Greater Sandpoint Chamber welcomes Mike and Alexa Food Cart

The Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce recently welcomed Mike & Alexa Food Cart to the Chamber. Mike and Alexa Matier started with the idea of feeding snowmobilers while they were riding around in the mountains and let the idea grow.

“Initially my husband thought about doing a large barbeque, but as we were looking on line, we started coming across hot dog carts which became the overwhelming idea for the business plan,” explained Alexa.  

They decided early on that they would concentrate their efforts on hot dogs, and various sausages, as hamburgers were too messy and they were unwilling to purchase the frozen patties. Initially, they thought they would sell Polish sausages, the ones everyone picks up from the store, but once they started to go with Wood's products, they did not want to sell anything else. All of their products are from the local market here in Sandpoint. 

“With my background as a Dietitian Aid in the food services industry, and my husband’s customer service background, I thought this would be a great thing for Sandpoint,” said Alexa.

They are willing and excited to cater to all kinds of events. Their unit is mobile and they can go almost everywhere. Mike and Alexa Food Cart sell Wood’s Smokies, German Sausages, franks, and drinks. Occasionally they sell chips and they are always looking for an alternative for a side dish. 

Contact them now! As their business is still growing, both Mike and Alexa still hold full time jobs. For more information, call Alexa at 265-1963 or on her cell at 255-6729 and email at ammatier@hotmail.com. They look forward to serving you and being a part of your future events. Welcome to the Chamber and thanks for being a part of our community!

In Photo: Mike & Alexa Matier cut the ribbon with Chamber Ambassadors & State Representative George Eskridge.

Greater Sandpoint Chamber welcomes Art Works Gallery

The Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce recently welcomed Art Works Gallery to the Chamber. Art Works Gallery was founded in 1995 by local and regional artists looking for an outlet for the fine arts and crafts. Today, the co-op gallery has 34 local and regional artist members which own and operate the gallery. They call it their home and take turns working at the shop.

The Art Works Gallery draws customers from Canada and across the US. With a wide variety of art offerings, everyone can find something they like and enjoy in their gallery. They have paintings in oil, watercolor, acrylic & pastel; calligraphy; cards; crystals; jewelry; sculptures in metal, clay, terracotta, paper mache; photography; glass - kiln worked, fused, blown, & stained; pottery; wearable art; woodwork; & more. All pieces are one-of-a-kind artist created.

Art Works’ unique gallery provides a wide variety of fine art and fine crafts for the public to enjoy, whether “just browsing” or to purchase for their home or friends.  You are sure to find just the right item, whether a large original painting for your new home or office, or a hostess gift to give as a “thank you for the invitation.”

Art Works Gallery membership is on a jury basis. If you are an artist or fine craftsperson interested in exhibiting and selling your work with a group of like-minded artists, come in to see if Art Works just might be a good fit for you! If you like what you see, ask for a copy of the Art Works Jury Guidelines from an artist on duty or visit their website www.sandpointartworks.com.

Art Works Gallery is located downtown at 214 N 1^st Ave and they are open daily from 10am-5pm and 11am-5pm on Sundays. For more information, visit the Art Works Gallery at their location, visit www.sandpointartworks.com, email sandpointartworks@gmail.com or call 208-263-2642.

In Photo: Owners and Artists are welcomed to the Chamber by Chamber Ambassadors.

Greater Sandpoint Chamber welcomes AskSam Computer Services

The Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce recently welcomed AskSam Computer Services to the Chamber. Sam McGlothlin started AskSam Computer Services in 2009 and has been going strong ever since.

As a 30 year Sandpoint resident, he studied at University of Idaho after graduating high school here in Sandpoint. His passion for computer technology started at a young age; he spent countless hours in the computer lab learning all he could about computers and programming.

“I have a lot of hard earned experience in many different areas, but through it all, I have been the computer guy, the problem solver, the guy that people call when they need something done,” said Sam. “I am different from the other computer repair shops in town because I will work on most anything computer related including older computer systems.”

With more than 20 years of computer experience in computer repair and maintenance, Sam is extremely knowledgeable with common day computer woes and the more complex hardware issues that makes one pull their hair out. Sam has worked for three different Sandpoint companies as an IT manager, traveled and worked in several different countries so he has seen it all.

“My customers are mostly residential and small businesses, because I like to give one on one service. I will make sure that you understand what the problems are in a language you will understand.”

Sam provides his customers with various services: house calls, data recovery of all kinds, free diagnostics, hardware and software upgrades of all kinds, and software and program training. He is not solely a PC shop as he can work on Mac computers as well. Sam offers the cheapest rate in town and will charge you by the job and not by the hour. To top it off, Sam will not charge you if he cannot solve the problem. His policies show he stands by his services and his work.

“Viruses have become the number one problem for computers today,” explained Sam. “I can remove all viruses and install a new free Antivirus program. Slow and poor running computers are a sign that you need a major cleaning to get rid of a bunch of internet garbage that you have been unintentionally collecting. Heat is one of the biggest computer killers today. Dust removal can be dangerous for your health and your computers health if you do not know how to do it right.  Let me do it for you.”

*SPECIAL* Until further notice, Tuesdays are 50% off. If you bring your computer into the shop on a Tuesday, he will fix your computer for half price. House calls are not included in this discount.

AskSam Computer Services is located downtown at the corner of 3^rd and Pine St. next to the new bike shop. Normal hours of operation are 8:30am to 5:00pm weekdays however he does make service calls. For more information, visit Sam at his office, email ask4sam@live.com or call 208-610-8573 and ask for Sam.

In Photo: Owner Sam McGlothlin and family members are welcomed to the Chamber with Chamber Ambassador Carol Warren.