The Sicamous & District Chamber of Commerce has stepped out of their pink Finlayson Avenue home, and into new digs and the Visitor Centre will follow suit in another two weeks.
After several years of sharing space, the two organizations are going their separate ways because of space issues.
The Visitor Centre will move to the new Civic Centre on Oct. 3, a location that will provide increased traffic flow, as well as offer the newly installed library and museum great exposure to visitors.
The chamber has partnered with the Employment Place and Stepping Stones Consulting to rent office space at 1217C Shuswap Ave.
The welcome mat is out at the new office next to Everybody’s Gym and across from the Legion and Resource Centre. Grateful for the many years of donated space at the pink house, staff and directors are looking forward to serving the community from their new home.
Taking over as executive director of the chamber, Corrinne Cross brings a sales and management background and is very excited about new opportunities.
“We’ll be promoting Sicamous and businesses, and seeing what we can do about bringing people back into the community to fill the schools and fill the arena,” she says. “We’ve got tourism as an industry, but we need to look at other industry as well.”
One such project includes marketing and advertising campaigns that could potentially give local businesses air time on large TV screens located throughout B.C.
Also on the slate are off-season business workshops that will provide management skills training, basic accounting, time management and inside and outside sales courses.
“Basically we’re hoping we can garner enough support so we can really go big and offer to our businesses workshops that will hone their skills and make their businesses that much better,” Cross says.
As well as new projects, chamber will continue to host some of the already established, popular events such as an Auction and Business Excellence Awards night that will run Saturday, Nov. 5.
“We’re also working on a community business Christmas party because so many of our businesses have just a couple of employees,” she says. “This will let all the businesses bring their staff to enjoy dinner and dancing and a gift exchange, so they can be part of a bigger party.”
The new chamber board includes John Schlosar (Keystroke Computer services) - president, Leanne Komaryk (Dollar and More store)‚ vice-president, Pam Clegg (Remax At Mara Lake), treasurer, Tia Lemeuix (Inkx Design and printing), Donna Mounce (Epicure), Rob Bushell (Three Buoys Marina), Malerie Selfe (Hair Affairs) and Corey Sigvaldason (Community Futures of the Shuswap).
Connect with Cross at the new chamber phone number‚ 250-836-0002.
Still in the pink house for the next two weeks, Jamie Sherlock has been with the chamber and Visitor Centre for several years.
She says she has mixed feelings about moving into what she hopes will be a busier location.
“This has been my home away from home for eight years, but I am excited by the opportunities of being in the new Civic Centre,” she says.
Sherlock is hoping the location, close to Askew’s and the credit union, will make the centre easier to find by winter visitors who rarely go down to the current beach area.
And while there will be a bit of a shift in focus in her day-to-day work, Sherlock says she will still be working closely with chamber and will continue to promote Sicamous businesses.
A certified World Host Trainer, Sherlock is hoping to share her expertise through off-season courses.
The Visitor Centre will retain the current phone number, 250-836-3313.
As she gets ready for the move, Sherlock advises a lot of office-related items are not being moved and are available to the public at the Finlayson Street location. Whatever is not sold over the next couple of weeks will be available in a garage sale, with the date for that event yet to be set.