Coastal Towns Business Chamber-Upper Central Coast is holding a free expo for Small Business Month during November.
The Small Business Expo on Thursday, November 17 will showcase products and services provided by the Chamber members as well as panel discussions from local government, industry organisations and business experts.
There will be special offers from business members, door prizes and information about Chamber activities coming up in 2023.
The event will be held from 4pm to 8pm at The Ary in Toukley, which is the major sponsor of the Coastal Towns Business Chamber.
President Julie Watson said the Chamber was a group of business people who were passionate about supporting the community and promoting the commercial sector.
“Our members are business people operating in the northern parts of the Central Coast and we especially encourage and support those who have work-from-home businesses,” she said.
“The expo will be a great opportunity to come along and get to know the local business community.
“We work across various sectors including trade, industry, micro through to large businesses, not-for-profit and community organisations,” Watson said.
While actively advocating for members, Coastal Towns Business Chamber also ensures that businesses are able to collaborate in creating opportunities for themselves, their partners and clients, through events and activities to promote the common interests of the business community.
“We are doing things differently and although we still have the traditional business support in place, we also make sure member meetings are engaging and interactive,” Watson said.
“We’ve had pow-wows, speed pitching, panel discussions, interviews and much more – there’s no stuffy meetings, it’s all about connection and support, and that’s what we do best.
“The Chamber has joined the Business NSW alliance which means members all benefit from being part of a larger organisation than just their local Chamber.
“We advocate on their behalf and take part in the Integrated Business Chamber meetings with Central Coast Council on a quarterly basis.
“We take members ideas or issues to the meeting and come away with other new ideas and information to pass on to our own members.
“It’s a way of having a stronger voice for our coastal towns in the upper Central Coast,” Watson said.
Although Coast Towns Chamber is a relatively new organisation, it’s a strong group, with Julie Watson of Stronger Than My Excuses, re-elected as President at the first annual general meeting in October.
Other office bearers for 2022-23 are Vice-President Toni Oliver of Toni Oliver Conveyancing, Secretary Chris Becker of Dulux Group and Treasurer Rosemaree Rettenmund of Retro Bookkeeping.
Committee members are Adam Rice of AJR Counselling Coaching and Consulting, Axel Starviking who has his own hypnotherapy clinic, Joanne Johnson of Southern Cross Funeral Directors, Mary-Louise Clifford of ML Clifford Consulting and Rebecca Hannan of Light Path Therapy.
The Ary at Toukley is the major sponsor for the Chamber and secondary sponsor is Bilson Law -Family Lawyers.
Registrations are essential for the Coastal Towns Business Chamber Small Business Expo, for catering purposes, and can be made on the website ctbc.org.au
Sue Murray