Category: Local Business Spotlight

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Local Business Spotlight Sports & Leisure

Perce’s Kenpo Karate: What it Takes to be a Business Owner

To be an 8th-degree black belt in Kenpo Karate is one of the highest belts one can receive in martial arts. Paul Perce, owner and founder of Perce’s Kenpo Karate, holds one of the highest black belts in all of Ventura County, along with running a successful Karate studio for over 28 years in Fillmore California.

Today we dive into the story of a successful business owner in Ventura County and what they did to get where they are today. Paul Perce grew up in El Rio, Oxnard, where many know that the area has gang-affiliated groups residing there. The parents of Paul Perce didn’t want him and his brother to be involved with gangs, so his parents signed the brothers up for martial arts to keep them occupied throughout the day. Paul continued his love for martial arts for over 26 years training in a variety of arts kenpo, kali, and jiujitsu.

In 1996 Perce’s Kenpo Karate was opened in Fillmore California at the age of 26. He gained management skills by helping to instruct the Flores Brothers’ karate studio in Oxnard. That karate studio was also where he trained for many years. Paul learned the experience he needed and thus took the leap of faith opening his very own Kenpo karate studio. When interviewing Paul, he explained, “When teaching students, it’s very important to pay attention to every detail. That is the key to success.” The key to being successful in running a smooth business is to never overlook the small details, especially when training people of all ages. Perce’s Kenpo Karate has established a long-lasting foundation for Fillmore’s small community. Even though Fillmore is a small town, students of Paul even those based in Los Angeles County travel to Perce’s Kenpo to learn from him. Perce’s studio has created a strong relationship with his students and created an impact on the communities of Fillmore and Ventura. Paul’s plan for his business is to stay established in Fillmore but expand to different schools all around Ventura County teaching after-school self-defense classes.

Overall Paul has established a successful business through his eye for detail, organization, experience, and love for what he does. Establishing a business you don’t have passion for is not going to work if you do not love what you do. For Paul, his passion and love for karate will continue helping him build a proud long-lasting business in Fillmore, California teaching people of all ages the art of Kenpo Karate.

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Arts & Entertainment Business Local Business Spotlight

Review of Brooklyn Charm in Ventura, CA

As someone who does not live in Ventura, CA this shop was excitingly new to me. It took me around 30 minutes to get to the shop and when I first entered I was in shock. I expected the store to be somewhat bigger, but it was a cute local shop size. While in the shop, I found charms, beads, rings, bracelets, necklaces, pins, earrings, crystals, shoe lace jewelry, costume jewelry, and so much more! Upon entry, there were already quite a few people in the store picking out charms for custom necklaces/ bracelets. This is predominately a shop to make custom jewelry.

For example, customers pick their own chains and charms for necklaces or bracelets, when finished, they take it to the front of the store. The employees at the front then ask the order of the charms on the chain and put the jewelry together, which typically takes around less than 15 minutes. However, this depends on how many people have already turned in their jewelry to be assembled before you.

COST 💵

When making a custom bracelet or necklace all charms do not cost the same amount. The pricing for most charms are different they typically range from $6-$15 per charm.

  • Rings: $5 each, 3 for $10, or 10 for $25
  • Disney pins: $8 each or 4 for $20
  • Premade bracelets: $12 each or 2 for $20
  • Earrings: ranging from $5-$20
  • Stickers: $2 each, 3 for $5, or 8 for $10
  • Crystal bottles : $5 each
  • Permanent jewelry: ranging from $45-$100+
  • Mystery bags: $5-$15
  • Chains: ranging from $3-$20

RATING ⭐️

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

I would have to rate Brooklyn Charm a 3.5/5, due to the fact that there is a humungous variety of all kinds of jewelry. In general, there is so many diverse charms, chains, rings, etc. that you could easily spend 1-2 hours of finding amazing products. The service was great, staff was friendly, and the store was aesthetically pleasing, clean, and organized. This could also be a fun activity to do with friends, family, or even a date! Nonetheless, I think the pricing for most items were too overpriced. People are already paying around $35 if not more for only 5 charms on a necklace or bracelet. I do realize they are a small business in Ventura and they need to make their income, but in my opinion it is too overpriced.

Images taken at Brooklyn Charm 📍

By: Melina Ramos

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Local Business Spotlight

Santa Paula Trading Co.

Santa Paula trading co is located in Santa Paula, CA. I was founded in 2017 and in 2020 it was under new owner ship by Tracy. It is a cool and unique store with so many great finds. They sell so many  great finds like candles, jewelry, clothes, ceramics, and many more. This is one place everyone needs to check out, they have such a friendly community when walking in. So, if there’s one place you need to find some cool stuff, Santa Paula Trading Co is the place to go!

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Local Business Spotlight

Boutique Fashion Blog

VC Social YouTube

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Food & Beverage Local Business Spotlight

Boccali’s Pizza & Pasta

Last week, Melissa, Ella, and Davey of Ventura College, visited Boccali’s Pizza & Pasta in Ojai, California. Continue below to read about their experience!

18 miles north of Ventura, is Boccali’s, a family owned and operated eatery that has been around since 1986. The menu at Boccali’s, features a variety of choices including hand tossed pizzas with all the toppings you can think of! There is also a list of pasta’s, ravioli’s, salads, and sandwiches to choose from. Boccali’s also has its own wine vineyard on property, in which you can take part in an exclusive wine tasting experience, available Saturday’s and Sunday’s from 12-5pm.

We decided on ordering personal sized pizzas which were much bigger than we expected them to be! (as you can tell in the image above) The outdoor seating made our eating experience extra enjoyable, seeing the beautiful green aesthetic of Ojai on our left and right.


For dessert, we ordered Boccali’s most famous dish, which is the strawberry shortcake

This delicious treat left us incredibly satisfied, and eager to go back for more. Who’s joining us for our next trip?


Overall, our meal at Boccali’s is one we will continue to praise, and recommend to all looking for their next place to visit.

Check out our Instagram Reel to see our experience!

Ella
Davey
Melissa
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Local Business Spotlight

Action VC taking Action in our Community

Do you know there is an organization that helps our community? Have you ever felt that you could do more for your community? Listen to my podcast. During our interview, Jason Hurst shared with us what Action VC is all about. How Action VC helps our Ventura County community.

Connect with Action VC

https://www.actionvc.org/

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Arts & Entertainment Local Business Spotlight Social Media Sports & Leisure

If You Surf You Should Check Out False Front Media

Social media is a growing multi-use tool for everyone. Surfers and skaters have been able to capitalize on social media as a way to grow their audience and earn money by promoting brands. It can be tough, for local surfers especially, to get good quality clips showcasing their skills. This is where False Front Media can help. False Front Media records clips of surfers, skaters, and more on a high quality camera and creates video edits for their social media feeds.

Here’s a YouTube video that takes a behind the scenes dive into False Front Media.:

Filmed and edited By Schuyler Arevalo

False Front Media was created by Noah Gilbert, an Oxnard local. Him and his team help create and promote high quality videos on social media, they primarily operate on Instagram and YouTube. My experiences working with False Front Media have been positive. The process no matter the project has always been quick, enjoyable, and productive. Noah Gilbert has great ideas for video creation, once his vision is set and the video starts coming together I’m always able to appreciate the art of putting clips together to make a video a little bit more.

Here is a link to their Instagram page to see some of their work: https://www.instagram.com/falsefrontmedia/

Here is a link to their Youtube page to see some of their work: https://www.youtube.com/@falsefrontmedia

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Local Business Spotlight

Ventura’s Latest Hotspot: Two Trees Escape

My interview with game designer, Sekoya, at Two Trees Escape.

Two Trees Escape is a Ventura-based, family owned business that describes themselves as “a unique venue for playing, exploring, and bonding. Our escape rooms are designed for players of all kinds: young, old, brave, curious, friendly, and eager to learn something new about themselves and their team”.

Use code “VCSOCIAL” when you book an escape room for 10% off!

Two Trees Escape Website: https://www.twotreesescaperoom.com/

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Arts & Entertainment Business Local Business Spotlight

The Moon’s Canvas: VC Students Art Business

The art shown above is the work of Sunimari Madrigal, a student at Ventura College. The art was made for her small business called The Moon’s Canvas. The art was made on a canvas about 13×9, made up of different art mediums such as paint, gouache, paint markers, and acrylic paint as well. The inspiration for this piece came from the beauty of the land we are lucky to have on Earth and also the beauty of the stars in the Universe.

Below is a video of her showing us how she created their piece.

Check out more of their work!!!

The moon’S Canvas instagram
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Food & Beverage Local Business Spotlight

From the Ocean to the Table: Diving into the Story of Andria’s Seafood Restaurant

Get ready to be inspired by this exclusive interview where the student Ana Zanin had the opportunity to have an insightful conversation with Andria, owner of Andria’s Seafood Restaurant. In this discussion, she reveals the remarkable story of this hidden gem. From its humble beginnings to its success, as voted #1 seafood market in Ventura.

Andria shares the struggles, secrets, and family traditions that have shaped the restaurant’s legacy. With a careful selection of fresh fish, secret recipes passed down through generations, and a consistent commitment to great quality food. This undeniable passion is what makes Andria’s Seafood Restaurant so loved by its’ community for almost 41 years.

Now press play to check it out!