Summer 2011 - Highland Park Chamber of Commerce

“Taking Care of Business Every Day...”
with the Highland Park Chamber of Commerce
“Taking Care of Business Every
Day. . .” with the Highland Park
Chamber of Commerce
With apologies to Bachman-Turner Overdrive,
Highland Park entrepreneurs know all about
“taking care of business every day . . . and
working overtime.” And the Highland Park
Chamber of Commerce is there to take care of
the people who take care of business, just as it
has for the past 100 years.
Since its founding a century ago, the Chamber
has evolved in innumerable ways, but what
has remained constant are its commitments to
building a strong community and to promoting
existing and new businesses. The group’s
members work to strengthen the local economy,
foster an environment of entrepreneurship,
plan for a sustainable tomorrow, and offer
networking opportunities that can blur the lines
between business relationships and friendship.
“Cha-cha-changes”
It is astounding to consider the changes that
have taken place in our city in just over 100 years.
In the first decades of the 1900s, the Highland
Park East Park District was established, Ravinia
Park changed from an amusement park to a
music venue, Highland Park
Hospital opened to serve a
capacity of 20 patients, the
public library began allowing
patrons access to the shelves
so they could select their own
books, and there was a town
blacksmith.
Today, Highland Park boasts
a park district that operates
and manages over 650 acres
of land in 44 park areas, a
performing arts venue with
an international reputation,
a hospital that is part of
the Chicago metropolitan
integrated healthcare delivery
system known as NorthShore
University HealthSystem, a
library whose over 23,000 registered cardholders
can access more than 600,000 circulating items,
and multiple car dealerships and auto repair
shops (but sorry Mr. Ed, no blacksmith).
The Chamber began a century ago as The
Highland Park Businessmen’s Association to
promote “home trade” and to foster an attractive
business district. As business ownership and
management changed, so did the makeup of
the Association, and the group was reorganized
in 1925 as the Chamber of Commerce. Yet its
new name and management did not dismiss
the importance
of the “home
trade” concept
stressed by the
group’s 25 male
founders. In
fact the chant
for home trade
has remained
a Chamber cry
throughout the
years.
“It’s smart to
‘shop local’, and
now, more than ever, it’s green to shop local too.”
“If you trade locally, you save valuable resources
while supporting neighborhood merchants,”
said Chamber Executive Director Ginny Glasner.
“Shopping locally not only builds business, it
builds community. Good citizenry and a good
business area go hand-in-hand.”
Entrepreneurs who see Highland Park as a
thriving, competitive, desirable place to conduct
business help ensure that the business area
remains a vibrant part of out community.
Businesses that thrive take the best of past-
-such as the feel of a small town and the
outreach of a service-oriented community--and
they make it work in a quickly changing, rapidpaced,
demanding, tech-driven world. This is
true not only of new businesses, but also of longstanding
companies that have evolved to meet
the current business climate and to anticipate
future challenges.
The spirit of entrepreneurship transcends time
and knows no boundaries. New channels for
distribution have altered the landscape of
selling for businesses new and old. Today such
local businesses as jewelry salon Jill Alberts
Jewelry (469 Roger Williams Ave.), fine crafts
boutique and gallery Citywoods (651 Central
Ave.), and Carol’s Cookies (sold locally at a variety
of groceries and specialty stores) are among
those that compete on an international level by
“selling” 24/7, thanks to online visibility. Retailers
today know that website design is just as
important as store window design.
“You’ve Got a Friend in Me”
The Chamber brings a sense of community to
business. When Chamber members network,
they connect as business allies. To that point,
in 2005 the Chamber formed the Women in
Business networking group, which meets the
third Thursday morning of each month. In 2006,
Chamber networking went co-ed with the start
of the First Wednesday Networking Group.
“Chamber networking groups offer attendees
an opportunity to generate leads, reach new
customers, exchange information, and build a
circle of strong relationships with other area
professionals in an informal setting,” said
Chamber Membership Development Manager
Kim Loprest. She added that these networking
opportunities can “lead to referrals, marketing
ideas, business development skills, and a common
voice on City Commissions and committees.”
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