Central Chamber of Commerce C4 Report: Five Years!

    Next week marks an important “milestone” for me!  In October 2009, the then Board of Directors gave me the opportunity to serve a three month trial period as the Central Chamber’s President and CEO.  Two months later they made the decision to hire me and the rest, as they would say, “is history!”  
    While many things remain the same, the Central Chamber has seen tremendous changes in the last 5 years.  Here is a brief list:
*Membership, as of the writing of this article, is at 360.
*The Chamber has an interactive and informative website.
*“Shop Small Business Saturday,” which encourages “Shop Central First” throughout the Holiday season, continues to grow and is a yearly event.
*Membership Development, Public Policy, Educational Workforce, and Business Relations Committees have all been started.
*Several affinity programs are available to our members.
*The second City of Central Map has been produced.
*We now network with The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, American Chamber of Commerce Executives, Louisiana Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives and several other local area chambers, civic groups, and governmental organizations.
*A Beauty Pageant, which this year is now part of the Miss America System, is in its fourth year.
*An Ambassador program is now in place helping to improve contact with our members.
*Training Seminars are taking place on a regular basis.
*The Central Chamber now has a permanent home at 12416 Hooper Road!
    These are just a few of the many exciting developments that have taken place over the last five years.  I want to thank the Board of Directors and our investors for being willing to work with the staff and myself over the last five years.  We all can look forward to the future, knowing that the Central Chamber will continue to grow, improve and promote the business interests of our community!
Ron Erickson
President and CEO, Central Chamber of Commerce