Chamber, Downtown Association teaming up for new business initiative

The Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce is launching a new initiative with the Downtown Association.

The Business Retention and Expansion (BR+E) initiative, slated to begin early in 2025, is designed to strengthen and support local businesses by gathering critical insights directly from business owners and managers.

As part of the initiative, the Downtown Association will concentrate its efforts on the downtown business district while the Chamber will work with businesses outside of the downtown core and throughout the broader Sault Ste. Marie area.

The organizations will look to provide tailored support, gather valuable feedback, and develop actionable insights to address the unique needs of businesses across the city.

The BR+E initiative has been launched in over 300 communities across the province since launching in 1998.

The primary goal of the initiative is to  support and strengthen existing businesses. Through interviews with business owners, the program tries to understand the specific challenges, needs, and opportunities within the community and the information will help shape local economic development strategies, with a goal of creating a more supportive and resilient business environment. 

“Retaining and growing businesses in our membership is a top priority for the Downtown Association Business Improvement Area (BIA). We welcome the partnership of the Chamber of Commerce in the business retention and expansion project our organization initiated with the Community Development Corporation of Sault Ste. Marie," said Nicholas Rosset, Board of Directors Chair, Downtown Association.

"This economic development exercise will give us valuable insight into how we can service our membership better in the present and future for Queen Street businesses. With the addition of new partners, this project will be a benefit to not only the BIA businesses, but the wider business community and economic development agencies in Sault Ste. Marie.”  

“Having already prepared to launch our Business Retention & Development program, the Sault Ste. Chamber of Commerce welcomes the addition of the Downtown Association Business Improvement Area,” added Jason Naccarato, Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce President. 

“This collaboration will allow for the collection of increased data thus ensuring a more effective and efficient program for both organizations to better benefit the entire business community and all economic development stakeholders within Sault Ste. Marie.”

All information collected through the BR+E survey process will remain confidential and final results will be presented as aggregate data in the form of percentages and trends rather than personal answers to ensure the privacy of all participating businesses. These results will be made available to the public, providing a data-driven view of the business climate in Sault Ste. Marie.

To get involved as a volunteer visitor, interested individuals can attend a training session on Nov. 27 at the Downtown Association Office from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. The session will cover the interview process and best practices for gathering information.