Chamber Blog

Economic Boom In Lee County

It may not be a Chamber of Commerce kind of weather but it sure is a chamber kind of economy.

"I think we realized we've been blessed," said Wendi Routhier, President of the Opelika Chamber of Commerce.

Lee County's population is around 125,000. It's home to more than 2,500 new jobs in the last 5 years, home to one of the lowest jobless rates in the state at just 4.5%. The entire state is 5.6%.

"We have recession proof industries such as Auburn University and East Alabama Medical Center. Both of us.. Opelika and Auburn.. have diversified our industry which now includes automotive suppliers," said Al Cook of the Opelika Economic Development Board.

It hasn't always been a smooth ride for Lee County and for much of east Alabama.

"We've taken our hits a few years ago when the textile mills closed," said Routhier.

Read full story [WSFA]

Chambers merge to form SouthWest Metro Chamber of Commerce

The Chaska Area Chamber of Commerce will merge with chambers in Victoria and Chanhassen to become the SouthWest Metro Chamber of Commerce. The details of the merger were revealed to chamber members at a luncheon Thursday afternoon.

The new chamber will be headquartered in Chaska, at the North Meadows Office building on Bavaria Road.

Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce - Promo Video

Boulder Chamber rebrands itself

The Boulder Chamber of Commerce is getting a make-over on its image, Web site and name.

The 103-year-old business organization this week relaunched itself as the Boulder Chamber, a rebranding that included a new logo, the updated tagline "for a bolder business community," and a redesigned Web site.

The name change is the second in the organization's history: The group started as the Boulder Commercial Association in 1905 and gained the Boulder Chamber of Commerce moniker in 1943.

The efforts were made to stay current with a changing business climate and as a way to be of greater service to area firms wading through economic uncertainty, said Susan Graf, the chamber's chief executive officer and president.

"You have to be vibrant," she said. "You have to be relevant in an innovative town such as this."
To hit those notes, chamber officials are taking some pointers from the type of digital advocacy used by supporters of President-elect Barack Obama's during his campaign. Chamber officials are looking at using digital media -- viral marketing, YouTube, social networking sites, and the like -- to connect with its approximately 1,600 members, Graf said.

Other aspects of the rebranding include using its Web site as a tool to make business news more accessible to members; a place to access Web video streams of events and functions; and a way to tailor services to specific groups within its membership base, she added. Those groups include the Boulder Young Professionals, Active Living Businesses, CleanTech Boulder and a minority business outreach program.

Read full story [Daily Camera]

New Chamber Prez: ‘Bring It On’

The new Chamber of Commerce president told the Albany Rotary Club to ‘bring on the tough questions’ during Thursday’s meeting.

Catherine Glover started as president and CEO on Monday and she says she’s planning to have the Chamber get more involved in the business community.  Glover says starting next week they’ll send Chamber staff to local businesses to ask what they can do better.  She told Rotarians she wants to hear their questions and will not sugarcoat the answers.

Rotarians asked Glover about two issues she says she’s already hearing a lot about: the Cooper Tire campaign and Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital’s health care costs.

Local participation increases with Chamber of Commerce

For a number of Incline Village and Crystal Bay businesses and nonprofit organizations, a membership in the North Lake Tahoe Chamber of Commerce is a helpful relationship.

Kym Fabel, manager of the Tahoe City-based Chamber, said 31 percent of the Chamber’s membership is made up of Incline and Crystal Bay area businesses and organizations.

This is a rise from two years ago, when Fabel said the Chamber lost some membership when it merged with the former Incline Village/Crystal Bay Chamber of Commerce in 2006. The merger moved the Chamber’s operations to Tahoe City, though Fabel said the Chamber is still invested in Incline and Crystal Bay.

“It’s true, our numbers suffered a bit after the merger,” Fabel said. “But membership has been growing and our local partnerships are helping.”

Those partnerships include Chamber co-sponsored political forums during the summer and fall along with the Bonanza and monthly — sometimes bi-monthly — mixers which take place at local businesses.

“These are really important to the community and something we plan to continue to do,” Fabel said.

Chamber voting membership costs anywhere from $210 for small businesses and individuals to $550 for a business conference membership with lodging. A non-voting affiliation costs $110.

The price is a worth it, said Linda Offerdahl, owner of Incline-based Dress the Part(y).
“Belonging to the Chamber gives me access to the Tahoe City and Truckee markets, which might as well be 1,000 miles away,” Offerdahl said. “I have an amazing amount of customers drive in from Tahoe City and the South Shore — the Chamber does a good job of getting my name out there.”

Read full story [N. Lake Tahoe Bonanza]

Chamber to launch new magazine in January

The Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce announces a new business magazine for Chittenden County.

The first issue of Lake Champlain Business Connection will hit the streets January at all Chittenden County businesses and members of the Chamber of Commerce. The bi-annual publication will be packed full of insightful business articles, business calendar of events, tips, and ideas on how to “do better business” in Chittenden County.

In all, 10,000 magazines will be printed and distributed to every business in Chittenden County as well as to all Chamber members. The magazine will come out twice in 2009, with the next issue due in September. The Chamber’s Regional Resource Guide will no longer be a printed publication.

Aiken Chamber launches its own stimulus plan for area

AIKEN - The Aiken Chamber of Commerce wants to ensure that the community doesn't become collateral damage in the shelling of the global economy.

Last week, the chamber rolled out a seven-step economic stimulus plan to help its more than 1,050 members.

"We've got an unusual economy right now," said David Jameson, the chamber's president. "We're hunkering down to provide education and information that can help businesses improve their business."

Mr. Jameson said the stimulus plan is based on the idea that "some of our businesses are seeing the markets change with all that's going on around them in the world." He said, "I think every owner and manager is thinking, 'How can I be smarter; how can I be sharper?' "

The chamber launched the plan's first step Oct. 27: a radio advertising campaign that will run until Christmas Eve.

The ads -- 4,000 30-second spots -- will run in area markets and are designed to encourage people to shop with chamber members.

"I think it will drive business into this market," Mr. Jameson said. "People are already reporting that customers they've never seen before" are telling them they heard the ads.

The second step employed the use of the chamber's newsletter, the Commerce Report, which came out during the last week of October.

Read full story [Augusta Chronicle]

Clovis Chamber Speed Networking

What is Speed Networking and how does it work? Presented by the Clovis Chamber of Commerce, California.

Chamber of commerce earns 'outstanding' label

Linda Davis-Kirksey likes the new adjective attached to the Rochester Regional Chamber of Commerce - "outstanding."

"I am thrilled," she said. "It's well-deserved but it's because of the membership, (executive director) Sheri (Heiney), all the staff and our board."

Davis-Kirksey, who chairs the chamber's board, was referring to the organization's new status as "Outstanding Chamber of the Year," a distinction awarded late last month by the Michigan Chamber of Commerce. The award recognizes the RRCC's quality, innovation and effectiveness of programming.

"I am so proud of our Rochester Regional Chamber member family," Davis-Kirksey said. "It is an extreme honor and good news for the Rochester regional business community."

The Rochester chamber has come a long way since it was founded in 1955. Today, it includes more than 1,400 members and serves businesses of all sizes and types through networking events, training, advocacy and more.

Read full story [Mirror Newspaper]