Since taking over as Elkader Area Chamber of Commerce Coordinator earlier this summer, Liz Healy has enjoyed getting to know Elkader’s business community and promoting all the town has to offer.
Originally from Cedar Rapids, Healy moved to the area with her family around a year ago after she and her husband bought what was once his grandparents’ old farm. With background as a hairdresser and salon owner, in customer service and sales and even as a special education paraprofessional, Healy brings varied experience to the position. She was attracted to the role’s flexibility as well as the opportunity to help businesses in town.
“That was something that really excited me,” she said. “As a newcomer to the area, I didn’t know what some of the businesses were and I didn’t know what was going on in town. I didn’t have the access to it. So I thought, ‘How can I help give people access?’ So they know when there’s music downtown or they know when one of the businesses is holding an event.”
Healy jumped right in this summer, leading the chamber’s Inside/Outside Sales shopping event and annual golf tournament fundraiser. She’s also implemented “Member Mondays” videos featuring local businesses.
“I’m going and asking a few questions of our business members, maybe taking pictures, and then making videos of their business, to let people know who this business is and what their hours are,” Healy explained. “I’m trying to market them with ‘Member Mondays,’ so people get excited about our local businesses.”
The chamber has also started coffee meet-ups the first Tuesday of each month, at 8 a.m., at the FreedomBank community room.
“We invite all of our local businesses and discuss what’s going on, what could help the businesses feel more successful, if there’s an issue that’s affecting more than one business and how we can collaborate and come up with a solution for it,” Healy said. “They’re really nice because you also learn that maybe even businesses that are not similar, like maybe one’s a store and one’s a restaurant, they sometimes have similar issues. It’s also early enough that it’s before everybody opens, and they’re short, at no more than an hour, so people can pop in and pop out.”
Other early tasks have included updating the Elkader website, with a focus on making the calendar of events a one-stop shop for all community events, not just those organized by the chamber or Main Street Elkader. That helps attract people to Elkader, said Healy, while also keeping local businesses informed so they can be prepared for potential influxes of people.
Healy has also been preparing for Elkader’s popular Witches’ Night Out, which is set for Thursday, Oct. 8. Registration will be from 4 to 8 p.m., this year at Mascara Park.
Watch for the chamber’s holiday activities later this year and, of course, Ladies Day out next March.
“We are going to do all of those regularly scheduled events,” Healy said. “We also are looking to add a springtime event and we are still kind of trying to come up with ideas for that. Probably another shopping event to really get people excited for the spring season. We have a little bit of a lull after Ladies Day Out, so we’re looking for something to fill that spot.”
Healy appreciates the support she’s received from the Elkader Area Chamber of Commerce Board as she grows in the coordinator position. The board meets monthly and is good about sharing ideas and duties, she said.
“They’re all volunteers. It’s great that they show up to all of this because everybody’s busy and they all have full-time jobs, too. I so appreciate that they make time for this,” she shared.
The community, overall, has been welcoming, according to Healy.
“Everybody’s been so welcoming and they’re excited to have somebody help promote them, help really get some more eyes on some of these events that we have and really push not just local people, but communities around us, to come and shop and dine and enjoy everything Elkader has to offer,” she said.
Moving forward, Healy’s goals include personalizing Elkader businesses through efforts like “Member Mondays.”
“I think it makes everybody feel more connected to the businesses, and when you create a relationship with someone, even if maybe you can get the item for less somewhere else, you want to spend the money and know it’s going to your friend who owns a business,” Healy said.
She hopes to see current businesses grow and thrive, while helping to attract new entrepreneurs to empty spaces in town. She wants business members—and the community as a whole—to find value in the Elkader Area Chamber of Commerce.
“I want to build relationships, and I really want them to feel like being a chamber member is affecting them in a positive way,” she reflected.
