'Elite' networking group meets in Valley Stream

Most Tuesday mornings, before heading off to work, a group of more than two dozen businessmen and woman gather at Valley Stream’s Concord Diner.

The Elite Professionals are a group that has been meeting since last October, led by Andrea Relkin of PAYCHEX and Frank Ryan, manager of TD Bank in Valley Stream. Relkin said she moved to the area and discovered there was a lack of business networking groups, so she contacted Ryan and the two formed Elite Professionals.

There is an insurance agent, realtor, accountant, contractor, music studio owner, printer, chiropractor and more. Their businesses are not just in Valley Stream but throughout Nassau County as well as New York City and Westchester. “We have a great cross-section of people,” Relkin said.

The purpose of the group is to support each other. They have a host of other services readily available, and a network of trusted professionals to recommend to clients. Relkin said as a way to thank her employees, she held a spa party at Cathy Morris’s Orange Skye Day Spa in Valley Stream.

Michael Jeshiva, a financial advisor, said having this close network of people can make things happen. If a client needs an attorney, he has someone at his fingertips he can recommend. “It’s good to have people that we can refer and be comfortable with,” he said, “and trust the job is going to be done right.”

Relkin stressed how important the trust factor is. She explained that if her clients are going to put their faith in her, it is also important they be able to trust anyone she recommends.

Insurance broker Jonathan Greene said he likes having this group of specialists to draw upon for clients. He said he has already gotten referrals for business from other members of the Elite Professionals to do work that other insurance agents simply couldn’t offer.

Each week, every professional does a short introduction, talking about what they do and what contacts or services they might be looking for. Also, one member each weak will do a more in-depth presentation about their business.