Chamber unveils new look, new campaigns
By Dale Woodard on June 26, 2021.
The Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce has a new look and a new campaign.They unveiled both in a ribbon cutting ceremony in front of the chamber’s downtown office Thursday afternoon.
The Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce will receive over $139,000 of federal shop local funding that will expand the chamber’s ongoing efforts to encourage patronage of community businesses.
The four campaigns to be launched by the Lethbridge Chamber are ShopLocal, ExploreLocal, BuildLocal and InvestLocal.
“I can’t stress enough the importance of our partnership with the Alberta Chambers of Commerce and the Canadian Chambers of Commerce,” said Cyndi Vos, CEO of the Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce. “Through their hard work they were able to work with the federal government on looking at how we got the grant. We had to apply for the grant and it had to go through an approval stage. So we were thrilled when we found out our application was approved.”
Thursday was also about renovations at the Chamber’s office on 6th Street.
“We just went through the process of renovating our top floor where the Chamber of Commerce runs its business,” said Vos. “It’s been something we’ve been looking at for years. So we took the opportunity to do it while we had (COVID-19) restrictions. So we’re excited to showcase the building. But we wanted to be able to host a party for our grand opening, but also the reopening of restrictions of everything else. We want to make sure we did to it to guidelines and rules and that’s why we’re outside, to make sure everybody is safe and comfortable and to get that momentum going again and encourage people to come out again in person.”
Vos said renovations included some new walls, windows and doors as well as moving their boardroom from the back to the front of the bulding.
“It was timely and walking in with a fresh slate. We still have the structure and foundation, but just that freshness.”
With the renovations complete, the Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce on it’s ‘Local’ campaign.
ShopLocal will focus on helping businesses with a retail component establish a strong local presence. A key part of the campaign will be the launch of the Chamber Market, an online store that lets local retail businesses create a digital retail presence.
ExploreLocal will focus on the region’s offline experience, showcasing local attractions, hotels, restaurants, sports teams and more.
BuildLocal will focus on the region’s talent, including local leaders of tomorrow in Lethbridge such as creators, athletes and entrepreneurs.
BuildLocal promotes the local talent and encourages them to stay and build their life in the community, while InvestLocal will showcase the strength of the region as an Agriculture Hub.
Through Harvesting our Local Commodities, the Chamber will highlight the many commodities of the region and shine a spotlight on locally produced products.
“The program goes until Dec. 31,” said Vos. “(Thursday) was the official announcement. You’re going to see a lot of information out there about the importance of being local.”
With the City of Lethbridge announcing the change of their logo earlier this week, Vos said the Chamber has asked to incorporate the ‘L” to the Local campaign.
“When people see InvestLocal, it gets those conversations going,” she said. “When you see ‘ShopLocal’ that could be anywhere in the world. But when you see ‘ShopLocal’ with the Lethbridge ‘L’, you’re going to know it’s the Lethbridge ShopLocal program.”
A second round of funding applications is currently being processed. Follow @dwoodardherald on Twitter 3
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