“Our goal is for businesses to see the value in being a member. We want them to say, ‘We can trust you now,’” Holbrook Chamber of Commerce Director Mike Nilsson Jr. said of the chamber’s new direction.
Nilsson took the reins of the organization in June, and explained that the chamber has new goals and a new direction. The main focus of the chamber will be to support existing local businesses. Nilsson explained that by building up businesses, the chamber will also be fulfilling its secondary goals of promoting tourism, economic development and making Holbrook a better place to live.
“The question we are asking is, ‘How do we help Holbrook?’” he said.
According to Nilsson, businesses and citizens will notice some of the changes now, but the most significant ones will be revealed in January. He noted that his goal is for the chamber to serve as an important tool local businesses can use in order to thrive.
“We have quadrupled the value of becoming a member. It is a place where you can get all the tools you need,” he said. “We have tripled what we spend on local businesses for those tools.”
Nilsson pointed out that in the past the chamber has been seen as an organization that solely promotes tourism, and later as an events committee. He explained that the goal now is not to eliminate those functions of the chamber, but to incorporate them into a complete package while keeping the focus on growing existing businesses.
“We are going in a new direction,” he said.
According to Nilsson, fostering existing business will naturally lead to promoting tourism, as well as economic development. He noted that people will see positive action, which puts Holbrook in a positive light for both tourists and businesses that are considering locating here. In the end, it all improves the lives of Holbrook residents and business owners.
He also explained that he wants to make controversies over funding, and squabbles between chamber leaders and city officials a thing of the past.
“We want to get rid of the politics, and we want to be more transparent,” he said.
Nilsson noted that the chamber wants everyone to know exactly what it is doing with the funding provided both by the city through the bed tax and from members.
“Look for the changes we are making,” he said. “There will be a lot of changes in January.”
