Member Spotlight: Andersons of West Hills
Nuts and Bolts
9:00 am-5:00 pm
Salem, Oregon
503.910.3254
leslie@andersonsofwesthills.com, AndersonsOfWestHills.com
Business History
Founded 2021 – Independent Family Business
Mission Statement
Providing HR and business consulting to local businesses. I also provide marketing, content writing services, and social media assistance.
Business Products or Services
Content writing
Marketing and social media guidance
HR consultation
Small business consultation
Business features on my social channels, engaging my following to help your business
Business Industry Standing
I am a 19-year business owner with my husband, in our classic car dealership (Denwerks Vintage Cars). I also have extensive HR experience, over 10 years and I am SHRM-SCP certified. In starting my own independent business, I understand how to support small businesses, because I have lived the experience! I know what it takes to survive and thrive. Particularly now, post-Covid, I can help businesses recover and navigate the ever-complex world of business support, consultation, and marketing.
Small business owners typically have a dream and a passion for the work that they do, and there are only so many hours in a day. Some of the missed opportunities can be social media, customer engagement, and overcoming challenges. It’s tempting to shove issues under the rug in order to keep the wheels on from day to day. We all need a second set of eyes to see how we are doing and give us perspective and advice
Customer Engagement
I’ve had success so far, even though I’m a new enterprise. I’ve had over 10 of my business articles published and I focus on the interface between personal growth, business ownership, and fulfilling the dreams of a small business owner. I’ve got a following already of folks who are in different stages of building their businesses and it’s amazing to me how many people are interested in building a business and just need some assistance. I’ve taken on several clients already and I am growing my writing business, with the focus on the how-to aspects. There’s really not a ‘secret sauce’ to owning a business, they are all different, but I’ve been able to help my clients tap into potential and solve daily problems, particularly in the HR aspects.
Misconceptions
Particularly in the HR realm, businesses often ignore the importance of Human Resources until it’s too late! It’s of utmost importance to set the foundation in place before you run into problems. Small businesses are especially susceptible to running into business and HR issues because they often start small, and things feel like family. As growth, change, and maturity happen, the needs of a business to focus on HR and growth are important to protect the dream they’ve built! That’s where I come in.
The other area that I see is that people often underestimate the importance of maintaining an online presence. It’s critical these days and failing to keep online areas updated is a sure way to be forgotten – quickly. I help people be themselves, own their own uniqueness and stand out. In order to succeed you have to be 100% authentic and open, and shrugging off criticism.
Name Origin Story
My business is called Andersons of West Hills because of our location. We live in wine country in West Salem, Oregon, and it’s beautiful! We have 10 acres, most of it pasture and grazing. My husband, Jason, and I have worked incredibly hard to live the life we always dreamed of. It’s peaceful, serene, and every day we marvel at the beauty of our surroundings. Both of us work hard every day to build our businesses and Andersons of West Hills is a tribute to this life we are living now. I wouldn’t change it for the world!
Starting Up Stories
Well, this could fill up a page in and of itself! When I decided to go into business for myself, I had my last day at work, woke up the next day and I’ve been busy ever since. It’s an amazing experience to wake up and do the work I love. It’s hard too, it takes a lot to build a business, and you have to roll up your sleeves and work. That’s my specialty.
That said, I’m working at home, like many of us these days, and I often end up with a cat in the picture of video and Zoom calls. We also have an English Bulldog named Stanley who sleeps half the day. I just recorded a podcast this morning and he was panting in the background. I felt I needed to explain the panting for the audio recording because it obviously sounded weird!!
