Business Blog

Happy New Year! As we begin 2019, Housing Next is now one year old and just a little bit wiser. I am taking this opportunity to share what we’ve learned so far and to outline our intended course of action over the next year. One of our first actions – in partnership with the Grand Haven Area Community Foundation, Community…

By now, you’ve likely been told the story of the Chamber’s Core Values more than once. We can tell that we’re truly living them in our daily work when we hear phrases like “deliver remarkable experiences” and “contagious energy with a positive attitude” coming from the mouths of our members when they talk about us.…

Right now, the 30thclass of the West Coast Leadership program is in session. These 32 individuals have embarked on a year-long exploration of what makes our community tick. The program is a deep dive that takes the class through off-site learning days such as Health and Human Services Day, Education Day, Government Day, and Economic…

For those in attendance at this week’s West Coast Chamber Wake Up West Coast Breakfast, the take away message was clearly that putting people first, and developing innovative ways to serve customers has been a recipe for success for Mandi Brower and Quality Car Wash. The 2018 Small Business Person of the Year recipient was…

Last summer I had an intern epiphany. I had been putting off developing an intern program because it seemed like I wouldn’t have time in my hectic days to train anyone. However, necessity prevailed, and I took the plunge. After sorting through over 80 resumes, I decided I couldn’t hire just one, I had to…

Children aren’t the only ones who get excited for Halloween.  The excitement of dressing up and trick-or-treating crosses generational borders on Halloween, and the Chamber staff gets right in on the action. It’s a Chamber tradition to set up camp on the sidewalk in downtown Zeeland and participate in the annual Halloween trick-or-treat event. Rain or…

People are still talking about their experiences at our Annual Meeting, “Inspire the Fire,”. It’s a testament to the way we listen to feedback to craft an event that will resonate with our members and with our entire community. Celebrating businesses together in the newly remodeled Civic Center was certainly a special moment, and the…

The energy in the room at our September Wake Up West Coast Breakfast was palpable, as our members gave their full attention to our featured speaker, Ken Wasco of Gordon Foods. His topic? Attitude is Everything. On the surface, one might wonder how this message could inspire such a visceral response from the audience. Of…