RICHMOND COUNTY – Google “Chamber of Commerce” and you will find that there are roughly 13,000 chambers registered in the United States.
The majority have at least one paid employee, though some are run as strictly volunteer entities. The Richmond County Chamber of Commerce has three full time employees, one of which is a recent hire.
If you have been to the Chamber office recently, you have seen the smiling face of new employee Taylor Player. Formerly of Discovery Place Kids, Taylor has joined the Chamber as the Operations Assistant. A graduate of Richmond Senior High, she is also working on an associate’s degree at RichmondCC. According to Emily Shepherd, chamber president, Taylor is a self-starter, which is important in a small office such as theirs. “Seth (Allen) and I are out of the office a lot visiting our members or at events and Taylor is able to keep herself busy with her duties at the office.”
Taylor is continuing her education with classes relevant to her new job, specifically, two software coursesL: “Quickbooks,” which she has already completed, and “Chamber Master,” which she will be taking soon.
If you ask Taylor what she enjoys about her job, she will tell you she loves working with the members. Being involved in the community is exciting for her, but behind the scenes is where she feels comfortable, not “front-and-center” like Emily and Seth.
According to the Chamber’s website, the Chamber is “the voice of business in Richmond County” and their mission is “ … to represent and support our members and to strengthen our county’s economy and business environment.”
The three full time employees manage approximately 370 members and the office is open five days a week. Stop by the Chamber office in the Hamlet Depot or come to a Chamber event. As Emily often says, “People do business with people they know,” so if you have a business in Richmond County, you will benefit from being a part of the Chamber.
