OLDS — The Olds & District Chamber of Commerce projects a loss of $3,840 this year, attendees were told during the chamber’s annual meeting, held March 13 in the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 105.
Chamber president Doug Rieberger attributed the projected loss to the fact the chamber took on what he described as a “full-time/part time person” in the office and the fact that the chamber plans several events.
Rieberger said he’s confident the expenditures for those events and the money they bring in will “balance themselves out,” but “we wanted to make sure the money is there for them.”
Rieberger also noted that a website has been developed jointly with the Alberta Chambers of Commerce and is “a pay-as-you-go type thing.”
He said 2.7 per cent of membership fees goes toward maintaining that website.
The budget anticipates $24,500 in highway sign revenue this year, far above the $13,825 realized last year.
Rieberger said that higher revenue is anticipated this year because some signage contracts are coming up for renewal.
Attendees voted to approve the budget.
As the financial report came up for perusal, Rieberger admitted that the balance sheet is “skewed.”
“The accounts receivable is a little bit high because of some issues we had when we were rebuilding all our financials,” he said.
“So that is a project that our new treasurer is working on this year to clean all that up.
“There were some entry errors and that and it actually ended up doubling our accounts receivable.”
Bryn Chambers of BMO and Rita Thompson agreed to be auditors this year, replacing Bill Hall and Meaghan Wall who undertook that work this past year.
Four positions on the board of directors were up this year however only three people came forward to fill those posts.
Two directors previously on the board – Rieberger of Ultimate Safety and Muhkdeep Mangat of Emprise Canada Inc. – were re-elected, along with new board member Zechariah Johnson of HUB International Insurance Brokers. The first meeting of the new board is slated to occur March 20.
Cassidy Rochemont of Scotiabank and Tasha Bieber of Home Hardware both retired from the board for personal reasons.
Coun. Darren Wilson of the Town of Olds stepped down from the board to work on the chamber’s behalf.
Board member Murray Elliott and Rieberger thanked all three for their time and contributions to the board.
Rieberger urged anyone interested in volunteering for the chamber to let a board director know.
Rieberger said the chamber’s new website will have lots of advantages.
He said it’s designed with small businesses in mind, including those with only one or two employees.
It will include all the chamber’s events and provide an opportunity to buy tickets on that platform.
Eventually, he said, newsletters will be posted there as well.
It will also be linked to the chamber market.
Rieberger noted that the restart for the chamber’s member2member program, in which chamber members provide deals or benefits to other chamber members and their employees is coming up. Each year it runs from June 1 to May 31.
Rieberger stressed that a major goal for the chamber is to improve communication with its members.
To that end, new email addresses have been created so members can communicate directly (and in private if necessary) with Rieberger or the treasurer regarding any concerns or ideas for improvement they may have.
He said the chamber will also be launching another communication tool similar to town council’s Coffee With Councillors. It’s called Chat With Chamber, an idea suggested by Mary Jane Harper.
“You could come in, talk about any concerns, comments, anything that you want us to bring forward,” Rieberger said.
“We advocate on your behalf in the town. We also advocate on your behalf in the Alberta Chamber and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. So as members of the local chamber, you have a voice all the way through that.
“So you do have a voice and if there’s stuff that you want brought forward, we can do that for you. We just need to know what it is.”
Small Business Awards Committee chair Murray Elliott announced dates for several events held in connection with Small Business Week and the chamber’s annual awards gala.
He said Sept. 25 is the date for the annual Business Beer & Blue Jeans social, during which nominees for the business awards are announced.
Just like last year, it will be held in the Werklund Agriculture & Technology Centre in Olds College.
Last year, the chamber instituted a breakfast to kick off Small Business Week.
The plan is to do so again on Oct. 21. So far though, the exact venue has not been determined.
Elliott said like last year, the plan is to have Town of Olds Mayor Judy Dahl as well as Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills MLA Nathan Cooper and Brent Williams, the town’s chief administrative officer, on hand to discuss the state of the economy in the town and province.
The big night, the chamber’s annual awards gala, will be held Oct. 25 at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch #105, the same venue as last year.
Elliott also plugged the chamber’s exceptional customer service awards.
“We reintroduced the exceptional customer service award a few years ago and it’s gone over gangbusters,” he said.
Employees who have gone above and beyond to provide extra special service are nominated. They receive a certificate and their photo in the newspaper.
“People are so happy just to be recognized and appreciated and it’s just something kind we can do. It’s very popular,” he said.
Attendees also approved the chamber’s new vision and mission statement.
Rieberger said they needed to be revamped because although the community was promoted, they didn’t say anything about business or chamber members.
The new mission statement is “to support, promote and educate the members of the Olds & District Chamber of Commerce.”
Its vision is “to engage a vibrant business community that grows and prospers.”
“I just want to say personally we actually tasked this to our treasurer, Mr. James Kreese to do these up and to take this project on and he’s done a very good job,” Rieberger said.
Attendees were also told that a date for this year's golf tournament has been booked. The nine-hole Texas scramble will be held Aug. 21 with more details to come.
