Greater Warrenton Chamber of Commerce Continues Its Commitment to Help Businesses Succeed Now in its fifth year of serving the local business community, the Greater Warrenton Chamber of Commerce (GWCC) continues to support members in need of advice. “We are extremely excited about and proud of the results delivered by our Business Assistance Team (BAT) over the last four and a half years,” said Bert van Gils, President of the GWCC. “The centerpiece of our Chamber’s activities have been the myriad of complimentary services provided by our ten BAT consultants. To date, we have provided free services, guidance, and advice to twenty-seven of our members, and during the recession we saved eighteen companies from going out of business altogether. Only two of the twenty-seven businesses that we have served were, unfortunately, not able to continue operations” van Gils continued. The BAT volunteers range from financial and QuickBooks experts to business plan advisors and lease negotiators. The group provides legal guidance, marketing assistance, training, business and accountability coaching, mentoring, and much more. “Fauquier County’s Economic Development Authority has been exceptionally helpful in our quest to support and serve our business community. To date, they have provided $10,000 in grant funding to help us escalate and expand the services we offer to our members and the community in general. We simply cannot thank them enough – they have been a stellar partner,” van Gils said. “Since our move into the Mason Enterprise Center (MEC) in Warrenton, we have begun to offer our assistance to the businesses which come to the MEC for business support,” van Gils explained. Plans are in the works to offer a robust and enhanced business educational program starting in 2015. It will partner with local and state agencies, and include a Business Certification program under which GWCC member companies can earn a GWCC Seal of Approval (similar to an MBA) from the Chamber. The Certification will be an indication to customers and consumers that they are dealing with businesses that are serious about their operations and have made a commitment to on-going process improvement and service excellence. There are a series of requirements that must be fulfilled to earn GWCC Certification, followed by continuing education and continual improvement efforts to maintain Certification. “Some of the educational services provided by the BAT may be used as credits toward Certification, as well as those acquired through our partner organizations and by providing objective evidence that the requirements have been met,” van Gils said. “We welcome any business in need of advice or assistance to contact us. A healthy business community is a key element to a business tax base that helps offset residential tax burdens. It bolsters tourism and prevents empty storefronts in our County and Towns,” van Gils concluded.
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 16:45:40 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015