Al Taubenberger, president of the Greater Northeast Chamber of Commerce, says several business corridors in the region have not experienced decline during the economic fallout.

For Samuel Nalbandian, owner of Rising Sun Pizza in Lawncrest, the business is a way of life and the recession is nothing to worry about.

“For me, it’s been the same,” he said of business during the past several months. “It’s always good, as long as I’m here managing. The customers are satisfied.”

Nalbandian, who opened the pizza parlor in 1982, said while he did see a slight drop in business last year that he attributed to the recession, he doesn’t worry about the shop.

“I do worry for other people not having jobs when the economy is bad,” he said. “But as long as I do the right thing, I don’t worry [about the business].”

Like some owners throughout the Northeast’s many neighborhoods and myriad business corridors, Nalbandian is a small business owner lucky enough to skirt the worst of the decline, avoiding being hit as hard as other businesses, especially larger ones. While there are not concrete statistics for our region of the city specifically, in terms of the economy’s effect on the businesses, a consensus exists among owners and civic leaders that while the Northeast’s businesses were hit, they largely weren’t hit too hard, and will pull through and stay profitable. continue reading »

NEast Philly is officially open for business!

Though we’ve been up and running for almost a solid year now, the process of becoming a recognized and legitimate business was a slow one, complicated by delays from the city and state governments. But thanks to the folks at Freedom Credit Union, the NEast Philly business account is finally open!

Business owners interested in advertising can get that information here, and NEast Philly readers: keep your eyes peeled in the near future for opportunities to buy some very NEast-y products!

One month after highlighting Globe Dye Works, another Frankford company is getting widespread praise.

East Frankford design collaborator and fabrication company Amuneal was ranked 51st in the 11th annual Inner City 100, a competitive ranking of the fastest-growing companies located in the “inner city” of a U.S. metropolis, last week.

There’s no telling what our friends at the Frankford Gazette will say about being labeled the “inner-city.” See what the list constitutes an inner-city here.

The list comes from the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, a national nonprofit organization founded in 1994 by a Harvard Business School professor. The organization’s mission is to promote economic prosperity in U.S. inner cities through private sector engagement leading to job, income and wealth creation for local residents.

Find out more about Amuneal and the list below.

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The Philadelphia Business Journal reports that the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Burholme will cut about 3 percent of its staff – more than 70 jobs.