Business of the year
By Brielle Kennington
Argus Observer
Sunday, January 6, 2008 3:46 AM PST
| |
| Bob Quinn was chosen for the Business of the Year award. |
Ontario - The co-owner of TQ Properties, Bob Quinn, will receive the Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year award Jan. 11 at the Chamber of Commerce banquet.
TQ Properties has earned this award through the leadership of Bob Quinn and support of 54 charitable organizations, community partners and events including: Help Them to Hope, Festival of Trees, Give Kids the World, SE Oregon Regional Food Bank, LoveINC, TVCC athletics, St. Matthew’s and Relay for Life.
The Holiday Inn, situated on Tapadera Avenue, is the headquarters for TQ Properties, but Quinn and his partner also manage several other facilities in Oregon and Idaho including Holiday Inn Pocatello, Candlewood Suites in Meridian, Roadway Inn, DJ’s Family Restaurant and Country Kitchen. A Holiday Inn Express is currently being built in Ontario. TQ Properties is also in the early stages of building a Stay Bridge Suites in Boise.
“We have plans to continue growing. We are looking for building opportunities in the Pacific Northwest,” Quinn said.
Quinn and his wife, Linda, have been part of the Ontario community for 50 years, and he has worked for TQ Properties since 1982. He got involved in the ownership of the company in 1994.
The couple celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary with a cruise Quinn described as a memorable experience in the Mediterranean. Quinn is the proud father of six children and grandfather to eight grandchildren. Some of Quinn’s children spent time washing dishes and cooking in some of the TQ Properties, but none of them plan on continuing in the business.
Quinn participates in several community organizations outside of work, including the Elks organization, chairman of the visitors convention, which brings tourism and visitors in the community and Ontario Ambassadors, and Quinn is currently the president-elect for the Chamber of Commerce.
As co-owner of TQ Properties, Quinn has a large role in demonstrating his good business hospitality to visitors who come to Ontario. Quinn said summer is like the Christmas season of the hotel industry, when all the tourists are travelling. Quinn learned his business philosophy from the late Jack W. Titcomb, previous owner of TQ Properties.
“He taught me a lot as far as over all business philosophy, and there isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t miss him. He was my mentor. I wish he could be here because a lot of what I am today relates back to him,” Quinn said.
The business philosophy Titcomb taught Quinn was to make guests and employees the priority.
“Number one is guest satisfaction, and number two is employee satisfaction. They are equally important. I have employees who have worked here for 20 years,” Quinn said.
Quinn suggested that philosophy and also the involvement in the community outside the business may have led to the honorable business of the year award.
“I don’t know what we did different. I just do what every business should do to be involved in the community.”
At the banquet Quinn will have the opportunity to give a brief acceptance speech.
“I’m not really good at public speaking. I’m better than I used to be. Our goal is to have guests leave with a positive experience,” Quinn said.
Grant Young, Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development northeast regional representative, recently had such a positive experience.
“I have to say that my stay at the Holiday Inn Ontario on Dec. 13 was notably the best overnight at a commercial facility that I’ve ever experienced.” Young said. “The design of the facility was really functional. The rooms were exceptionally clean (with three kinds of pillows), with all the local and community information anyone would need, and the staff was very friendly and professional.”
