Mainebiz

V O L . X X V I I N O. X M AY 1 7 , 2 0 2 1 26 S M A L L B U S I N E S S F O C U S information. If you're head chef, market- ing person and owner of a business all at once, you don't have time to listen in or decipher state and federal rules. We helped people sort out what they needed to know to run their businesses." "We got feedback from mem- bers, saying they understood why they were members of the chamber now, as opposed to before when it might have seemed like the right to do. We're grate- ful they chose to spend their time and dollars with us," Cox says. Tightening belts Not every chamber was able to revamp events or connect as often with members. Lisa Hagen, executive director of the Damariscotta Region Chamber of Commerce, says the chamber hasn't held a Business After Hours event since February, 2020. ey will resume outside events this summer. e "Lunch and Learn" events also haven't been done in a year, but were expected to resume in May. e Damariscotta chamber decided not to try to reformat those events online because "people had a lot of Zoom in their lives already,' Hagen says. One chamber effort that was success- ful was an open-air market that allowed businesses to bring their goods outside onto Damariscotta's sidewalks and park- ing spaces on Main Street. "People weren't going inside busi- nesses. People were afraid to shop. So, we did it to help businesses out," Hagen says. e chamber also volunteers for the Damariscotta Pumpkinfest & Regatta, which was canceled last year. e multi-day event usually brings thou- sands of people to the town and creates exposure and sales for businesses. is year, there will be a smaller, modified Pumpkinfest that the chamber will help with, Hagen said. Hagen says the chamber lost some members during 2020, but has recently seen an increase in new businesses join- ing and old members rejoining. Further south, Adrienne Nardi, executive director of the Yarmouth Chamber of Commerce, says it has suffered due to the cancellation of the annual Yarmouth Clam Festival for two years. e 3-day event provides funding for everything from youth sports teams to the chamber's budget. "It creates a big chunk of our income and budget," Nardi says. "Without it, we've been a little tight." e Yarmouth Chamber lost one staffer, leaving Nardi alone to run the chamber. It also moved to a smaller office to save on rent and moved its information technology system to the cloud instead of a server to save on costs. "We had to scale back everything," Nardi says. "We're basically cinching our belts until COVID is over." e Yarmouth Chamber hosted a few "Business After Hours" events outside and held a modified golf tour- nament, but otherwise was limited in its ability to connect with members, Nardi says. Going forward e Kennebec Valley Chamber rethought the value of many of its events during the pandemic. It may keep many of the changes implemented during the pandemic because they turned out to be more successful, such as keeping its business breakfast via zoom, and perma- nently discarding other events such as the annual Expo of businesses. "We learned a lot about what was most relevant and convenient and impor- tant to members," Doherty says. For the LA Metro Chamber, it learned that virtual board meetings became easier for participants to attend and it plans to keep that change. "e pandemic helped people become better at change. ere are fewer sacred cows now. ings that I would have hoped to change over two or three years, I was able to change in six months because we had to," Cox says. Going forward, chambers may look and act differently. "In 10 years, I expect there will be few chambers and we'll have a few mega- chambers. at pandemic may have even accelerated that timeline," King says. "I think we need to get beyond our high school football rivalries. It's not 'Us versus them versus each other,' it's 'Us versus Boston or Burlington or other regions.' We need to think big- ger and regionally," King says. "ere may be some loss of identity and losses of people, but we need to think on a broader scale for Maine busi- nesses to compete." Jessica Hall, a writer based in Nobleboro, can be reached at editorial @ mainebiz.biz We're dedicated to understanding your business As professional wealth managers, our bottom line is met when our clients achieve their long-term financial goals. Yet, we also believe our clients should enjoy the two priceless assets that flow from wise financial management: peace of mind and confidence in the future. Asset Management Retirement Planning 401(k) Advisory Tax Services Estate Planning www.vancegray.com 1-888-992-2819 » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E We wanted to make sure we stayed relevant and connected to businesses. — Shanna Cox Lewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce

• Cover