IT'S YOUR BUSINESS

from November Edition - Northeast Florida Jewish Life Magazine

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IT’S YOUR BUSINESSSPOTLIGHT ON JEWISH-OWNED BUSINESSES

MARGO'S CATERINGBy Andrew Ruby

Since 1973, my family has owned and operated Margo’s Catering, a Kosher caterer that began in my mother Margo Ruby’s home on the Southside of Jacksonville. Over the years, my parents Margo and Stanley employed all four of their children, and catered for many dignitaries including President Bill Clinton, Shimon Peres, the current President of Israel, Skitch Henderson, Benny Goodman and numerous celebrities throughout Northeast Florida and Southern Georgia.

I’ve worked with my mother since I was a teenager. My wife Catrina and I were honored to continue her legacy when she retired in 2012. While I specialize in creating buffet designs, one-of-a-kind fruit sculptures and menu creations, Catrina is our head pastry chef, baking delectable confections from homemade chocolate chip cookies to three-tiered wedding cakes. She is also the kitchen and office manager. Together, we execute the simplest events to the most elegant.

In addition to catering, we offer full-service event design and coordination. Our Certified Wedding and 22

Special Event Planner and daughter, Jessica Ruby Levine (Margo's granddaughter) provides our clients with peace of mind that every detail has been carefully addressed. After earning her BFA in Stage Management from the University of Central Florida, Jessica moved back to her hometown to work as a project manager for a special event production company. While there, she focused primarily on weddings and social events. Jessica's services include full event planning, décor services, and coordination

packages.

How have we adapted since the pandemic? Since the middle of March, many events that were booked had to be cancelled or postponed. We have been able to cater smaller events, like a wedding for 24, office boxed lunches, summer camp lunches and in-house staff meetings. However, most of our business has turned into take-out, whether it be a random weeknight dinner, Shabbat dinners or Holiday meals. We are grateful that the Dubow Preschool and Martin J. Gottlieb Day School

have reopened. One of our focuses now is our school lunch and snack program for our kids. The way we serve these meals has changed to keep our kids safe yet still provide them with a healthy Kosher lunch.

On August 1, 2020, Margo’s Catering quietly celebrated our 20th Anniversary as the Jacksonville Jewish Center’s exclusive Kosher caterer. We hope to celebrate this monumental simcha with our community once this pandemic is over. We are eternally grateful not only to

IT'S YOUR BUSINESS • SPOTLIGHT ON JEWISH-OWNED BUSINESSES

my mother for allowing us the opportunity to continue her legacy, but the entire Jewish community for always supporting our family for over 47 years. We hope to continue for many years to come.

Our family has deep roots in the Jacksonville Jewish Community and the Federation has rooted itself into our lives and hearts. The Federation is a pillar to our community as it not only helps the Jewish community but other communities in Jacksonville and beyond. We all support each other. It is the key to keeping us all together and connected. We love being a part of the big picture.

The Du Bow Preschool & Martin J. Gottlieb Day School's plan for a safe school environment allows for a "five-day, full-day" educational experience for all our students with the flexibility for at-home learning should that be YOUR choice.

There are a limited number of spots across 1-year old - 8th grade. Please contact our Head of School, Tina Silva, to learn more at tsilva@dubowgottlieb.org, (904) 268-4200 or visit our website at www.dubowgottlieb.org.

NORTHEAST FLORIDA JEWISH LIFE

NATIVE SUN NATURAL FOODS MARKET By Aaron Gottlieb

Think Globally. Act Locally. When I was a kid, I bought a shirt from a local business that said, “Think Globally, Act Locally.” That statement means more to me now than ever before. Big Box stores and online giants have reaped financial benefits from the pandemic while local businesses like ours struggled to creatively find new ways to keep the doors open for just a few more days. Small business owners took risks, such as applying for loans when they didn’t know if they 24 would be in business long

enough to pay them back. Life was, and still is, difficult for the local businesses that make our community feel like home. As the owner of Native Sun, I know what it feels like when outside businesses come into our community and are the “new shiny toy”. Using seemingly endless resources, they move in, undercut prices, and wait out the demise of those that make our community unique. Although some of the players in our particular space have failed, they took out Native Sun in the process,

and there are countless other businesses in jeopardy right now. Between the challenges presented by COVID-19 and corporate invasion, it is tough to keep our heads up as we work to provide quality offerings for our community. Fortunately for us, an outpouring of support helped us to reopen our Beaches location. I wanted to help bring all that is great in our community under one roof, and create a local hub in our newly reopened store. When the pandemic came into our lives, the team at Native

Sun fast-tracked our mission and began calling our friends around town to see how we could work together. For months, we have been working hard at Native Sun to Think Globally and Act Locally, partnering with dozens of local restaurants and artisans to sell what we refer to as "The Best of Jax." As more national mega-brands move into the area at a time when your neighbors are struggling, I believe it is time to make a bold statement and act upon it: Buy Local, or Bye-Bye Local.

IT'S YOUR BUSINESS • SPOTLIGHT ON JEWISH-OWNED BUSINESSES

As local businesses, we pay taxes, support local art, music, youth sports and much more. We are here for our customers because we are literally your neighbors. We want what's best for our community because we live in it, work in it, and raise our families in it. That's a far cry from large outside companies who provide products to your homes but pay little or no taxes or siphon millions out of our local economy. Life is slowly returning to normal for so many, but hundreds of thousands of small businesses are now in immediate jeopardy, including many here in

our area. It has taken years for us to build our community of diverse small businesses, but we can lose so much of what makes it unique in a matter of months. Know that each dollar you spend in a local business is a vote for what you want your neighborhood to look like. We want our local business scene to look the same or better post-COVID as it did pre-COVID. I urge you to support

ALL local businesses at this time, and thank you for all of your support! Aaron Gottlieb is the owner of Native Sun

Natural Foods Market, a community grocer for the past 23 years. The store is located at 1585 3rd Street North in Jacksonville Beach.

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