URBANDALE, IA — The Urbandale Chamber of Commerce annually honors three Business of the Year and three Small Business of the Year nominees. From the nominees, a winner is announced at Sample Urbandale, A Celebration of Business on Thursday, September 21st at Holiday Inn & Suites Des Moines Northwest.
The six nominees have not only given back, they have had a significant impact on the greater Urbandale area. Business of the Year nominees include Homemakers Furniture, R&R Realty, and Superstorm Restoration.
Homemakers Furniture is an Iowa founded and family-operated business in operation since 1974. Homemakers recognizes the significance of being involved in the Urbandale community. Their Hometown Giving program allows the ability to work with charitable organizations by donating time and resources to support their causes. Homemakers has worked with 36 charity partners so far in 2023. Their pillars of Women Empowerment, Animal Support, Homelessness, and Childrens causes have given Homemakers a foundation of excellence to build our ties in the community. Homemakers Volunteer Time Off program allows our employees to spend part of their working hours to help those in need and creates a strong work life balance.
R & R Realty Group makes a significant impact on Urbandale by putting a roof over many Urbandale and metro businesses. R&R Realty Group owns a 10 million square foot portfolio of commercial real estate, 3 million of those square feet being in Urbandale alone. In Urbandale, they offer customers office, flex, and industrial properties. More people come to work at an R&R Realty Group building in Urbandale than any other real estate company. R&R Realty Group strives to provide the community a Class A real estate experience and a place where employees and team members can bring their whole selves to work. R & R Realty’s philanthropic givebacks include contributions to Miracle League Field, CanPlay, and involvement in the proposed U-Plex. Their business parks also annually hold bountiful food and blood drives.
Superstorm Restoration has been serving the Urbandale community and central Iowa for 11 years. Superstorm Restoration prides themselves in offering free property evaluations to property owners to ensure they understand their home’s value, and although they may not need services now, Superstorm is there for homeowners in the future. Superstorm Restoration gives back to the community in an abundance of ways – annually the business donates their roofing services to a family in need, completely free of charge. Superstorm Restoration also revamped their office space and provide event space to the public. Revival Center United Pentecostal Church meets every Sunday in their beautiful space.
Small Business of the Year nominees include Fully Promoted, The Change Dance and the Urbandale Food Pantry.
Fully Promoted Urbandale offers extensive branding and marketing services for businesses and organizations in and around Urbandale. Providing excellent customer service and an array of items to choose from, Fully Promoted can put your logo on almost anything. Fully Promoted gives back to the Urbandale community by donating logo apparel to Urbandale Community School District’s PTO programs. Fully Promoted is also passionate about the mission to make sports accessible to any child. By sponsoring the Iowa United Football Club, they help to offer free or low cost club soccer to children in need of assistance.
The Change Dance is a dance studio that focuses on emotional and physical wellness. In the short year they’ve been open in Urbandale, they have reached out to other small businesses in the area to collaborate and have become active within the community by championing other businesses and finding ways to lift up other local business owners. From their start, they knew they wanted to be heavily involved with the community and it’s business owners and organizations. The Change Dance has worked with Fi and Friends, The Dancer’s Theatre, Bishop Elite Martial Arts, Dancing with Miss Maddy, 80/35 Music Festival, Cowles Montessori School, Iowa State University LAS Innovation and Entrepreneurship program, Slay The Runway, and Ballet Des Moines.
The Urbandale Food Pantry is a collaborative, community effort to reach out to neighbors and provide food assistance with dignity and compassion. For over a decade the food pantry has been serving our neighbors in need. In August, the Urbandale Food Pantry served over 1,800 individuals, breaking their own previous records. The Urbandale Food Pantry not only serves Urbandale, but regularly teams up with surrounding communities to collaborate on how to decrease food insecurity in Iowa. The Urbandale Food Pantry also donates extra items to surrounding pantries when the opportunity arises. The Urbandale Food Pantry continues to outgrow their space and expand as they serve more and more community members.
All six nominees will be honored and more of their stories will the shared before the 2023 Business and Small Business of the Year are announced. Tickets to the event are available on the Chamber’s website or by calling 515-331-6855.
The Urbandale Chamber of Commerce is a membership-based business organization that serves its membership and business community by promoting economic development, business growth and a high quality of life.