Chamber meeting for small business
“Every business person has a story to tell,” said Dannevirke Chamber of Commerce Chairperson Sue Berry on Wednesday evening at Mitre 10 during the first of its After Five meetings for the new chamber year.
The evening was chaired by Dannevirke Mitre 10 Manager Bryce Galloway, who introduced six business people, all clients of Mitre 10, to the rest of the business community.
Bryce said that Dannevirke was very fortunate to have such high quality tradespeople.
“There were plenty of other candidates who could possibly feature in future sessions,” he said.
Sue Buchanan of Otope Landscaping described the evolution of her business and the huge response to her open day last year when 500 visitors came to view her garden.
She will hold another on January 28, with proceeds from gate sales going to the Rescue Helicopter.
Mark Walsh explained the challenges of running a oneman building business, highlighting his versatility and capacity to call on support when needed for a bigger job.
Dave Barber of Barber Climate and Electrical also emphasised his range of services, particularly installation of heat pumps and ventilation work.
Les Trigg described the range of handyman services he provides for the public and the business world with which he has service contracts.
Returning to the world of plumbing was Mark Dean, who had gone back to school to gain his qualifications before joining Forbes Plumbing. His skills were highlighted. Sam Christison told the crowd of the challenges in setting up her coffee cart business and highlighted her points of difference and skills from her experience as a chef.
A big crowd of more than 60, which included Mayor Tracey Collis and Labour List MP Kieran McAnulty, listened to these six business people who all demonstrated the value of customer service and real resilience in business, Mitre 10 Manager Bryce Galloway said.
Guest speaker Dr Gail Kelly then spoke about a social and economic analysis of challenges for Tararua being carried out by the NZ Institute of Economic Research over the next six weeks. (See related article)
The meeting closed with Chamber of Commerce Chairperson Sue Berry reminding the crowd of upcoming events including the Market Day October 20, Keep Calm and Shop in Dannevirke in November and the Christmas Parade on December 2.