As we move from rainy April into glorious May, the earth is starting to come alive with colorful flowers, budding trees and active wildlife. The Chamber is also very alive this month and is happy to offer two workshops in May (Business Succession Planning on May 11 and Nibbles, Networking & Knowledge on May 23.) We will also be holding our Annual Business Breakfast on May 10th and will be co-sponsoring the always popular Paddle the Border on May 21. For further information on all these events, please visit our WEB site at
www.cohase.org.
We are also happy to report that we have surpassed last year's membership numbers and currently have 152 members and membership continues to rise! Our goal is to reach 165 members by the end of the year!!
We are actively planning for our Garden Tour & Tea on July 16 and our Farm Tour on August 13. In addition, it looks like we will be holding at least three Business After Hours events this year starting this summer. As you may recall, we resurrected Business After Hours events last year and had great attendance with over 40 attendees at each event.
You will also begin to notice an increased visibility campaign for the Chamber starting within the next few weeks as we work to increase exposure to and urge support of our small businesses. Chamber advertising will start appearing in our local print media as well as on our local radio station WYKR. So much going on at the Chamber!
We hope that your business will experience growth and prosperity in May and that you and your families take time to enjoy our wonderful region and all the beauty it has to offer.
Sincerely,
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Erik Volk
Executive Director
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Please visit our WEB page at www.cohase.org for more details on any of these events and a listing of other events in our area. Details of the events listed below appear at the bottom of our WEB page. Events with asterisks indicate a Chamber sponsored event.
May 9 - Cohase Young Professionals Coffee Club, Bradford, VT
May 10 - Cohase Chamber Regional Breakfast, Bradford, VT *
May 11 - Business Succession Planning Workshop, Haverhill Corner, NH *
May 13 - Orford Craft Fair, Orford, NH
May 13 - Steady Betty Concert, Haverhill Corner, NH
May 19 - Cohase Young Professionals Lunch Social, Bradford, VT
May 20 - Newbury Woman's Club Spring Fling Flea Market, Newbury, VT
May 20 - Community Shred Day, Littleton, NH & St. Johnsbury, VT
May 20 - The Rough and Tumble Concert, Haverhill Corner, NH
May 20 -
3rd Annual Celebrate Sean, Earth & Nature Day, Bradford, VT
May 21 - Paddle The Border, Woodsville to Haverhill Corner, NH *
May 23 - Nibbles, Networking & Knowledge, Bradford, VT *
May 23 - Cohase Young Professionals Open Coffee Club, Bradford, VT
May 25 -
Yankee Ingenuity Talk, Piermont, NH
May 25 - Cohase Work At Home Group, Bradford, VT
May 26-June 4 - Bradford Customer Appreciation Days
June 4 - 8th Annual Race to the Top, Bradford, VT
June 17-18 - Music on the Mountain Festival, Bradford, VT
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Small Business Stats for New Hampshire and Vermont!
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Below, you will find some interesting Small Business Administration (SBA) statistics related to small business in both Vermont and New Hampshire. Please note when reviewing the statistics that the SBA considers small businesses to be those with less than 500 employees. The data is compiled from the most recent sources available.
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For a full NH report including graphics, click
here.
No. of Small Business = 130,939
No of Employees = 286,708
% of Workforce for Businesses with 20-99 Employees = 18.1%
% of Workforce for Businesses with 1-19 Employees = 19.5%
Top 3 Small Business Industries
- Construction
- Retail
- Professional, Scientific & Technical Services
Top 3 Small Business Industries by # Of Employees
- Health Care and Social Assistance
- Accommodation and Food Services
- Retail
Median Income for Self-Employed Incorporated Business = $52,273
Median Income for Self-Employed Unincorporated Businesses = $26,510
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For a full VT report including graphics, click
here.
No. of Small Business = 76,900
No. of Employees = 155,444
% of Workforce for Businesses with 20-99 Employees = 19.6%
% of Workforce for Businesses with 1-19 Employees = 23.4%
Top 3 Small Business Industries
- Construction
- Retail
- Professional, Scientific & Technical Services
Top 3 Small Business Industries by # of Employees
- Health Care and Social Assistance
- Retail
- Accommodation and Food Services
Median Income for Self-Employed Incorporated Business = $45,592
Median Income for Self-Employed Unincorporated Businesses = $21,680
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It's Not Too Late to RSVP for our Business Breakfast!
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Our Annual Cohase Chamber Regional Business Breakfast is scheduled for Wednesday, May 10 at 7:45 AM. As it has each year, the event will be held at the Colatina Exit in Bradford, Vermont. Come network with other members from the regional business community and discuss economic successes, challenges and plans for 2017.
We'll also provide you an update on Chamber happenings, programs, and initiatives.
Always a fun event. Admission is $10 for Chamber members and $15 for non-members.
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The Future of Your Business Shouldn't Be A Mystery!
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You worked hard to make your business a success. Could your business survive without you?
Whether your business is interrupted due to illness, death or retirement, planning now will help assure that your business continues. Join us for an informative and interactive Business Succession Planning seminar featuring a panel of local and regional experts from the legal, finance and estate planning fields.
The seminar will be held:
Thursday, May 11, 2017
5:30 PM - 7:00 PM
Alumni Hall
7 Court Street
Haverhill, NH
Cost: FREE to Chamber members. $10 admission for non-members.
For more information, email cohasechamber@gmail.com or call us at (802) 518-0030.
Please RSVP using the link below.
Click here to register
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Member Moment - Copies and More
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This month we are pleased to speak with Glenda Hofmann of Copies and More. Copies and More is a full-service copy center providing services from regular copying to 36” wide printing and scanning to offset printing. They are also an office supply store offering a large variety of office supplies, laminating, binding, NCR invoices, and business card design and printing services. They ship UPS and provide faxing and email services. In addition, they offer one of the largest assortment of K-Cup coffee around and sell gifts, cards and food items, many made by local artisans! Copies & More is located at 37 Main Street in Wells River. They can be reached by phone at (802) 757-8105 by email at glenda@copiesvt.com or visit them online at www.copiesvt.com.
When did you start your business?
Originally, when Ted Clark owned it, it was called Clark’s Business Machines and was at that time in Woodsville. I worked as his secretary and did his paperwork. After that, I worked for Jiffy Mart for 15 years as a manager. At that time, Steve Ross owned the business. He named it Ross Business Center when he took it over. I decided I wanted to do something different, I worked for him for about 15 years and then I bought the business in 2010 and renamed it Copies and More.
Are there any services you provide that you think people may not be aware of?
Well, we have the offset printing service for large jobs. Any large job is cheaper to do using the offset process rather than through the copiers. We have the choice, so for the customer, we are always looking to save them money. One of my specialties that I like to do is printing on canvas. We can place pictures on a canvas and we wrap it around wood so that it does not need a frame. We also just started a gift shop in December. The gift shop includes items created by local artists and we sell them on consignment. We do a lot of banner, cookbooks, family history books, town reports, school budget reports, architectural prints, art quality pictures, church bulletins, wedding invitations, calendars, personalized mugs, and we offer the largest selection of K-Cup coffee in the area. We have over 220 flavors. One thing we have not done a lot of that I would like to do more of is converting slides into digital media. Of course, our specialty is doing everyday copying and providing services for businesses.
Can you tell us about your staff?
Paula Emerson is my only official employee although my daughter helps me out too. Paula came with the business. She has been here 19 years. Phil Verratti is also part of my business and handles the offset printing.
What is your biggest business challenge?
The biggest challenge is getting everything done on time. Getting everyone’s project done in a timely manner can be difficult but we do pretty well at meeting deadlines.
What do you think sets your business apart?
We really provide personalized service and we know our customers. We really try to keep the customers happy. We have been here long enough that they really trust us with their projects. I have lived in the area my whole life in East Ryegate, Groton and Wells River. Our motto is “ Small Town Convenience, Big Town Service.” We take pride in our service that we are able to work one on one with our customers.
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Q. What is the difference between an Individual Membership and a Business with 0-1 employees? If I am a sole proprietor, do I pay the Individual membership price? What is the difference anyway?
A. An individual membership in the Chamber is $30 and a Business with 0-1 employees (which includes sole proprietorships) is $75. Individual memberships are intended for individuals who wish to support the Chamber but either do not own a business or who have retired from a business. Individual memberships are not intended for active businesses. Businesses that are sole proprietorships should be paying the 0-1 employee price of $75. If you choose an individual membership, your business will not be listed on our WEB site Business Directory, will not be eligible for participation in business marketing programs (at the member price) and will not be eligible for other programs which offer discounts to businesses such as our Discount Dental Plan. However, with an individual membership, you still will be able to participate in events and workshops at the member price but will be listed, where appropriate, only by your name and not your business name, Although we realize some businesses need to save money, choosing the correct business designation allows us the funding we need to operate and assists us with budgeting for the future. We do not actively audit the number of employees at any business location so rely on the business itself to choose the correct and proper designation. If you have inadvertently chosen an individual membership, simply send us a note with the remaining amount due and we will be happy to reclassify you!
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Welcome to Our Newest Members!
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We are excited to continue to grow our membership as the year progresses and are very happy to welcome the following new and returning members to the Chamber! Thus far, we have welcomed 19 new and/or returning members to our Chamber for 2017.
- M-Power Fitness for Women, Newbury, VT
- The Lunchbox Deli & Cafe, Fairlee, VT
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