Social media workshops and proactive marketing are just a few solutions local businesses in Greenwood are eager to try to help the town grow and prosper.
Interim Executive Director, Andrew Zwicker, with Boundary Country Regional Chamber of Commerce says Greenwood has a lot to offer.
“When people sit back, and they think about what they really want in life, you know, they want a safe place, they want somewhere they can live, they can walk around, the kids can run around, they can have that slow, great pace. And we figured, you know, the life that most people dream of is the life that’s happening already in Greenwood, we’ve just got to get that story out there.” He said.
The local Chamber recently held their fourth in a series of roundtable events in Greenwood, to help brainstorm local economic resilience and stability.
“We have been to Christina Lake, Beaverdale, Grand Forks and Midway, and I’ve got to say Greenwood had the earliest arrivals and the most attendees.”
“It was a very passionate group of people.”
The chamber plans to turn words into actions and deliver solution-based outcomes.
“The worry is that we have these kinds of meetings all the time, you hear the same kind of stuff come up, and then nothing really happens from it.”
“What we really want to do is focused on keeping this positive, let’s really drive solutions to the issues, as opposed to just getting too depressed on all the challenges, and there certainly are challenges out there.”
“We probably came up with at least a handful of actionable items that we’ll be able to actually start out on some small things in the near term here, and then work some of the bigger plans into our broader work plan.”
Challenges included being a small town with a small market, and trying to remain sustainable, however, capitalising on the drive through traffic.
“There’s several hundred thousand cars a year that drive right through Main Street, how do we catch some of those people to get them to stop a little bit longer?”
And there is new growth and opportunity by thinking outside the box.
One new business in town, all the way from Toronto, is opening a soda alternative product they will be looking to bottle and send out of town. And they will want to tap the greater regional market.
“The community showed interest in increasing their online awareness and using social media marketing to get things happening,”
“So, we’re going to go out there and start with some individual class, some group classes and then some one-on-ones to help boost everybody’s online presence.”
And hopefully spark the question, what’s going on in Greenwood.
“It’s a beautiful town. It’s got all kinds of things going on.”
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