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2015 ANNUAL
REPORT
Grand Bend & Area Chamber of Commerce
Since 1957, the Grand Bend & Area Chamber of
Commerce has sought to promote and improve trade
and commerce and the economic, civic and social
welfare of the district.
1 Eighty-One Crescent Street
PO Box 248
Grand Bend, ON N0M 1T0
519-238-2001
1-888-338-2001
www.grandbendchamber.ca
www.grandbendtourism.com
2015 annual report T H E L I T T L E C H A M B E R T H A T D O E S !
Contents
CREDIBILITY, VISABILITY, OPPORTUNITY, COMMUNITY, AFFINITY ................. 1
DIRECTORS, STAFF & VOLUNTEERS ............................................................. 1
PRESIDENT’S REPORT .................................................................................. 3
MANAGER’S REPORT ................................................................................... 6
TREASURER’S REPORT ................................................................................. 8
Revenues & Expenses ............................................................................... 10
Chamber Member Services Revenue ....................................................... 10
Chamber Member Services Expenses ...................................................... 11
Tourism & Visitor Services Revenue ........................................................ 12
Tourism & Visitor Services Expenses ...................................................... 13
NOMINATIONS REPORT ............................................................................ 14
MEMBERSHIP REPORT ............................................................................... 16
Member Business Demographics .............................................................. 17
2015 HIGHLIGHTS .................................................................................... 18
Increased functionality for GrandBendTourism.com .................................. 18
Professional Development Workshops ...................................................... 19
Giving Voice to Local Business .................................................................. 20
Affinity Program Updates .......................................................................... 21
Tourism Benchmarking & Partnerships ..................................................... 21
MEMBERSHIP ENGAGEMENT ...................................................................... 24
Events ....................................................................................................... 24
RECOGNITION & CELEBRATION ................................................................. 25
Celebrate the Season Awards Dinner ........................................................ 25
Fall Classic Golf Tournament .................................................................... 25
THANK YOU TO ALL OUR SPONSORS AND SUPPORTERS ............................. 26
2015 annual report
Page 1
CREDIBILITY, VISABILITY, OPPORTUNITY, COMMUNITY, AFFINITY
Since 1957, the Chamber has worked to support and
promote local business for 58 years. Incorporated in
1975 by George Kadlecik, Peter Haist and Donald
Southcott, we average just less than 185 Members
from the area, including Arkona, Forest, Grand Bend,
Port Franks, Thedford, Bayfield, Exeter, Goderich,
Hensall, St. Joseph, Zurich, Camlachie and all points in-
between.
MISSION STATEMENT
The objectives of the Grand Bend & Area Chamber of
Commerce shall be to promote and improve trade and commerce; and the economic, civic
and social welfare of the district served by the Chamber.
DIRECTORS, STAFF & VOLUNTEERS
Chamber directors are volunteers, and give their time, expertise, experience and personal
network for the overall good of the Chamber, its Membership and the business
community. The Board makes an effort to encourage Members running successful
businesses and who are seen as positive, forward-thinking, community-minded
individuals to step forward and make the Chamber as effective and relevant as possible.
MARY-JO SCHOTTROFF-
SNOPKO / President
(Pine Dale Motor Inn)
MARK LEWIS
Vice President
(Bayshore Broadcasting)
SHEILA BROOKS
Treasurer
(Bank of Montreal)
Chamber member businesses
are thought of more favorably
by 44% of consumers who are
also 63% more likely to
purchase goods or services
from a Chamber member.
2015 annual report
Page 2
PAUL PITTAO
Secretary
(Medway Homes)
NEIL CLIFFORD
Director
(Lakeshore Advance)
NATALIE CORE
Director
(Natalie Core Marketing
Consulting)
DOUG PEDLAR
Director
(RE/MAX Bluewater Realty Inc.)
MARILYN KEUNECKE
SMITH
Director
(Trin’s Trends)
GLEN BAILLIE
Past-President
(Baillie’s Picture Framing)
SUSAN MILLS
Manager
KERRY REX
Volunteer
DEBBIE KIRKWOOD
Volunteer
2015 annual report
Page 3
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
As I look back on 2015, I must say we have been very busy.
We had an awesome Celebrate the Season (November 2014) at
Oakwood Resort, with a great turnout to celebrate the achievement of
many hardworking individuals and their teams. The meal was
fabulous and thank you to all who donated to silent auction table.
This event is pure fun and it’s always amazing to discover more about fellow business
owners and their accomplisments - so keep this in mind during the year so you submit
your nomination for one the awards. We do need to celebrate all our successes!
The 2015 Mayor’s Breakfast was again a great event and opportunity for fellow
businesses owners and members to get together and their share news and thoughts while
enjoying a lovely breakfast. Next year this event will be planned for a week later to avoid
clashing with the Toronto Gift Show, which many of our members attend.
Our Spring Mixer, held in April, was hosted by SmackWater Jack’s Taphouse’s, which
provided the perfect setting to mix and mingle, display the Members Showcase and enjoy
a view of the marina under April sunshine. Various announcements were made, including
the Chamber’s invitation to the Grand Bend Horticultural Society to sell their yearly
memberships. With one of these memberships you can not only gain valuable insight into
beautifying your business property, but enjoy a discount at local nurseries while doing it.
The Chamber partnered with new member business Workplace Safety Prevention Services
(WSPS) – represented in our area by Lori Shepherd – through which we were able to offer
members a great discount on Workplace Safety Certification and opportunities
throughout the year to attend one of WSPS’s Networking & Knowledge Exchange events,
held at Pine Dale Motor Inn. These events help employers and staff become more aware
of workplace safety in an informal atmosphere. Topics vary from round table discussions
on health and safety issues, updates on legislation and injury trends, to sharing best
practices and learning about products, programs and services available to improve your
health and safety program. For dates, times and topics, go to
GrandBendChamber.ca/events – we’ve added the WSPS sessions to our event listings.
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Registration is required, but it’s free to attend. So check out the topics and get yourself
signed up by calling 1-877-494-9777 (select option 5) or email [email protected].
Like the Spring Mixer, the Fall Mixer followed through on the fun factor. This was the first
mixer event held at Grog’s Pub & Grill in a lovely private room at the rear of the
restaurant. Grog’s team provided lots of tasty appetizers; Baillie’s Picture Framing
sponsored the event. Attendees received the latest news from the Chamber and members
were invited to share their announcements and updates as well. Barry and Judy Johnson
attended to meet members and set the ground-work for visitor guide ad sales. Thanks to
Chamber member and volunteer Kerry Rex for managing this event in the absence of our
manager.
We’re proud to have been able to provide our members with three professional
development opportunities this year. Following on the heals of the mixer and awards
night, we held a professional development workshop in November at Pine Dale Motor Inn
called “Phoneography”, facilitated by professional photograher Tom Vogel. In the spring,
Smackwater Jack’s Taphouse hosted the Workplace Safety & Prevention Certification
Workshop with a bonus session in May. In Septmeber, a highly successful new media
development workshop called Social Media for Business was hosted by Pine Dale Motor
Inn and facilitated by Emily Baillie of Compass Content Marketing from Toronto. This was
a very well received workshop and attendees were eager to further their learning by
attending another session. Stay tuned – as plans are in the works to do so in 2016.
As part of our ongoing eye on opportunities for economic growth and strengthening local
business, the Chamber hosted a Round Table Meeting in May called “What kind of town
do you want in 10 or 20 years?” Thank you to everyone who attended to provide insight
and opinion on the challenges facing local business and how as a united team of
businesses, municipal council and staff and various agencies we can all work together to
ensure our communities and businesses are sustainable. The final report was emailed to
everyone who attended, as well as local business organizations, council and senior
municipal staff. A copy of the report can be downloaded from
GrandBendChamber.ca/publications.
2015 annual report
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Ongoing efforts to provide members and local businesses with marketing tools resulted
in the additon of web badge advertising on GrandBendTourism.com. This new
functionality offers a great opportunity to highlight your business on the most visited
tourism website in the area at a very reasonable cost. Once your initial web ad is posted
for a campaign length of your choosing (minimum campaign is 3-months), you have the
ability to swap out your ad at any time during the campaign. The advertising plug-in will
automatically send you results of your campaign, detailing the number of times your ad
was viewed and clicked on.
Summer 2015 saw the leveraging of our partnership with Southwestern Ontario Tourism
Corporation (SWOTC) and Tourism Sarnia Lambton (TSL) to bring about some baseline
data on wayfinding signage in the Greater Grand Bend Area and conduct a visitor survey
on the Main Beach in Grand Bend. SWOTC loaned their intern student to conduct
wayfinding benchmarking, assisting us to officially confirm – there’s no tourism signage
to the beach or marina or other key tourist attractions! SWOTC students and TSL staff and
summer students began a visitor survey of beachgoers.
We’re working on additional partnerships through outreach efforts with local Chambers
such as South Huron, Zurich and Bayfield as well as the Exeter BIA. Members will recall
that we have been working with the Forest BIA for the last several years.
The Chamber’s advocacy work continues through ongoing project partnerships with TSL,
SWOTC and the additional destination marketing organizations of Huron Tourism
Association and Regional Tourism Association #4. These efforts keep the Grand Bend
Area on their radar, which in turn encourages increased dialogue and further
opportunities for tourism growth.
Perhaps the biggest highlight for me is that Grand Bend has more lights. This is
important for a couple of reasons. Firstly, and perhaps most importantly, seasonal décor
and lights send out the message that we are OPEN FOR BUSINESS year-round, with
accoommodation providers, restaurants and retailers all along the Highway 21 corridor
ready to provide customer service. Secondly, lights and décor help strengthen community
2015 annual report
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spirit. Many thanks go to the volunteers of the “Jingle Bell Group” who not only coordinate
the installation of seasonal décor but make the Light Up Grand Bend event possible.
Although there is still much work to be done in terms of seasonal décor throughout the
year, a project on which we continue to work with the Municipality, the increase of lighted
displays was certainly noticed. The Chamber is honoured to have worked with the West
Coast Lions, Grand Bend Community Foundation, Grand Bend Rotary Club, Andrea’s
Dance Studio of Parkhill, Grand Bend Horticultural Society, local businesses, individuals
and churches in bringing to life an event that promises to benefit the community and
annually bring a festive spirit to the area. Stay tuned for more fun!
Most recently, we particpated in the Outdoor Adventure Show in Toronto, which had an
attendance of more than 20,000 people. This venture was made possible by the forward
thinking of the Municipality of Lambton Shores and Tourism Sarnia Lambton who
supported the cost of the booth space, making it economically feasible for area
attractions to participate, including Grand Bend Motorplex, Grand Bend Sport
Parachuting, Derksen Motor Sports and – yes - Pine Dale Motor Inn.
Collaboration continues with General Coach, located in Hensall, who are attending the
International RV Show and will be displaying our local visitor guide It Starts at the Beach
at their booth space. Many thanks to Roger Faulkner for making the offer to take along
the guides and helping to promote this area as a vacation destination.
MANAGER’S REPORT
While it can always be said change is a constant, in the near future it may
be said during 2015 we began to see the outline of directional and
operational change from five years of Tourism & Visitor Services advocacy
efforts begun in 2011. These changes promise positive economic
development outcomes for the entire area and are directly attributable to
the passion and commitment of Chamber Board directors – who are
volunteers and give freely of their time and expertise to the Chamber and
the community. SUSAN MILLS
MANAGER
2015 annual report
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The Chamber’s public face is seen in member events, emails, e-newsletters and media
coverage of our activities, but there’s a lot of time and effort that goes into advocacy for
members and for the economic health of the business community. Identifying key issues,
possible solutions and opportunities to realize those solutions requires a deep
understanding of the issues facing local business (including our Members). Over the last
five years, Chamber directors and staff have served on the boards of destination
marketing organizations, appeared before Municipal Council (of Lambton Shores), have
engaged in ongoing discussions with local political representatives and municipal staff
and initiated and chaired two meetings with the destination marketing organizations
whose decisions and activities affect the tourism industry in the Greater Grand Bend Area
and its marketing.
This year, directors and staff have worked on initiatives that could inject an economic
boost to the local economy not witnessed for years. Many Members will know Past-
President Glen Baillie’s cultural and economic development initiatives, such as the Grand
Bend Area Studio Tour, Buskerfest and Summer Sunset Sounds concert series. Likewise,
Members will recognize President Mary-Jo Schottroff-Snopko’s success in securing
commitment and funding for lights and street décor to emphasize community spirit and
the message that we are open for business beyond the Victoria Day to Labour Day period.
One of Baillie’s recent efforts is in partnership with the Rotary Club of Grand Bend, which
took the lead role to gain approval and funds to construct a permanent band shell on the
area’s Main Beach located in Grand Bend. This initiative represents about 18-months of
effort and negotiations. The Chamber supported the Rotary’s efforts through letters of
support and provision of quantifiable data from the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture
& Sport, which indicates an investment in a permanent bandshell could net hundreds of
thousands of dollars of local spending annually. When visitors come to town to attend an
event, they bring their money and they spent it on gas, meals, lodging, shopping and
attractions.
The bandshell initiative forms part of a tri-partner Rural Economic Development grant
application (the “RED” grant) to the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs
(OMAFRA). The RED grant provides rural communities, businesses and organizations with
2015 annual report
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funding to help attract investment, create jobs and boost tourism. The Chamber, Rotary
Club of Grand Bend and Municipality of Lambton Shores are partner applicants on the
grant submitted in the most recent grant intake period (January 15 – April 15, 2016). If
successful, this RED grant could be worth $350k in support of cultural and heritage
events with the purpose of attracting money-spending visitors to the area.
After 5 years of financial rebuilding, we’ve finally reached the point of being able to look
outwards towards sister chambers and other business organizations like the Forest and
Exeter BIAs to seek ways of working together for the mutual benefit of our members.
Although this is currently just an agreement in principal with small beginning steps, we
anticipate greater interaction and joint projects to leverage hard-earned operating funds
to the fullest potential for members.
TREASURER’S REPORT
The following report represents a synopsis of the information in the
Audited Financial Statements, which are available to any Chamber
Member at the Welcome Centre or by download from the Members
Forum on GrandBendChamber.ca.
Although our year-end report dated October 31, 2015 shows
increased revenue and a corresponding increased cost-of-sales, our
expenses also increased and overall we incurred a net revenue
deficiency of $4,017. However, our net assets at the end of the 2015
year were still positive ($7,650) and our cash flow higher than at the
same time last year.
Overall gross revenue from all of the Chamber’s programs and services, including
municipal support, federal and provincial wage grants increased slightly by $2,202 in
comparison to 2014. Likewise, the direct cost of providing those same programs and
services, known as the cost of sales, increased by $6,542, with operational expenses
increasing by $5,733. The net result of subtracting the cost-of-sales and operational
expenses from gross profit leaves a $4,017 net revenue deficiency.
SHEILA BROOKS –
TREASURER
2015 annual report
Page 9
We know the economy has not been strong and while we enjoy the support of our
members and other contributing businesses, we all understand costs have risen. Cut-
backs were made in terms of mileage, telecommunications, some utilities, and repairs
and maintenance, white other costs beyond our control increased like event insurance,
the Chamber’s memberships in higher tier Chambers and office supplies (especially
toner, paper and the replacement of a monitor). Overall, the net revenue from the
Chamber’s fundraising efforts was down by $6,991.
Additionally, wages and corresponding mandatory employer contributions increased by
$7,312. This increase was due to our efforts to meet minimum student grant “work week”
requirements and to keep the Welcome Centre open six days a week in June and seven
days a week in July and August. Government wage grants did not cover all the hours
worked by our students and the difference came out of our pockets. Salaries and wages
breakdown into $52k of gross wages paid and almost $9k in employer costs, including
WSIB.
Members will recall that annually our cash contribution – over and above the cost of 50%
of Welcome Centre operations - to the provision of Tourism & Visitor Services is about
$10k. Last year we were able to cover off $10.5k of un-recoverable expenses related to
Tourism & Visitor Services from the Chamber’s $16k net income from programs, services
and fundraising efforts. This year, our smaller Chamber Services net revenue of $9,520
was not enough to cover the $13k of Tourism & Visitor Services costs and leave us in a
cash positive or neutral position from operations.
The Board continues to monitor the revenue and expense of each activity and to evaluate
each project and initiative relative to the overall benefit to the organization and all of its
members. Due to a number of factors, such as increased costs due to event insurance,
event damage deposits, event fees, advertising costs and the amount of staff time to
support two retail events (i.e. the Thanksgiving Market and Christmas Comes Early), it is
the Board’s decision to let the organization and implementation of these events go back
into the community. This decision should save the Chamber about $1,000 and free up
much needed staff time at a very busy time of year to focus on core Chamber initiatives
and projects.
2015 annual report
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The Board has taken further action to control costs and to ensure each membership dollar
is put to use for the overall benefit of all members. As a result, the 2016 budget is lean
and does not assume increased federal, provincial or municipal support. At the time of
this report, the Chamber has formally requested $33k funding support for Tourism &
Visitor Services from the Municipality of Lambton Shores and we are awaiting a response.
Special thanks to Shawn Fitzsimmons of The Fisher Corporation for the preparation and
review of our financial documents and production of the audited Financial Statements.
Revenues & Expenses
The reporting of revenues and expenses in the audited Financial Statements includes a
combined Chamber Services and Tourism Services summary entitled “Statement of
Revenues and Expenditures” on pages 5-6. For standalone statements for Chamber
Services see page 11 and for Tourism Services see page 10.
Chamber Member Services Revenue
$77,285: The Chamber’s gross revenue comes
from multiple sources:
Business Awards ($3,063 / 4%): Celebrate
the Season ticket sales and silent auction
bids.
Christmas Comes Early ($5,761 / 7%):
Retailer participation fees.
Donations ($3,872 / 5%): Based on the fair
market value of items donated to the
Chamber (silent auction items for
business awards etc.); does not represent actual cash payments.
Golf Tournament ($13,590 / 18%): team registrations, passport sales,
sponsorships.
Membership dues ($31,394 / 41%): Fees paid by Members (does not include
GrandBendTourism.com Weblink or Upgraded Listing fees).
2015 annual report
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Weblinks & Upgraded listings ($5,991 / 8%): Web marketing revenue from
GrandBendTourism.com.
Other revenue ($13,610 / 18%): Includes balance of all revenue from Chamber
services and programs, such as ads sold
on the Outdoor Message Centre Board,
Breakfast with the Mayor tickets,
Members mixer sponsorship,
Thanksgiving Market vendor fees and
Group Insurance referrals.
Interest income ($4 / 0%)
Chamber Member Services Expenses
$82,022: The Chamber’s expenses are related
to the delivery of member services and
programs:
Business awards ($3,471 / 4%)
Christmas Comes Early ($4,117 / 5%)
Golf tournament ($7,694 / 9%)
Other direct costs ($7,676 / 9%)
Funding of Tourism & Visitor Services
($13,533 / 17%)1 – see footnote,
Bad Debt ($3,179 / 4%) 2– see footnote
1 Funding of Tourism & Visitor Services – The amount of money used from the Chamber’s net revenue from
member services and programs and fundraising efforts to cover the gap between actual cost to provide the service
and funding received from all government support (federal, provincial & municipal). 2 Bad Debt – During the transition from fiscal 2015 to 2016, it was discovered QuickBooks Premier Nonprofit
Edition accounting software does not “lock” previous year’s audited financial entries. In order to transition fiscal
2016 invoices / payments from being “deferred income” to “current income” line item account attributions were
updated with the unfortunate and unforeseen result of Quickbooks reversing previously voided invoices. Although
payment tracking of invoices is standard procedure and recorded on printed invoices and project spreadsheets,
there were account receivable amounts within Quickbooks that could not be verified to audit standards. As a
result, these unverifiable amounts were categorized as bad debt. The Chamber is investigating the purchase of
alternative accounting software to avoid a similar situation in the future.
2015 annual report
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Allocation of Overhead Expenses3 ($41,628 / 51%) - see footnote
Tourism & Visitor Services Revenue
Throughout Ontario, Tourism & Visitor
Services4 are funded by government – federal,
provincial and municipal. Although the
Municipality of Lambton Shores contributes
approximately $60k to Tourism Sarnia
Lambton through the County’s levy, funding of
local efforts that directly promote Lambton
Shores and provide visitor services to those
visiting this area totaled $18k. Gross revenue
in support of Tourism & Visitor Services for
this area comes from federal and provincial
wage grants, municipal support from Lambton
Shores, visitor guide ad sales (It Starts at the Beach) and net revenue from the Chamber’s
own member services and programs:
Wage Grants ($8,456 / 12%): federal and provincial
Municipal Support for Tourism Services ($18k / 25%)
Chamber’s contribution to Tourism Services ($13,533 / 19%)
Visitor Guide Ad Sales ($30,826 / 44%)
3 Allocation of Overhead Expenses – These expenses relate directly to the operations, maintenance and staffing of
the year-round Welcome Centre, such as insurance, repairs and maintenance, landscaping, phone and utilities,
summer students wages, staff wages, mandatory employer expenses, office supplies, mileage, professional fees
(such as audit and bookkeeping) etc. CPP and EI, WSIB etc; costs related to travel mileage and meetings,
professional memberships and professional fees (audit, bookkeeping).
4 Tourism Services – defined as marketing, promoting and “selling” an area to potential visitors for pleasure and
business. Marketing tools include visitor guides, guides for event and meeting planners and tour operators,
attracting and hosting travel writers, website and advertising campaigns. Visitor Services – defined as face-to-face
in information counseling, plus access to area maps, brochures and services that help a visitor plan their time and
locate tourism products and services (information about events, festivals, attractions).
2015 annual report
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Tourism & Visitor Services Expenses
During 2015, the Chamber provided Lambton Shores with:
Visitor Guide: 112-page, full-colour
visitor guide distributed to 198+
locations in Ontario, including official
provincial Tourism Information Centres,
Ontario Travel Centres, Tourist
Information Outlets, libraries, gas
stations, hotels/motels, restaurants,
retailers, attractions and other business
locations in Lambton Shores, Bluewater,
South Huron and Goderich, including an
area mail drop in Grand Bend, Forest,
Port Franks and Thedford. About 4,000
copies are handed-out at the Welcome
Centre.
Advertising: No-cost ad exchange in Navigate (Lambton County’s guide), listings in
Ontario’s West Coast (Huron County’s guide), Drayton Entertainment Playbill, and
no-cost event submissions to FestivalsAndEventsOntario.com, OntarioTravel.net
and London Free Press online event listings, as well as no-cost service-exchange
with Bayshore Broadcasting for radio support.
Digital & Web Advertising: GrandBendTourism.com, Merchant Street Mapping,
Facebook/grandbendtourism and Twitter.com (@Grand_Bend), 9 domain name
registrations.
Tourism Event Attendance: Attendance at tourism events to promote the area:
Huron County’s Brochure Swap, Lambton County’s Tourism Summit, Best Host West
Coast, Food Day Canada.
Area Representation & Advocacy: For the Municipality of Lambton Shores tourism
industry – on the board of directors for Tourism Sarnia Lambton and Huron
Tourism Association, meetings and work with Southwestern Ontario Tourism
2015 annual report
Page 14
Corporation (SWOTC) and Regional Tourism Organization 4: Huron, Perth, Waterloo
& Wellington.
Year-Round Welcome Centre: The Welcome Centre handles 11,000+ inquiries
annually (phone, email, in-person). The maintenance, staffing and operation of the
Welcome Centre on a year-round basis is the single largest expense experience by
the Chamber.
In-kind Support: to local event organizers (including Paint Ontario, Drive n Jive,
Buskerfest, Summer Sunset Sounds and Canada Day).
NOMINATIONS REPORT
With the retiring of three board directors, the 2016 Board can accommodate an equal
number of new directors. Chamber Bylaws allow for up to nine directors.
Retiring from the Board this year are Neil Clifford (Publisher - Lakeshore Advance), Paul
Pittao (Medway Homes) and Marilyn Keunecke-Smith (Trin’s Trends). Neil Clifford has
served for 4 years on the Board and has been instrumental in securing visitor guide
advertising from year-to-year, assisting with ad price setting and selecting a new print
production company when Webco Publications no longer handled guides such as It Starts
at the Beach. Paul Pittao has served for 3 years on the Board and in addition to his
financial and business insight has contributed in-kind maintenance services to the
Welcome Centre and an insightful perspective on local economic development from the
home construction industry. Marilyn Keunecke-Smith has served for one year and
provided a much-needed perspective from the southern end of the Municipality, as well
as providing connections to the Lambton Film & Food Festival and other initiatives like
the Lambton Shores Nature Trailblazers. On behalf of the Membership, we thank Neil,
Paul and Marilyn for volunteering their time and expertise to help make our Chamber a
better organization.
As part of the electronic AGM package emailed on Friday, December 11, 2015 to all
members, director nomination forms were included. The email announced the beginning
of the nomination period from that day through to January 24, 2016. This provides a
2015 annual report
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nomination period of at least 45 days, which closes 30 days prior to the Annual General
Meeting (February 23, 2016), as required by the Chamber’s Bylaws.
Over the past several years, the Nominations Committee has evaluated the suitability of
potential directors based on several criteria: the industry sector in the local economy the
potential director represents; the person’s individual experience and skill-sets; and the
person’s reputation for being positive, forward-thinking and community-minded.
The Nominations Committee is pleased to announce the addition of Tina Sandre,
restaurateur owner/operator of Midori Sushi for the last seven years. Tina was recognized
at the 2016 Celebrate the Season Awards Night as Entrepreneur of the Year for her
innovative offering, initiative in creating her “dream job”, hard work that’s evident in
year-over-year growth marked by an extensive expansion in 2013. As well, Tina has
demonstrated a strong commitment to the community through her in-kind donation of
product and personal time.
Matt DeJong, along with wife Julie, has owned and operated Green Bucks Dollar Store for
just over a year. Prior to that, the husband and wife team held the Pizza Delight franchise.
Matt brings a wealth of restaurant, franchise and retail experience to the Board and most
will recognize the DeJong family as long time local business entrepreneurs.
Veronica Brennan – the 2015 recipient of the Entrepreneur of the Year award – has built
two highly successful and popular restaurant and mixed retail businesses, with a number
of other “irons in the fire”. Her businesses help provide employment to more than 50
people and she has a well-earned reputation for nurturing youth into reliable employees.
Your 2016 Board of Directors:
1. Mary-Jo Schottroff-Snopko (Pine Dale Motor Inn / hospitality),
2. Mark Lewis (Bayshore Broadcasting / broadcast media),
3. Sheila Brooks (BMO / banking & financial),
4. Natalie Core (Natalie Core Marketing Consulting / marketing),
5. Doug Pedlar (Re/Max Bluewater Realty / real estate),
6. Glen Baillie (Baillie’s Picture Framing / manufacturing),
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7. Tina Sandre (Midori Sushi / restaurant),
8. Matt DeJong (Green Bucks Dollar Store / retail), and
9. Veronica Brennan (Grog’s & MacPherson’s / restaurant).
Board Directors are volunteers and give freely of their time and expertise to provide
leadership to the Chamber in its efforts to support and improve the local business
community.
MEMBERSHIP REPORT
At the end of 2015, the Chamber had 187 Members (of which 9 are add-on businesses5),
this represents a net increase of 7 Members over the 2014 year. Member businesses that
joined in 2015 include:
James Ball (A Beach Life in Southcott Pines Cottage)
Kendra Pearson (A Brand New Beat)
Catherine & Kerry McMaster (A Dollhouse Shoppe)
Anne Smith (Anne's Cottage)
Len & Carol Bock (Awesome Cottage - Squeeze Inn)
Nadene & Pat Ballantyne (Bee 'n' Bee Bed & Breakfast)
Amy Relouw-Gelinas & Linda Relouw (Bittersweet)
Donna Layne (Casa Concetta)
Bruce & Laura Cordell (Cottage in Southcott Pines)
Wendy Zybura Cozy (Corner Cabins Property Management & Rental)
John Ross (Dairy Dip)
Cindy Maxfield (Grand Bend Area Community Health Centre)
Stephanie Hartwick (Harbourhill Suites / Nautical Lands Group)
Judy Grela (Hummingbird Cottage)
Grace Dekker (Keller Williams Lifestyle Realty)
Jim Dekker (Lakeshore Painteriors)
Kelly Ainsworth / Katherine Goodhand (Lambton College Employment Services)
Dave Shaw (MARVEL Arts Academy of Learning)
John A. Duncan (Ryconn Print & Publishing)
5 Add-On Business: Members who list an additionally owned/operated business along with their primary business.
2015 annual report
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Thomas & Vreni Beeler (Swisstrio Farms Inc)
Theresa-Lynn Robertson (That Girl Taxi Services)
Michael Webb (Total Septic)
Marilyn Keunecke-Smith & Linda McCormack (Trin's Fashions of Forest)
Paul Mansfield (Workplace Safety & Prevention Services)
Member Business Demographics
The majority of our Membership – 75% - is comprised of
small, independently owned and operated businesses
with between one and four employees (i.e. self-employed
plus one or two others). This category decreased by 2%
point over last year (2014). The 5-10 employee category
now represents 14% of our businesses – a 1% point
decrease over last year. The number of larger-sized
business categories within our membership increased
relative to last year: 11-45 employee group increased by
2%; 50+ employee group increased by 1%.
Most of our Members come from the “Services” sector
(40%), and of that group the overwhelming majority are
real estate brokerages (14%), followed by banking &
financial (10%), building & property management (7%),
associations & clubs (7%) and insurance companies (7%).
This breakdown within the Services sector is consistent
year-to-year.
The second largest services sector within our
membership is “Accommodation” (26%), and of that
group 41% are cottage owners (2% point increase from
last year). The hotel/motel group dropped by 5
percentage points from 32% to 27%, camping/RV group
2015 annual report
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dropped by 1 percentage point, while bed & breakfasts increased by 4 percentage points
over last year.
2015 HIGHLIGHTS
Increased functionality for GrandBendTourism.com
For the second year in a row, the tourist-focused
website homepage was improved. During 2015, the
homepage featured content bites that draw visitors
into theme-based information keyed to visitor travel
triggers, such as beaching, boating, events and more
was reconfigured to be fully mobile-friendly. All of the
homepage content adjusts in size and page placement
in response to the viewing device used (desktop
computer to iPad to SmartPhone).
The business listings were improved with the addition of the
same directory plug-in used on GrandBendChamber.ca, but
with stylistic alterations to fit the tourism-facing website’s
look and feel. The plug-in now makes it possible to add
more text for businesses as well as display multiple
photographs without adding any additional scrolling and to
identify Chamber member businesses from non-member
businesses. When a visitor to the site clicks on the “Click
here for more details” hyperlink, additional information and
photographs are then revealed. As well, the plug-in makes it
possible to include all web and social media (Facebook,
Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram etc.) properties a business may
have beyond just their website address.
A second plug-in added to the site enables web badge
advertising. Web badge ads display within their appropriate
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category (i.e. ads for real estate agents appear on the services page; an ad for a bed &
breakfast appears on the stay page) at the top of the sidebar at the right of the page. Two
sizes of ads can be managed and with the handy interface enables the advertiser to
update their web badge ad at any time.
Professional Development Workshops
This year we were able to provide members with several professional development
workshops, such as Phoneography Workshop (November 2014), Workplace Safety &
Prevention Certification (April 2015) and Social Media for Business (September 2015).
Many thanks to Pine Dale Motor Inn and Smackwater Jack’s Taphouse & Grill for providing
us with no-cost hosting locations for these workshops.
The Phoneography Workshop introduced attendees to photograph editing features
resident in today’s smartphone and ways to edit photographs for posting directly to
social media properties, such as Facebook and Twitter. The facilitator of this workshop,
professional photographer Tom Vogel, also highlighted downloadable apps that
increased smartphone editing capabilities and demonstrated how to them to adjust
colour and light, blend images, sharpen, retouch, filter and many other tasks.
In the spring, we were happy to provide members with the opportunity to obtain
Workplace Safety & Prevention Certification locally and at a very special, discount price!
Often these types of workshops and certification are held in urban centres an hour’s drive
away which can eat-up significant amounts of employer and staff time away from a
business. By providing the workshop locally, attendees were able to reduce the amount of
time away from their businesses and through the generosity of member business Pine
Dale Motor Inn, a $90 saving per person was passed along to attendees due to reduced
overhead costs for the workshop supplier.
In the fall, “How to Use Social Media & Blogs to Promote Your Business” provided
attendees with a half-day, hands-on how-to on expanding a business’s customer base
and low-cost business promotion through social media like Facebook and Twitter. The
workshop focused on understanding how to identify which social media platforms to use
2015 annual report
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and how to use them to target an audience and find, create and post content of value to
customers.
Giving Voice to Local Business
In May, the Chamber sent out an open invitation to all businesses and interested
community groups and service clubs to attend a round-table discussion on four key
economic performance areas dubbed “What kind of town do you want in 10 or 20 years?”
These discussions generated feedback from a cross-section of local business owners,
service club representatives, 2013/2014 Economic Development Committee
representatives, Kettle & Stony Point First Nations representatives, elected councilors and
senior municipal staff relative to four indicators: (1) tourism, (2) recreation & culture, (3)
transportation, economic development & infrastructure and (4) political structure.
Attendees self-selected in which group they’d like to participate and discussion was
focused on one of these four areas, with several Chamber directors acting as moderators
and also providing background information. Discussions focused on determining the
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats within each area (SWOT Analysis).
The round table was well attended and valuable feedback was provided that was then
turned into a report provided to the Municipality of Lambton Shores, all participants and
posted on the GrandBendChamber.ca website (www.grandbendchamber.ca/publications).
2015 annual report
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Affinity Program Updates
Affinity programs are one of the perks of being a chamber member and typically they
offer member businesses special savings just for being a member of a chamber of
commerce. Members of the Grand Bend & Area Chamber of Commerce gain access to
these types of programs through our membership in the Ontario Chamber of Commerce
and through them to the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. An additional bonus, these
types of programs also help support the member business’s chamber of commerce
through residual payments to the Chamber from the affinity program provider.
The First Data affinity program offers member businesses the
opportunity to save money on everyday operations, like taking
payments from customers. First Data offers wired and wireless
pos terminals, including mobile pay, gift card solutions and
electronic cheque acceptance.
To sign-up with First Data and help increase residual payments to the Chamber for your
participation in the program, call 1-888-265-4117 or email
Also new for 2015 was the addition of Purolator to the slate of
affinity program providers. Purolator’s program offers 25% savings on Purolator Express
and Ground services. For information on this program, visit Purolator.com/occ.
Tourism Benchmarking & Partnerships
As an outcome of the Chamber’s ongoing advocacy efforts to gain recognition for the
importance of the tourism industry to the health of the local economy, a second
destination marketing organization meeting was held in March. Invitations to attend were
sent to Tourism Sarnia Lambton, Huron Tourism Association, Southwestern Ontario
Tourism Corporation, Regional Tourism Organization 4 and Lambton Shores Mayor and
Municipal staff. The essential message conveyed to these destination tourism marketers
and key stakeholders was that appropriate promotion of the “Grand Bend Area” would be
borderless, that tourism and visitor services are essential to the economic health of the
2015 annual report
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area, that the Chamber does not have the financial capability or responsibility (tourism is
not a function of a chamber of commerce) to provide tourism and visitor services and that
we wish to be part of the solution but cannot shoulder the job alone. As a result of this
meeting, a request was made of us to put together a wish list of support and a sub-
committee was formed from several of the board’s directors and a member business to
help provide ongoing input and coordination on a local level of partner tourism
initiatives.
Although begun late in the summer, two benchmarking initiatives began with the loan of
a tourism intern from Southwestern Ontario Tourism Corporation. A perennial issue has
been the lack of tourism signage helping visitors find key attractions, such as the Main
Beach located in Grand Bend or the Huron Country Playhouse or even the Pinery Provincial
Park. Strange as it might seem to those of us who live and work here, but the most
frequently asked question at the Welcome Centre is “where’s the beach”. In addition to
the signage survey, a beach visitor survey began to collect data on what drew visitors to
the area, where they’re from, basic demographics of their group and how much time they
planned to spend here.
The wish list we provided included recommendations to:
Provide area owners/operators and employees of tourism-based businesses with
tourism industry training sessions. We suggested at least four annually for a
nominal fee or free to be held outside of peak visitor months. As a start, we
suggested front-line customer service, familiarization tours, and the provision of
an information package with local attraction and business reference information.
Provide tourism product development to assist local owners to upgrade their
current offering and find ways to integrate into existing programs, like the motor
coach and special event programs currently run by Tourism Sarnia Lambton. One of
the weaknesses of this area’s tourism event offering is the heavy reliance on
volunteers to plan, fundraise for and implement events with little support from
various levels of government in terms of grant application assistance, permits,
insurance, donation receipting and other administrative functions that can detract
from the volunteer experience.
2015 annual report
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Generate greater connection between the owners/operators of tourism-based
businesses with the official destination marketing organizations for this area. We
suggested several annual information sessions to get the word out as to the level
and type of assistance available and how to access it.
Upgrade county visitor guides by embracing “best-of-breed” practices utilized by
award-winning visitor guides and other tourism promotional tools.
Adopt tourist-centric branding (not geo-political labeling) and cascade that
through all marketing tools, including websites and social media presences.
Work with local businesses to help develop cross-marketing packages. This should
include access to funds to make the promotion of these packages possible, not
simply the recommendation they exist. We highlighted the fact that most local area
providers are small businesses and do not have the staff, time or funds available to
bring to fruition cross-marketing recommendations from destination marketing
organizations more used to dealing with large chains.
Design, develop and install wayfinding signage to the area’s tourism product.
Provide and fund visitor services within the area. We emphasized this function is
currently being attempted on a part-time basis (i.e. 50% of the Chamber’s staff
time), when we envisage, done properly and to the fullest extent possible, this
function requires the commitment of full-time staff, year-round supplemented in
the summer with student help.
An additional economic development initiative is the building of closer ties with sister
chambers and business organizations in the area. Over the last several years, the
Chamber has sought to grow more working ties with the Forest BIA and this year we’ve
had meetings with the chambers of commerce from South Huron and Zurich and the
Exeter BIA, and reached out to the Municipality of North Middlesex and the Bayfield
chamber. Closer working relationships and partnerships with organizations with similar
mandates offers all of our members with increased opportunities to network and promote
their services and products in immediately local communities that may not have a
business with that offering. There may also be opportunities for our organizations to
share costs and administrative time on mutually beneficial project and initiatives that will
be contribute to the economic health of this area.
2015 annual report
Page 24
MEMBERSHIP ENGAGEMENT
Events
The Chamber strives to deliver great networking and
business development opportunities.
In 2015, the Chamber hosted 10 Member events with over
365 attendees, two retail support events and one
economic development round-table.
Our two signature events, Celebrate the Season Awards
Dinner and the Fall Classic Golf Tournament were once
again huge successes.
YEAR IN REVIEW – EVENTS 2015
February
• Breakfast with the Mayor (Feb. 5,
2015) – at Colonial, sponsored by
Ellison Travel
• Annual General Meeting (Feb. 25,
2015) – at Grand Bend Legion
April
• Members Mixer (April 10) –at
Smackwater Jack’s, sponsored by
Hay Communications
• Workplace Safety Certification
(April 13 & 20) – at Smackwater
Jack’s Taphouse
May
• Workplace Safety Bonus Session
(May 4) – at Pine Dale Motor Inn
• What Kind of Town Round Table
(May 27) – at Grand Bend Legion
September
• Annual Fall Classic Golf
Tournament (Sept. 16) – at
Bayview Golf Course
• Social Media for Business (Sept.
28) – at Pine Dale Motor Inn
October
• Members’ Mixer (Oct. 8) – at
Grog’s, sponsored by Baillie’s
Picture Framing
• Thanksgiving Market
November
• Celebrate the Season Awards
Dinner (November 19) – at
Hessenland Country Inn
• Christmas Comes Early
• Phoneography Workshop
(November 29) – at Pine Dale Motor Inn
Years the Chamber’s been the voice of business : 58
Number of Member events last year : 10
Number of members : 187
New members : 25
Member Retention Percentage : 87%
Cost reduction programs offered to members : 4
Celebrate the Season Awards Dinner attendees : 97
Awards presented: 4
Number of repeat sponsors : 32 (89%)
2015 annual report
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L-R: Doug Ellison, Business of the
Year (Ellison Travel & Tours); Erryn
Shephard, David Scatcherd
Community Spirit Award; Veronica
Brennan, Entrepreneur of the Year
(Grogs & MacPherson’s); Mike
Stanlake, Phyllis Statchuck Customer
Service Excellence Award
(Municipality of Lambton Shores).
Re/Max Bluewater Realty / Bogey
Bandits: (L-R) Mark Pedlar, Garrett
Pedlar, Nancy Starek (presenting
sponsor), Doug Pedlar, Aaron Pedlar.
RECOGNITION & CELEBRATION
Celebrate the Season Awards
Dinner
Through our annual awards dinner we celebrate
and recognize excellence in initiative,
innovation, marketing, research and
development, increased sales, environmental
consciousness, customer service and
contribution to our community.
2015 Award Recipients were:
• Entrepreneur of the Year: Veronica Brennan,
Grog’s & MacPherson’s
• Business of the Year: Ellison Travel & Tours,
Doug & Cathy Ellison
• David Scatcherd Community Spirit Award:
Erryn Shephard, F.I.N.E. A Restaurant
• Phyllis Statchuk Customer Service Excellence
Award: Mike Stanlake, Municipality of
Lambton Shores
Fall Classic Golf Tournament
Winning Team was:
• Re/Max Bluewater Realty Inc.: Dubbed the
“Bogey Bandits, the Pedlar’s won the coveted
top team title. Congratulations Doug, Mark,
Garrett and Aaron.
2015 annual report
Page 26
THANK YOU TO ALL OUR SPONSORS AND SUPPORTERS
Breakfast with the Mayor &
Members Mixer Sponsors
Ellison Travel & Tours
Hay Communications
Baillie’s Picture Framing
Golf Tournament Sponsors
104.9 the Beach
Baillie's Picture Framing
Bluewater Motel
Brentwood on the Beach
Canadian Linen
Coleson Freight
Colonial Hotel
Co-Operators /
MacDermid Ins
Ellison Travel & Tours
Fidelity Investments
Forever Furniture
Geo-Teck Heating &
Cooling
Glass in Motion
Godbolt Ciufo
Harbour Hill Retirement
Community
Hay Communications
Hay Mutual Insurance
Hyundai of Goderich
IA Clarington
Invesco
Lakeshore Advance
Lambton College
Employment Services
Medway Homes
MicroAge Basics
Mike & Terri's No Frills
Oakwood Resort
Pest-Away
Pine Dale Motor Inn
RBC Dominion Securities
Re/Max Bluewater Realty
Rice Homes
Rotary Club of Grand Bend
Sentry Investments Corp
Southwest Marine Services
Track21 Graphix
Tri-Country Tree Service
Tournament Prize Table
Donators
A Dollhouse Shoppe
Accentual Hair Studio &
Spa
Aunt Gussies Country
Dining
Back 'n Time Classic Diner
Bank of Montreal
Bittersweet
Bluewater Cottage Rentals
Bob Case Plumbing &
Heating
Casual Industries
Coldwell Banker
Constellation Brand
Dale's Antique market
Denny's Drive-In Ltd
Drayton Festival
Ellison Travel & Tours
FINE A Restaurant
Friends of Pinery Park
Gaiser Kneale Insurance
Brokers
Glass In Motion
Grand Bend Motorplex
Grayhurst House 1886
Green Haven Trailer Park
Grog's
Growling Gator
Harry Hoffman Funeral
Home
Hayter's Turkey Products
HMS Insurance
Home Hardware Building
Centre
Lakeshore Advance
MacPherson's Restaurant
Main Street Motel
MicroAge Basics
Midori Sushi
Northville Auto Sales &
Service
Pharmasave / Grand Bend
Pharmacy
Pinery Antique Flea Market
Pizza Delight
Prosper's Garage
RBC Dominion Securities
RE/MAX Bluewater Realty
Rent Huron Cottage
Rentals
2015 annual report
Page 27
Sarnia Lambton Economic
Partnership
Sarnia Lambton Workforce
Development Board
Shoppers Drug Mart
Shore Line Computers
Smackwater Jack's
Taphouse
SOBEY'S
Southwest Marine Service
Sybille's Garden B&B
The Colonial / Gables
The Garden Gate Floral &
Gifts
The Pet Shop
Total Septic
Tourism Sarnia Lambton
Trin's Trends
Turkheim Printing
Turnbull Plumbing &
Electric Inc.
Shoppers Drug Mart
Sobey's
South Huron Office
Solutions
Southwest Marine Services
The Garden Gate Floral &
Gifts
The Pet Shop
The Whole Pig
Tourism Sarnia Lambton
Track21 Graphix
Turkheim Printing
Waypoint Financial
Website Creations
Westland Greenhouses
Members Represented by
Golf Teams
104.9 the Beach
Baillie's Picture Framing
Bank of Montreal / BMO
Ben Miller Inn
Co-Operators /
MacDermid Ins.
Drayton Entertainment
Growling Gator
Harbour Hill Retirement
Home
Lakeshore Advance
Oakwood Resort
RBC Dominion Securities
Re/Max Bluewater Realty
Richman Gallery
RPM Productions
Sarnia Lambton Economic
Partnership
The Colonial Hotel
Track21 Graphix
Tournament Volunteers
Pat Billington
Sheila Brooks
Debbie Kirkwood
Doreen McHarg
Tara Medeiros
Kerry Rex
Nancy Starek
Silent Auction Donators
104.9 the Beach
Aunt Gussie's Country
Dining
Baillie's Picture Framing
Bittersweet
Co-operators /
MacDermid Ins.
Denny's Drive-In
Ellison Travel & Tours
F.I.N.E. A Restaurant
Grand Bend Fitness Centre
Grand Bend Pharmasave
Growling Gator
Hessenland Country Inn
Indian Hills Golf Course
McIntyre TV & Appliances
Medway Homes
MicroAge Basics
Midori Sushi
myFM90.5
Oakwood Resort
Pine Dale Motor Inn
Pizza Delight
POG Inc
Re/Max Bluewater Realty
