Chamber president discusses role/ praises Observer
To the editor:
Periodically I am asked about the role of a chamber of commerce in a community. Your paper has graciously provided me with an opportunity to explain this role both to the community as well as between members of our organization.
The Fort Myers Beach Chamber of Commerce, like all chambers, is in business to perform three major functions: 1) help promote our members; 2) promote a stronger business community; and 3) defend our business community against harmful rules and regulations that can disrupt, and can greatly threaten, businesses in our area. It should be noted that the chamber organization also recognizes and pursues the need to regularly participate to help improve, and many times build, a community (some examples include our Spirit of the Holidays efforts, enlightening lunch speakers, and our Business After Hours gatherings).
The importance of supporting our business community is important to create and keep jobs, provide convenience and opportunities for citizens, and a strong tax base. Clearly, the nation’s economic troubles are evident in our area.
The Fort Myers Beach Chamber of Commerce will move toward a greater emphasis on our members working closer together to cooperatively package their products to generate more business. I expect many of these opportunities will be done to create packaging opportunities especially around our events and beyond.
Our goal will be to create opportunities and, at times competition, for as many of our members who feel such an approach meets their goals and strategies as possible. Of course we will do so within the boundaries of integrity by honoring existing agreements and obligations but always looking to improve competition when for the betterment of our business community. We also offer investment products like lobby and internet advertising, event sponsorships (and beneficial locations), and greater advertising opportunities to generate business all the time.
A final thought. Our area is fortunate to have a newspaper like the Observer who provide a tremendous amount of space in communicating our happenings and our messages to both help and, at other times, to alert our community when opportunities and issues arise. This paper allows one of their own to sit on our Board of Directors and a previous employee was a Chairman of our Board. These efforts are all being done for the betterment of our business community and on behalf of our chamber of commerce, thank you for all of your efforts.
John Albion,president,
Fort Myers Beach Area Chamber of Commerce