Los Altos business owners have a lot to offer each other, in peer advice, shared resources and referrals. The local group, Sharing Tips and Referrals (STAR), meets twice a month to capitalize on these assets.

Members gather to share strategies, develop leads and gain insight from guest speakers. Last year, STAR hosted a representative from Silicon Valley SCORE, a free counseling organization for small-business owners, and from NOVA, a non-profit agency that screens and helps place the unemployed.

“It gives you the opportunity to meet other small-business owners in the community,” said STAR member Debbie Klee of Los Altos Training Studio. “Just learning what other people are doing in your community can be useful.”

Founded in 2004 by members of the Los Altos Chamber of Commerce, STAR includes professionals from accounting to optometry, spa services to general contracting.

According to the organization, STAR generated 150 leads for its members last year.

“You get referrals and also more visibility - people in the group talk about the people in the group,” Klee said.

To avoid conflicts of interest, membership is limited to one business from each industry. As interest grows in the concept, more STAR groups can begin to accommodate multiple businesses in any given field. Cupertino has a similar Connect! program, of which seven groups have formed, according to STAR membership chairwoman Lara Pai of Lara Pai Dezigns.

STAR meets 7:30-9 a.m. the first and third Tuesdays of each month. For more information, call Gayle Carter at 948-1455.