As always, thank you to our Leading, Developing and Creating Partners
Events
Sponsor:
June 3, 2020
First Friday Coffee
Century Casino @ 7 a.m.
 
Program: Legislative Update:
Sen. Holly Thompson-Rehder, Rep. Barry Hovis,
Rep. Jamie Burger

Registration is requested, not required - register here
 
 


Insights
Growing Together
Jeff Glenn
Chairman of the Board, Cape Chamber

Hello friends!

I can’t believe it’s already May!

This is a month of transition for families as school years conclude and families look forward to summer travel plans, getting outside more, and enjoying the beautiful weather. As you think about summer plans, I would encourage you to take advantage of the opportunities for fun and fellowship in our community. VisitCape works year-round to help people to discover the treasures in our community; treasures which can be enjoyed by locals too!

Members of the chamber Government & Public Policy Committee and the Executive Committee visited Jefferson City on May 5 to meet with local legislators and Lt. Governor Mike Kehoe. I’m excited for these types of trips to become a regular part of our routine as we facilitate opportunities for members to share their stories and advocate for our region.

Now that we have our new President/CEO in place, we’re moving forward with strategic initiatives between now and the end of the year. Over the summer, a subcommittee will be examining our bylaws to identify revisions that may need to be made.

This fall, we’ll be launching into a strategic plan revision. The strategic plan will create a roadmap for us to follow that will identify where we are, where we want to go, and steps we will take to get there. Concurrently, the Government & Public Policy Committee will be working with chamber members to outline our legislative objectives for the 2023 legislative session.
One of my favorite books on leadership is John Maxwell’s Intentional Living. The book is about wanting to make a difference doing something that makes a difference with people who make a difference at a time that makes a difference. Together, we have an opportunity to do just that. But it takes intentionality.

As we develop our strategic plan and identify legislative priorities, our work product will be better if we engage a broad, diverse group of our members. I hope you will choose to get involved with these processes. Borrowing a line from Napoleon Hill, “You must get involved to have an impact. No one is impressed with the won-lost record of a referee.” As we work to grow our chamber and community, there will be opportunities for you to engage in these initiatives. Please contact the chamber if you would like to become involved.

Let’s grow!
Chamber Chat
Rob Gilligan
President & CEO, Cape Chamber

May is Membership Month at the Cape Chamber!

This week kicks off the Cape Chamber annual Membership Drive when our Chamber Ambassadors spend the week reaching out to businesses and organizations, they think would benefit from becoming a chamber member. This offers us the opportunity to connect with a new and growing audience and highlight some of the many benefits of membership as well as becoming involved with the organization. If you are reading this today, you are probably already a member of the Cape Chamber, and we thank you for your commitment and involvement.

This week also gives us, the Cape Chamber staff, an opportunity to reflect on our organization and how we can ensure that our efforts and activities can have a positive impact for our members and the great Cape Girardeau region. If you have had a chance to attend one of our Chamber 101 events, you may have heard a little bit about the different “Why’s” for Chamber Membership. As an organization that hopes to have over 800 active members by the end of the week, understanding what motivates each of our members to belong is important. While there are many different reasons to join a Chamber, there are four areas we wanted to highlight today.

Community Investors are stakeholders in our region and the supporters of the broader efforts for growth and development that the Chamber can be a leader for. Community investors focus on workforce and talent development issues as well as advocacy at the local state and national level.
Community Builders are the backbone of a member organization. They tend to get involved serving on committees and sponsoring events and activities. They see the broader value of a strong and engaged membership and do their part to help support the organization with their time, talent, and treasure.

Business Investors understand the value and return a Chamber membership can bring to them in tangible ways. Whether it is the business referrals they can receive from the Chamber office or the online directory or the communication and information they depend on to help them identify and plan for business opportunities. They see the value and return on their investment in the growth and prosperity of their business or organization.

Business Builders are often the ambassadors of our Chamber. They actively participate in networking events and activities like First Friday Coffee, or Speed Networking. They share information through member news and take advantage of the opportunity to support members with additional Bottom Line Benefits and Hot Deals.

For many of our members their “Why” is not just one of the categories but at various times they can fall into several or all of the categories. Understanding our members “Why” helps us to ensure that the programs, events, and activities we undertake as an organization can be seen as a benefit and value to at least a section of our membership.

While we celebrate the addition of several new members this month, we also wanted to take this time to share our appreciation for our existing members, some that have been with us since the organization started in 1917. This month is about celebrating you! The members of the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce, without whom, we would not continue to be.

Thank You for your continued support and membership and welcome to our newest members!
Talking Tourism
Alyssa Phares
Senior Director of Sales and Strategy, Visit Cape 

Sports tourism is a major part of our local economy in Southeast Missouri. Local leagues to national tournaments and events; we host them all here in Cape Girardeau. Travelers who attend sporting events either as a participant or as a spectator generate significant benefits to a community.
 
Recently, I had the opportunity to attend Sports ETA Symposium for the first time since 2019. At Symposium, I attended a leadership session to finish my certification in Sports and participated in the Appointment Tradeshow. At Sports ETA, one of the most anticipated sessions at the Symposium is the State of the Industry Report.
 
This report is a combined effort between Sports ETA, Northstar Travel Group, and Tourism Economics, all leaders in their respective industries. A summary of the Direct Impact of Sports is below:
 
$3.7B in Tournament Operations
36.0B in Sports Traveler Visitor Spending
 
Equals 39.7 B in Total Direct Spending Impact of the Sports Tourism Sector
 
This direct spending generated a total economic impact of $91.8 billion dollars into the local economy across the United States which supports 635,000 full-time and part-time jobs and generated $12.9 billion in taxes, nationally.
 
The direct spending is broken down into transportation, lodging, food and beverage, recreation, retail, and tournament operations within the report. I have linked to the report here.
 
I recently had the pleasure to be a part of the 2nd Muddy River Marathon in Cape Girardeau and we had the opportunity to welcome participants and spectators from all over the country. This week Dalhousie Golf Course hosted the Boys Class 5 State Championship Tournament and they had one of the highest attendance in spectators for a tournament–ever. We host sporting events year-round and are lucky enough to host multiple events each weekend.
 
We have a very healthy sports economy in Cape Girardeau. Our top-notch facilities and the people that work, care for, and manage them continue to make Cape Girardeau an attractive place to host a tournament. To all of our facilities in the area, thank you for all that you do for this region. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for us! 
Spotlights
Creating Partner Spotlight
Ribbon Cuttings
Rent-A-Center
Grand opening of their new location in Cape Girardeau.
Gershman Mortgage
Celebrating the anniversary of their location in Cape Girardeau
Legend's Cape Girardeau
Relaunch and Celebration of Safe Communities Certification
Elevation Chiropractic
Celebrating their 10th Anniversary!
Soak!
Grand Opening in downtown Cape!
Speakeasy Coffee Co.

Grand Opening in Downtown Cape
Welcome New Members
Arevalo Photography
Anna Arevalo
821 A Broadway
Cape Girardeau, MO

Senior Portraits, Headshots...Learn more
Easy Wireless
Thomas Lowe
57 S Plaza Way
Cape Girardeau, MO

"At Easy Wireless, we... Learn more
QNS

Nathan Littlepage
33 Page Dr
Scott City, MO

It's our job to make your... Learn more
RIHC -Robinson Industrial, Heavy & Commercial Contracting, Inc.
Paul Findlay
2411 Walters Ln
Perryville, MO

Commercial Construction... Learn more
Soak
Melissa Johnson
417 Broadway
Cape Girardeau, MO

We make handmade... Learn more
Janice Voss
Cape Girardeau, MO

Retired from MAGNET after 13 years of service.
Welcome New Representatives
America's Car-Mart of Cape Girardeau Dwayne Ivey
Arevalo Photography
DeAnna Arevalo
Auburn Creek Assisted Living & Memory Care Assisted Living by: Americare
Andy Blagg
Cape Chamber
Rob Gilligan
Centurion Development L.L.C.
Andrew Lambert
Drury Southwest Signs, Inc.
Aaron Arnzen
Easy Wireless
Thomas Lowe
EBO M.D./Health
Tom Emmendorfer
KBSI TV
Daniel Knight
KEB
Ty Neldon
Pratt Industries, Inc.
Mike Freeman
QNS
Nathan Littlepage
RIHC -Robinson Industrial, Heavy & Commercial Contracting, Inc.
Paul Findlay
Soak
Melissa Johnson
Southeast Missouri Pets
Siri LeBaron
West Em Medical Spa
Kelsie Jansen
Spectrum Business
Christopher Beasley
The Lutheran Home & Saxony Village
Pam Ogels
Ultimate Flooring & Paint
Mike Lambert
Janice Voss
Southeast Missouri State University - Economic & Workforce Development Div
Amy Aldridge, John Mehner, Daniel Presson, Allen Mauk, Michelle Rees, Dana Savarino
Thank you to our 2022 Partners!