, hosted a Business Enhancement team meeting, held a Home Based Business Committee meeting, met with Dirty Kanza organizers, did some business counseling, helped with the Start Your Own Business Class and met with a few new prospective business owners.
It was another busy week at Main Street
, but lots of activity means some good questions from all of you
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1. "Can you help businesses outside the county?"- From a local real estate firm. I can point the business in the right direction, or contact their county designee to make them aware of programs that can help. Outside of those two areas, my assistance options become limited. We have businesses and communities that contact Emporia Main Street on a consistent basis looking for help. Some want a Main Street program, some want access to knowledge/resources and some want someone to show up on-site and walk them through processes. What these people are asking for is "boots on the ground" that provide consistent help. Unfortunately, our limited resources don't allow us to fulfill a vast majority of the requests we receive. As a person that grew up in a small Kansas town very close to Emporia but outside the county, I understand the frustration some have, and hopefully area and state entities understand the needs of rural Kansas and dedicate the resources necessary to aid them in their quest for growth.
2. "Is it a good idea to get someone to do social media posting for you?" From a student in the Start Your Own Business class. It can be, but you need to be careful. Emporia Main Street has several social media "administrators" that can post on behalf of the organization. Typically, that's a good thing because no single staff member has the time to browse social media and conduct posting at the rate you see on our social media sites. If you have others that help administer your social media pages, it is very important that they understand your business/organizational goals, language, tone, vision and mission. Your social media posts should support your brand image, and if they don't you will create brand confusion. You can hire or designate individuals to do your social media posting, but you need to train people FIRST and communicate with them on a consistent basis. The new rule of brand exposure is that people must see your brand 30 times before they start recognizing who you are and what you do. That fact makes social media a necessity for most businesses, but you need to ensure activities your businesses/organizations are participating in are representative of the quality of your business/organization.
3. "Why do you think a redevelopment plan is so important?" From someone responding to last week's newsletter. If we don't redevelop existing commercial or residential areas, we are condemning the community to areas of chronic blight. If we can't execute redevelopment, we are passively encouraging sprawl. Chronic vacancies, blight and sprawl hurt the community tax base and the ability to attract good businesses over time. Through effective planning, we can actively create redevelopment options that produce stronger commercial and residential developments in pre-existing areas throughout Emporia.
4. "Okay, so what is the net impact?" From a community member that asked about the impact of theoretical developments. In Main Street, we talk a lot about "net numbers" and less about "gross numbers". If we create 100 jobs, but we lose 150 jobs, we could say that we had a gross increase of 100 jobs, but the net reality is a loss of 50 jobs. When we judge ourselves organizationally, we have to look at the net impact of our organization over time, starting with a numerical baseline of where we started. When we look at vacancy rates, number of businesses, number of visitors, spending, development activities, buildings purchased/redeveloped and other units of measure, it may be more comforting to look at gross numbers but the net numbers tell us where we are actually at. In business, that concept is simple. If you have two different activities, and one generates $10,000 in sales but the costs associated with the activity equals $12,000, while another activity only generates $5,000 in sales but the costs associated with the activity equal $2,500, which is better for your business? If we only looked at the gross, the first option with $10,000 looks better even though we lost $2,000. If we look at the net impact, even though we had a lower gross, the profit generated in the second option is much healthier for our business. So, each activity we as businesses, organizations or communities initiate must be judged on the net basis to determine if the project was "good" or "bad".
5. "What do you mean by "sustainable need" in the survey?" From an Emporia High student representative on the Business Enhancement Committee. Each year, Emporia Main Street engages high school students and college students in a community development survey. The goal of the survey is to determine the types of businesses, entertainment options and aesthetic changes the community needs from the perspective of a limited market segment. After the first year of the survey, it was very clear that we needed to qualify some of our questions to obtain information that was actually useful. In year one, we obtained requests for retail options that were much too large to survive within the limited market of Emporia. We also received some entertainment venue requests (an underground football facility, for example) that could never be financed. So, we qualify questions by encouraging people to think critically about what our market can sustain within a community the size of Emporia. It's our goal to take feedback and create tangible results, but we need to qualify and educate our populace about realistic market expectations, otherwise we contribute to area frustration over the lack of amenities that aren't a realistic option for a community of our size.
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President's Circle
Emporia Realty Group
www.emporiarealtygroup.com
608 Commercial
620-412-9850
IM Design Group
www.imdesigngroup.com
17 W. 5th
620-343-3909
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541 Sherman
www.kiss103.1.net
620-343-6144
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Emporia Main Street Calendar of Events
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March 5
Emporia Main Street Board of Directors Meeting
8:00 a.m. in the Emporia Main Street office.
March 12
Emporia Main Street Promotion team meeting.
8:00 a.m. in the Emporia Main Street office.
Design Team meeting
noon in the Emporia Main Street office
March 13
Quarter Mania.
Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and the event starts at 6:30 p.m. in the Granada Theatre.
Main Street Mingle
6:00 p.m. at IM Design Group
A celebration of Start Your Own Business Class Graduates and the launch of a new zero interest loan fund for Lyon County.
March 15
St. Patrick's Day Parade
1:00 p.m. in downtown Emporia.
March 19
Board of Directors Meeting
8:00 a.m. in the Emporia Main Street office.
March 22
Monkey Island Disc Golf Classic by Dynamic Discs
Peter Pan Park
March 26
Business Enhancement Team Meeting
8:00 a.m. in the Emporia Main Street office
April 12th
The Taste
Dinner at 5:00 p.m., and the General Taste runs from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the Civic Auditorium
May 2-4
The Glass Blown Open. This Dynamic Discs tournament will take place throughout the Emporia area.
May 10th
The Flatland Cruisers Car Show
May 18-20
National Main Street Conference in Detroit Michigan.
May 31
The Dirty Kanza
riders leave at 6:00 a.m. from the 800 Block of Commercial Street.
June 21
Business Stroll
August 23
Trilogy Disc Golf Open
September 13
The Great American Market
Do you have an upcoming event for your business or organization?
Let Emporia Main Street know and we may include it on our upcoming calendars!
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General Level Members
AKA Marketing
Amish Woodworks
Applebees
Ash LLC
Atherton & Huth
Bank of America
Bath Expressions
Ben Moore Studio
Bennett Dental Group
BG Consultants
BLI Rentals
Bluestem Farm and Ranch
Brown's Shoe Fit
Bruff's Bar and Grill
C & J Woodworks
Candlewood Suites
Capitol Federal
Cassell Insurance
Chester Press
Clark Carpet and Tile, Inc.
Coffelt Sign Co.
Complete Works
Country Mart/Price Chopper
Dan's Hands Massage
Davis Paints
Disciple Shoppe
Dorsey Eye Care
Douglas Chiropractic
Dr. Kerri Thompson, DDS
Dynamic Discs
Eastwood Lake Apartments
Ek Real Estate
Emporia Construction and Remodeling
Emporia Radio Stations: KVOE, 104.9 & 101.7
Emporia State Federal Credit Union
E-Town Solutions
ESU Memorial Union
Evergreen Design-Build
Flint Hills Eye Care
Flint Hills Mall
Association
Flint Hills Music
Floyd's Automotive
Forget Me Not Productions
Four Seasons Apartments
George Groh and Sons
Gerald Schumann Electric
Granada Coffee Company
Graves Drug Store
Haag Management
Hair Krafters
Heart Center Studio
Helbert & Allemang
High Gear
Java Cat Coffeehouse
Junque Drawer Emporium
Kansas Radio 96.1 The Wave
King Liquor
L & L Pets
Lyon County State Bank
Lyon County Title
Mark II Lumber
McDonalds
McKinzie Pest Control
Midas Touch Tans
Mike Alpers Agency
Mr. Sisters Sweets
Modern Air Conditioning, Inc.
Mulready's Pub
Navrats Office Supply
Papa John's Pizza
Pizza Hut
Pizza Ranch
Plum Bazaar
Poehler Mercantile
Pool and Associates
Prairie Sage Apartments
Pro-Cuts
Rand Simmons Law Office
Redline Trucking
Reflxns Salon
Rhinestone Cowgirl Salon
Sauder Custom Fabrication
Schellers Lawn and Landscape
Scott's Lawn and Landscaping
Second Love Gifts
Stanley Jewelry
Studio 11
Subway
Sunflower Gymnastics
Sutherlands Lumber Co.
Sweet Granada
Textbook Corner
Thompson Auto Repair
Toso Appraisal
Total Technology
Town Crier Bookstore
Triad Leasing
Uncommon Threads
Value-Net LLC
Waters True Value Hardware
Westar Energy
Williams Automotive
Wright CPA Group PA
Wright's Furniture
Xan-A-Do Salon
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Non Profit Level Members
Big Brothers Big Sisters
Cradle to Career Cneter
Emporia Eastside Community Group
EHS- FBLA
Emporia Arts Council
Emporia Chamber of Commerce
Emporia Farmers Market
Emporia Friends of the Zoo
Emporia Presbyterian Church
Emporia Friends of the Library
ESU- Alumni Association
ESU- Small Business Development Center
ESU- Memorial Union
ESU- Theatre Dept.
Flint Hills Community Health Center
Granada Theatre Alliance
National Teachers Hall of Fame
Saint Francis Community Services
Salvation Army
SOS
TFI Family Services
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Home Based Business Members
Avon- Amanda Hopkins
Gold Canyon Candles- Stephanie Morgan
Green Door Recycling
Interdependent Web, LLC
Longaberger Independent Consultant -Judy Dieker
Mary Kay- Lori Engle
Nicole Bradshaw Designs
Origami Owl- Angela Dowell
Paula's Creations
Pampered Chef- Chelsea Gerleman
Purse Lady- Nancy Crawford
Scentsy/ Grace Adele- Kelly Long
Tastefully Simple- Vanessa Apodaca
Thirty One Gifts- Linsey Hopkins
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Individual Supporters
Amy and Rick Becker
Amy Evans
Brad Harzman
Dale & Carolyn Davis
Don Hill
Erin and Casey Woods
Joyce Zhou
Julie Johnson
Kayle Oney
Kelly Wade
Lynn Knechtel
Mark and Amy McAnarney
Michael and Karen Shonrock
Valerie and Matt Zimmerman
Roger Heineken
Smitty Smith
Sue Blechl
Tim & Mary Helmer
Tyler & Melanie Curtis
Yvonne Pool
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