Stop the presses - Chamber Directory: Support your local merchants

By DENIS WOULFE, Denis@MonitorSaintPaul.com or 651-917-4183

Denis Woulfe

Over the years, the Midway Como Monitor has had the good fortune to have a great working relationship with the Midway Chamber of Commerce. The genesis of the Monitor back in the 1970s was in large part due to encouragement and support from organizations like the Midway Chamber, the Hamline Midway Coalition, and others. In fact, when the Monitor initially needed capital to start the newspaper, there were 10 business owners and community leaders who co-signed a note with Midway Bank to get things up and running. Today, we still rely on and work closely with business and community groups and derive much of our information and story ideas from them.

You might have noticed that one of the new columnists for the Monitor in recent months has been Midway Chamber Executive Director Chad Kulas. Kulas brings a great deal of insight to his column each month, and shares many of the new developments occurring in the Midway with our monthly readers. Starting with the addition of light rail to the University Corridor several years ago, to the most recent addition of the new Allianz soccer stadium, the Midway has been the hub for a whirlwind of activity in recent years. We’re quite pleased to be able to share some of the stories about the new and unique businesses that have come to make Midway their new home through the eyes of Kulas’ monthly column.

But you may or may not know that in addition to publishing the Monitor each month, and our sister newspaper, the Longfellow Nokomis Messenger in South Minneapolis, we also partner to produce and distribute the annual Midway Chamber of Commerce Community Directory each spring. As part of that, we reach out to Chamber and non-Chamber businesses alike to see if they would like to reach this unique audience of Chamber members through advertising in the Directory.

Now the Chamber Directory is a unique product as it functions as both a house publication for Chamber members, chronicling their activities during the course of the year, but it also serves as a valuable source of information for community residents on local officials, and contact information for local schools, parks, and other community organizations. It is a great resource that is a staple in the homes and businesses where we distribute the Directory.

The Directory also functions as a valuable reminder about the wealth of valuable goods and services that you can find within our community. I remember hearing a presentation years ago about the impact of spending your money with a business that is headquartered locally versus one that is headquartered in Timbuktu. There’s a stunning multiplier effect when you spend your hard-earned dollars locally, and the short summation is that the money you spend locally ends up returning to you multifold in the form of higher local tax coffers, jobs for your high school sons and daughters, and in many other ways. Once your hard-earned dollars are spent with companies who are headquartered out of town, that money doesn’t come back to our neighborhood. Or at least it doesn’t come back in the same dramatic way that spending locally does!

So I have three messages to pass along to you today. First, if you are not currently a Midway Chamber member, why not consider signing up? I know Chad Kulas would be delighted to meet with you and tell you about the benefits of becoming a Chamber member. The Midway Chamber, by the way, is definitely on a roll of late, and is now celebrating its 100th year of existence in St. Paul. That’s a pretty impressive legacy, and not every local Chamber can make that claim to fame.

Second, if you are a business that does business in the Midway and is looking to bolster your community image and your community connection, why not consider advertising in this coming Midway Chamber Directory? I’d be happy to discuss options with you and see if it could be a good fit for you.

Lastly, regardless of whether you are a business owner or a resident in the Midway and Como communities, I’m guessing that you believe in the importance of community if you are reading the Midway Como Monitor. Consider why supporting advertisers like those in the Midway Chamber Directory as well as those in the Monitor each month is vital to the stability of that same community. Watch for and consider patronizing those same merchants when you see the Chamber Directory next April and the Monitor each month.

And meanwhile, if you have any questions about the Midway Chamber Directory or the Monitor, don’t hesitate to email me at Denis@MonitorSaintPaul.com