New Year, New Opportunities

Happy New Year to our Montrose community and small businesses! 2020 was quite the year but it taught us how to cope with unexpected crises and now we feel prepared for anything; bring it on, 2021! As your local chamber of commerce, our goal this year is to partner with different businesses for fundraisers, host virtual mixers and continue to be a useful resource for all of our small businesses and local community. For those who do not yet follow us on social media, please do so to stay up-to-date with all of the latest resources available. Our Instagram handle is @Montrose_Chamber and our Facebook is Facebook.com/MontroseChamber. See you all at our upcoming virtual events; our fingers are crossed for the green light for in-person events at the end of this year.

Chamber Updates:
A special thank you to the director of the MVCC Ambassador’s Program, Analily Park, for hosting our free event last week, Chris Erskine’s book launch of “Lavender in Your Lemonade.” Ten signed copies of his book were raffled off and it was an event for the books – no pun intended (heehee!).

If you missed our CA Relief Grant webinar in partnership with Senator Portantino and America’s SBDC on Tuesday, shoot us an email and we can send you the link to view it: mvcc@montrosechamber.org. The application deadline has been extended to Jan. 13. Reach out to us if you have any questions about it and we will get you in touch with someone who can assist you.

Upcoming virtual events:
~ Jan. 18 at 1 p.m., “Digital Options for Your Business in 2021” via Zoom. In partnership with chamber business member CR Digital Solutions, we will be discussing how to decide where to spend marketing dollars plus share digital marketing ideas on how to help your business grow. Email us for the Zoom link mvcc@montrosechamber.org.

~ Jan. 21 at 12 noon for Montrose Barbershop’s virtual ribbon cutting via Facebook and Instagram. Montrose Barbershop has been a staple in our community since the 1940s but we are taking this opportunity to throw them a virtual ribbon cutting. Follow us on our social media or visit our website to watch their ribbon cutting and to leave them an encouraging note in the comments section.

We have not been promoting our GoFundMe as much as we probably should have; we had hoped that we wouldn’t have to but, with the current situation, we are asking that you assist us in staying active. Your donations go towards the planning of our free webinars, virtual ribbon cuttings, and our minimal overhead/operations. We have partnered with MVCC chamber member Panos Productions Photography to gift a corporate headshot (valued at $175) to the next donor of any amount. Also, the next two donors will receive a mask-chain gift courtesy of local jeweler, An Old Soul Jewelry. Visit our website MontroseChamber.org for the GoFundMe link. No donation is too small; thank you!

Lastly, there are many different chamber opportunities and ways you can get involved. Anyone interested in joining the chamber can reach out to us for more information. We would love to host your virtual ribbon cutting ceremony and help promote you on our social media plus e-blasts. There are also sponsorships available for our upcoming webinars (as low as $25 opportunities because we know times have been tough). Get in contact with us for more information.

Stay safe, be well and please keep supporting local businesses (if Amazon has it, one of our shops does, too, just let us know what item you are seeking and we can advise you of the shop that has it)!