Small businesses define our communities. It is the unique and specialty businesses that create gathering spaces for our residents and visitors, provide one-of-a-kind experiences, and serve customers like they are family. They are not just the backbone of our economy; they are the foundation of our communities.

May is National Small Business Month, and May 4-10 is National Small Business Week. As the largest business association in Chautauqua County, the CHQ Chamber will be celebrating, and we invite you to join us! During National Small Business Week our team and volunteers will be visiting a number of communities throughout the county just to say “thank you” to small businesses. We will drop in to as many as possible – Chamber members and non-members alike – just to let them know we appreciate what they do to hold our communities together.

Beginning in Cassadaga Monday morning, we will gather at 3 Lakes Café with many representatives from local, state, and county government for an official proclamation of Small Business Week. We will visit several small businesses in Cassadaga and then move to Falconer for the afternoon. Tuesday our travels will take us to Clymer, Sherman and Panama in the morning, followed by the Bemus Point area and part of Jamestown. Wednesday’s schedule includes Fredonia, Brocton, Portland, Dunkirk, Forestville, and Silver Creek. On Thursday we will visit downtown Jamestown as well as Lakewood and Celoron. On Friday we will be in Westfield, Mayville and Chautauqua. Part of the Westfield visit will include a special event being orchestrated by our partners at the Small Business Development Center at the building being refurbished by CK Natural, which has been named the New York State Small Business of the Year!

At each stop we’ll present our small businesses with a small token of our appreciation. While we know it’s impossible to get to every small business, we will visit as many as possible.

The US Small Business Administration defines a small business as any that employs 500 or fewer people. Here in Chautauqua County that represents almost all of our businesses.

In 2024 the CHQ Chamber facilitates and participated in 67 ribbon cuttings for new small businesses through Chautauqua County. So far this year we have been part of seven grand openings, and there are more coming. These are retailers, restaurants, and service industries, all locally owned and operated. Each one of them not only offers products or services to their customers, but they also help to create the fabric of our communities.

Small businesses make our county a great place to live, work, and visit. They provide jobs and the payroll that supports local families. They work with other local businesses often as vendors or customers, and they provide the payroll that supports local families, and increase sales tax revenue for our county and municipalities. Small business is actually a huge chunk of our local economy while also creating a vibrant climate that has laid the groundwork for an excellent quality of life.

We hope you will support small locally owned businesses on a regular basis and join us to help promote them whenever you can. Our sincere thanks to all small businesspeople in Chautauqua County who are making a difference here every day. Happy National Small Business Week!

OUR GOAL FOR SMALL BUSINESS MONTH: 31 NEW MEMBERS IN 31 DAYS

Through the month of May, the CHQ Chamber will offer incentives to our current members when they help get a new business to join. We are looking for 31 new members in the 31 days of May, and all the benefits go to our current members. Just by referring businesses that join in May, our current members will get some advantages above their regular benefits of membership.

Here’s how it will work: if a new member joins and lists your Chamber member business as having referred them, the current member will get a six-month banner ad on the CHQ Chamber website. That’s a $300 advertising value. If three new members join and list your business as the referrer, you get a six-month banner and plus two tickets to the CHQ Chamber Awards Banquet in October for a $430 value. If five new members join and list your business as the referrer, you’ll get a six-month banner ad, two tickets to the Annual Awards Banquet, plus a quarter page ad in the CHQ Chamber 2025 Membership Handbook – for a total value of $980. These incentives are open to any current Chamber member business. Referrals can be noted either in our printed membership form or the online join form. In both forms there’s a space that asks, “Please let us know who referred you for CHQ Chamber membership.” You can also let our staff know you’ve referred a business, and we’ll follow up. Just send a quick email to Membership Development Director Bob Lingle at rlingle@chqchamber.org.

What are the real benefits of joining the CHQ Chamber? There are plenty for businesses of all sizes. Our mission is to build vital connections, provide professional resources, and champion our local businesses in Chautauqua County. We do that by providing opportunities that connect customers to local businesses, connect businesspeople peer-to-peer, and offering multiple services such as human resources compliance tools, ribbon cuttings for new businesses, an online business directory featuring integrated Google mapping, and more. Your membership is valuable, but not expensive. All these services, and more, start at just $195 a year. This May, bring a friend, and demonstrate the value of membership in the CHQ Chamber.

BUSINESS AFTER HOURS WITH THE TARP SKUNKS

Join us this month for a unique Business After Hours event with the Jamestown Tarp Skunks! You can mingle with the baseball players and other local businesspeople, enjoy a complimentary hotdog courtesy of 3 C’s Catering, enjoy a cash bar, and get a personalized baseball card with your name and picture on it – taken by a professional photographer. Then, stay after if you’d like to watch the Tarp Skunks practice.

This event will be held Tuesday, May 27 from 5-6:30pm at Russell E. Diethrick Jr. Park, home of the Jamestown Tarp Skunks. All local businesspeople are welcome.

CHQ Chamber Business After Hours events are free for two people from each Chamber member organization. The price is just $10 for non-members or anyone above the two-person limit. Registration is not required but is very much appreciated for our planning purposes. Advanced registration also gets you on our “Who’s Who in the Room” list during the event. Registration is open now through our web calendar at www.chqchamber.org.

This event is proudly sponsored by Phillips Lytle LLP, Jamestown Tarp Skunks, 3 C’s Catering, AHN Westfield Memorial Hospital, Brooks-TLC Hospital System, LaBella Associates, National Grid, Southern Chautauqua Federal Credit Union, Jamestown Community College, Media One Radio Group, Observer, and The Post-Journal.