Posted on December 4, 2018
Hamburg, NY – The Hamburg Chamber of Commerce, a local non-partisan, not for profit business member organization that currently serves Hamburg, Blasdell, Lakeview, and Boston, announced a rebranding campaign today. On January 1, 2019, the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce will officially become the Southtowns Regional Chamber of Commerce. The comprehensive rebrand enhances the strong leadership role of the Chamber organization within WNY and will be enhanced with the addition of Lackawanna.
Over the last year, The Lackawanna and Hamburg Chambers of Commerce developed a plan to bring together their individual regions to better support those who live and work there. The rebrand is necessary to represent the multifaceted regions the Hamburg Chamber currently serves and will now include the addition of the Lackawanna community. Erie County Legislature Lynne Dixon said, “As a representative of both Hamburg and Lackawanna, it is nice to see a collaboration that will promote these two wonderful communities. There are great opportunities that can come from such a terrific partnership. The greatest asset of both communities is its people. I have no doubt that those people, working together with businesses to promote growth will lead to great success for Hamburg and Lackawanna”.
Established in 1927, the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce has continuously evolved to help meet the needs that face its membership in Hamburg, Blasdell, Lakeview, and Boston; gaining more than 860 members from the Northtowns through the Southern Tier and as far east as Syracuse. Their rapid growth over the last few years has offered members a wide variety of benefits including business resource planning and brainstorming, marketing strategy and promotion, various networking events, group health insurance, and operational and technical resources.
“I believe the expansion of our localized chamber into a larger regional one will not only aid the chamber members, but the greater benefit will be to the community at large. I support the growth one hundred percent”, mentioned Joe Jerge, owner Mulberry Italian Ristorante.
The Southtowns Regional Chamber of Commerce will serve the communities of Lackawanna, Blasdell, Hamburg, Lakeview, and Boston and will continue to offer the same camaraderie feel and support, offering even more opportunities and resources for the entire region. “The growth and rebranding of our Chamber is very exciting as it allows us to further expand our programs and services to a broader group of Southtowns businesses looking to grow their businesses. Clients and customers are not concerned with dividing lines or boundaries, they are merely looking for the best business to fit their needs,” said Deb Welch, Business Development Manager for Evans Bank in Hamburg and an active member of the Brand Ambassador Committee. “Aligning into a broader group will give everyone a chance to share ideas and best practices as we grow together.”
Currently over 50 key events are held throughout the year, plus bi-monthly networking, and the Hamburg Farmers Market held May through October annually. There are plans to develop even more
events including expanding the Annual Arts on Ridge festival, the addition of a bi-monthly morning networking group in Lackawanna, and a new series named, Advice with the Experts, which gathers business professionals together to talk with C-Level Executives on business initiatives, strategies, and execution of alternative business solutions.
A variety of new committees have been established and a few existing ones revamped to maximize the value for participating members as well as the Chamber. Committees are open to any Chamber member to join and include an extensive assortment of topics such as Governance, Brand Ambassadors, Major Events, Business Insights and Networking, Education, Government Affairs, Regional Advisory, Next-Generation, and Digital Marketing. These committees provide opportunities to build relationships and offer mentoring and ideas for various business and community initiatives.
The Chamber’s Board of Directors has grown incrementally in size over the last few years. Today they maintain 22 Directors who actively serve. These business professionals represent a range of industries and are located throughout Western New York. Current Chairman of the Chamber Board and Vice President of Marketing and Digital Advertising for the Buffalo News, Shawn Buffum stated, “The new name for the Southtowns Regional Chamber aligns with the strategic vision we’ve created for our continued growth and will enable our organization to serve even more businesses in WNY. We offer opportunities and access to unique events for our members that foster a sense of community and support unlike any other organization in the area. I’m proud of all the work that has been done and look forward to where we are headed for the future.”
The new name comes with a sharp new logo to better characterize the brand along with modifications to the existing website. Those changes will go live after the first of the year. Please visit www.hamburg-chamber.org to explore what is currently offered or for more information. For further information, please contact Cyndi Matla, Executive Director at (716) 649-7917
