The Glenwood Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce has been a proud member of Grow Minnesota! for the past few years. Grow Minnesota! is a distinctive, private-sector economic development program led by the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce. Among its newest services is BusinessConnection, an assistance and referral network free to all Minnesota companies.
“We welcome the participation of the local chamber and look forward to a solid and continuing partnership,” said Bill Blazar, Minnesota Chamber senior vice president of public affairs and business development. “Our growing network of local chamber partners strengthens our state’s existing economic development effort by adding hundreds of additional eyes and ears, increasing our ability to address the needs of businesses in all corners of the state and to keep them growing in Minnesota.”
Grow Minnesota!, launched in 2004, has a primary focus to retain Minnesota businesses and to encourage them to expand in the state. It also is an opportunity to thank companies for doing business in Minnesota. Visits are carried out by staff and volunteers from the Minnesota Chamber and its 50 local chamber partners.
Volunteers conduct one-on-one conversations with owners and/or top management of businesses. More than 900 visits were conducted during the 2008-09 program year, bringing the six-year total to nearly 6,000. On average, one in seven visits has concluded with a request for some kind of assistance. That has translated into assistance for about 120 this past year and 700 companies since the program started.
The program has grown steadily since its inception to now include BusinessConnection, which is intended to be a single entry point to become connected with private and public resources to solve everyday business problems. Free to all businesses, it can be reached at www.bizconnect.com or 1-888-MINN-BIZ (646-6249).
Grow Minnesota! also most recently administered a grant and loan program for small businesses, “Get Ready to Grow,” made possible through funding by the Pohlad Family Foundation.
Information gleaned from visits also helps strengthen the Minnesota Chamber’s public policy agenda on behalf of the statewide business community at the Capitol.
“The findings from our visits are different from what you might see in typical surveys,” Blazar said. “The findings we deliver to policy-makers are not based on mounds of statistics, but on what businesses throughout the state are actually saying.”
The Glenwood Lakes Area Chamber will be selecting businesses to visit. Businesses also may contact the chamber directly by clicking on the icon below or phone at (320) 634-3636 to request a visit.
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