A question we are asked frequently by potential new members is a simple one – What does The Superior-Douglas County Area Chamber of Commerce do?
By definition a Chamber of Commerce is a member-based local association that promotes and protects the interests of the business community in a particular location or region. In the case of the Superior-Douglas County Area Chamber of Commerce, we not only protect and promote the interests of our business community, but we also work every day to ensure Superior and Douglas County continues to be and grow into a wonderful place to live, work and play.
The Superior-Douglas County Area Chamber of Commerce is an organization made up of three legally separate entities focusing on business, education and tourism – The Chamber, The Chamber Foundation and the Superior Douglas County Visitors Bureau that does business as Travel Superior.
The Chamber is a nonprofit 501(c)(6) organization that works daily to advocate and advance business interest and community growth throughout Superior and Douglas County. We provide our approximately 400 members opportunities for networking, promotion, continued education and give them a platform to showcase their business.
The portion of the value to our membership is the benefits we offer at varying levels through an annual membership investment. To become a member, the investment is only $300 per year at the Starter Kit Level, which includes up to three full-time equivalent employees (with an additional $7 per full time equivalent employees). The benefits at this level are extensive, including a directory listing on our website as well as promotion of our members in multiple publications, free job vacancy postings, our work to improve workforce challenges, assistance with economic development, providing access to business resources, community and business happenings updates, among many other benefits. A full list of benefits received at the starter kit level can be found at superiorchamber.org/member-benefits. We also offer increasing benefits with each increasing investor level, which can also be found on the Chamber website.
A large part of what we offer to our membership is in our programming and event promotion. We offer various networking opportunities throughout the year, including our Good Morning Superior (morning networking), Business After Five (evening networking), our three largest signature events: The Annual Meeting and Business Awards, Play Day Golf Outing and the Business In Manufacturing breakfast events.
We offer continuing education opportunities through our Chamber Education Series, and throughout the year we also host multiple promotional and community events that promote shopping local, explore local businesses and host events that highlight different business sectors to raise awareness in our community and give opportunities to hopefully new customers. While attending any of our events and programs can be beneficial for one’s self or one’s organization, attendance is not a requirement of membership but it is a valued benefit. Many of these programs give our members a platform to shine a light on their customers, their businesses and their products.
One of the major benefits to becoming a member is the advocacy our Chamber does behind the scenes on the behalf of our membership and community. The Chamber and its employees partake in many discussions throughout the year to ensure the general business interest and community concerns are understood. We sit on various committees and boards for the same purpose, and our organization holds membership in multiple organizations in order to advocate for the best interests of our members and communities.
A great example is through our involvement with various state agencies and boards of directors where we dedicate time and resources to ensure the unique needs and wants of our members, community and our corner of the state is represented. Our organization diligently communicates with local, state and federal representatives to communicate the priorities that matter to our membership. While we are not always successful, and our priorities are not always listened to, that does not deter us from continuing the effort to make your voice heard.
Through our Chamber Foundation, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, we have historically provided leadership and workforce development programs through our local high schools. A focus of our programming has been workforce readiness and financial literacy. Through educational programming, business tours, unique experiences and encouraging local volunteer opportunities, this part of our organization will continue to evolve and keep our business community in connection with our local K-12 school districts, as well as higher education as it continues to grow and develop. Past youth leadership programming has already enhanced the education of more than 600 students during its tenure from 2003-2020.
Through Travel Superior, a nonprofit 501(c)(6) organization, we work to grow and advocate for our lodging, hospitality and food and beverage industries. We use various methods, tools and strategic promotions to effectively and accurately promote Superior and Douglas County as a premier tourism destination. While Travel Superior does not currently receive public dollars, we are proud of the work the organization has accomplished, along with our partners in tourism, to contribute to the growth of the tourism industry in Superior and Douglas County to be one of our lead economic drivers as a region.
To answer the question – What does the Chamber of Commerce as a whole, do? We do a little bit of everything and we wear as many hats as necessary to advance, promote and protect the growth of Superior and Douglas County’s business and residential communities.
Often, we take care of things that people think “just happen” in a community. We offer valuable benefits to our members, serve as a conduit of information, advocate for our communities’ interests, foster partnerships and innovation, assist in economic development and provide a platform to shine a light on all the great reasons Superior and Douglas County is a fantastic place to live, work and play.
Taylor Pedersen is President/CEO of the Superior Douglas County Area Chamber of Commerce.
