Chamber Connection

As this month of gratitude closes, I'm profoundly thankful for the incredible tapestry of our community's resilience and unity. Together, we navigate history's ebbs and flows, consistently uplifting one another through — and despite — every challenge. I take immense pride in our Chamber's unwavering commitment to fostering thriving businesses among our members and cultivating LGBTQ-inclusive environments with our corporate allies. As we approach the year's conclusion, let's harness our collective strength, ending 2023 with resounding success, paving the way for a magnificent conclusion and a prosperous journey into 2024.

With gratitude,

Grace R. Moreno

Executive Director

AMERICAN VINEGAR WORKS

American Vinegar Works currently bottles and labels every product that leaves the plant by hand. With the grant, they will be able to invest in a new casting to produce bottles that can be used in an automatic bottling line, as well as a semi-automatic labeling machine. The combination of these two purchases will save them countless hours of labor and improve their efficiency by at least 20x.

THE CENTERPIECE FLOWER SHOP

The Centerpiece Flower Shop will upgrade its aging and run-down cooler with a new one. This new machinery will result in significantly less product loss, currently up to a week's worth of flowers at a time when the current system goes down. They will also be able to sustain a cooler at both of their locations, cutting down immensely on time spent driving to their newer, currently cooler-free shop to deliver fresh flowers.

INDIGO COFFEE ROASTERS

Indigo Coffee Roasters will be working on creating a shelf-stable cold brew coffee as well as on a full product rebrand. Currently, their cold brew recipe requires refrigeration both in transport and storage. Creating a shelf-stable version will allow them to cut down on transportation and storage costs, which in turn means they can expand to a wider market. They also will be pursuing a redesign of their retail packaging to refresh their brand and provide a cohesive look to all of their products.

TOMO360

Tomo360 will use this grant to expand their unique digital marketing services into new geographic areas within the northeast through a combination of market research, marketing and promotion, and participation in industry-specific conferences. Currently, their customer base is located primarily in Massachusetts. This grant will allow them to grow into other high-density business hubs such as New York City, Providence, RI, Portland, ME, and Hartford, CT.

Questions? Contact Mason Dunn, Director of Education and Research.

MEMBER SPOTLIGHTS

GERARD RIVERON

Exclusive High-End Jewelry Collections

Often called a "jeweler's jeweler," Gerard Riveron has more than four decades of experience with Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, and as a private jeweler.

Gerard launched his luxury e-platform in 2017 to provide discreet, exclusive access to the collections of independent fine jewelry designers from France without a brand presence or distribution channel within the United States. Wherever you live, Paris is at your fingertips from the comfort of your home or office.

Based in Boston and South Florida, Gerard also organizes pop-up events, often in collaboration with local businesses, where designers fly in from Paris for personal appearances.

For more information, visit gerardriveron.com or contact Gerard Riveron at (888) 666-2016.

DIGGITY DOM ENTERTAINMENT

Helping People Through Music & Media

Diggity Dom Entertainment, LLC provides recording, production, mixing, mastering, and live entertainment services, making it easy for artists to produce all of their music in one place and for organizations to book DJs and talent conveniently. Diggity Dom Entertainment also invests in their community by providing events, music lessons, and education to artists. Every session and event is a safe space for people of all identities!

Founder Dominic Glaude, aka Diggity Dom, is an Afro-Caribbean,

queer, trans man using music as an outlet and source of emotional support and self-care. Dominic studied Music Production & Engineering and Music Business/Management at Berklee College of Music with a minor in Commercial Record Production.

For more information and a full description of services, visit diggitydom.com or contact Dominic at dominic@diggitydom.com.

HAVEN BODY ARTS

Piercing • Tattoo • Jewelry

Haven Body Arts, Inc. is a female-owned and predominately queer-run full-service body arts studio offering piercing, tattooing, branding, scarification, and retail sales of fine body jewelry.

All of the body jewelry found at Haven Body Arts is crafted from implant-grade materials, such as F-136 titanium, F-138 steel, and rose, white, and yellow nickel-free gold, which ensures that clients will never have an unexpected reaction or complication from what they are pierced with.

Haven Body Arts prides themselves on staying current with all aspects of their industries and receives continuing education in health and safety though the Association of Professional Piercers (APP). Clients can be confident that they are receiving the very best and safest body art in the Pioneer Valley.

For more information and to book an appointment, visit havenbodyarts.com.

NEW CHAMBER MEMBERS

Welcome to the small businesses that have joined us since our last newsletter!

Prisere, LLC

Blue Collar Customs, LLC

Nick Dennis Enterprises, Inc.

Raw Beauty Brand, LLC

Sándalo, LLC

Porch Light Bookkeeping

Entrepreneurial & Business Collaborative

LevelUP Digital Solutions

Verdant Multicultural Media

Sweet River Farm

CCM Education Group

PLATINUM LEVEL SPONSORS