Small Business Saturday
Do your holiday shopping on Small Business Saturday and support our community in a big way! Small Business Saturday is one of our favorite community events. This year the Chamber will be hosting a block party on Saturday, November 30th at 10:00 AM on Washington Avenue/ Main. St. Come check out our annual ball drop, where we will be dropping 100+ numbered ping pong balls! Each ball dropped will be redeemable for prizes from local businesses.
Click here for the 2019 Small Business Saturday Flyer
Election of Board of Directors
In accordance with Hutchinson Chamber of Commerce & Tourism By-Laws Article V, Sections 3, 4 and 5, the following candidates have been recommended to serve on the Board of Directors for the indicated terms.
Any question or petitions may be direct to Mary Hodson by phone 320-234-0785 or by email [email protected] and will be presented to the Nominating Committee.
Section 3 – Publicity
5.3.1 Upon receipt of the report of the Nominating Committee, the President shall be instructed to notify the membership of the names of the persons nominated as candidates for directors, the right of persons nominated as candidates for directors and the right of petition as provided in these By-Laws. A list of candidates so nominated shall be kept on file in the Association office.
Section 4 – Petition
5.4.1 Additional names of candidates for directors can be nominated by petition bearing the genuine signatures of at least five (5) qualified members of the Association. Such petition shall be filed with the Nominating Committee withing ten (10) days after notice has been given of the names of those nominated. The determination of the Nominating Committee as to the legality of the petition shall be final.
Section 5 – Determination
5.5.1 If no petition is filed within the designated period, the nomination shall be closed and the nominated slate of five (5) candidates shall be declared elected upon a 2/3 vote approval by the Board of Directors at their regular October Board meeting.
5.5.2 If a legal petition presents additional candidates, the names of all candidates shall be arranged on the ballot in alphabetical order. Instructions will be to select five (5). Identification shall be made on the ballot to identify those candidates nominated by the Nominating Committee. The usual election procedure shall prevail.
Recommended Candidates: Adam Fink, John Sanken & Leah Watzke
Taste of the Holidays
Don’t wait to purchase your ticket to this year’s Taste of the Holidays!
This very popular event sells out every year! Tickets are $15 and can be purchased from an Ambassador or at the Hutchinson Chamber office.
No tickets will be sold at the door – advanced sales only.
Come out and enjoy the evening, and hopefully you will find some great holiday gift ideas too. There will be many vendors with samples of tasty treats and beverages. Live music by Josie Sanken will be provided. Hope to see you there!
2019 Taste of the Holidays Vendor Info & Registration
2020 Tourism Marketing Grant
Since 2013, the Chamber has enjoyed granting money to events hosted by nonprofits and for-profits held in Hutchinson. These grants help cover the expense of marketing that covers a radius outside the Hutchinson area for the event. These events help the Chamber bring more people to our beautiful and welcoming community – there really is #MuchInHutch!
Tell your friends, co-workers, committees and organizations about the Chamber’s Tourism Marketing Grant. We love to help events as they help us and increase the traffic and awesomeness of Hutchinson!
More information about the Tourism Marketing Grant program, grant criteria and grant application can be found on our Tourism Marketing Grant blog.
2020 Tourism Marketing Grant Criteria, Deadlines and Grant Application (pdf)
Annual Banquet & Community Awards
Are you ready for a fast-dealing, property trading game? This year’s Chamber Annual Event will be Monopoly themed life size board game, held on Friday, January 24th, 2020. “Hutch-Opoly” will be at the Crow River Winery from 5:30PM to 10PM. Come and join us for a night of buying, selling and scheming your way to riches!
Sponsorship Forms Available.. click here
To register for the 2020 Annual Event use our online Annual Event Registration Form or by mailing/emailing a printable Annual Event Registration Form to the Chamber by Friday, January 17, 2020.
The Hutchinson Chamber of Commerce and the Hutchinson Jaycees, in a joint effort, are proud to award deserving individuals their Community Awards. Do you know someone in our community that is doing great things? Nominate them today!
- Submit your nomination using the online Community Award Nomination Form or by mailing/emailing a printable Community Award Nomination Form (pdf) to the Chamber by Thursday, December 19, 2019.
- Awards are given for: Business Person of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, Teacher of the Year and Young Leader of the Year (under 35 years of age).
- A recipient can only win an award in any given category once – nominees who have won a specific award in years prior cannot be considered for that award again.
- Award winners will be recognized at the Chamber Annual Event on Friday, January 24, 2020.
- Award winners will be video-taped prior to the event, as well as possibly the nominator.
- Award winners will be informed of the awards before the event.
- Award winners will attend the event at no charge.
2020 Quarter 1 – Table Tent Deadline – December 1, 2019
Are you looking for a way to boost an upcoming Hutchinson event? The Chamber prints and delivers 900 table tents around the community. Make sure you get your event added to the table tents! The cost is $30/event listing for community members and Chamber Members receive a $10 discount per event listing.
Also, make sure to add it to the Chamber’s online Community Calendar. The Community Calendar averages about 100+ views a day, so don’t forget to utilize it. Submitting an event to the Community Calendar may be done through your Chamber Member Portal or you can go directly to the Community Calendar page.
The deadline for Quarter 1 (January – February – March 2020 events) is December 1, 2019.
Submit an event for an upcoming table tent by mailing/emailing this printable Table Tent Entry form (pdf) by the quarterly deadline to Cegi or stop by the Chamber office. If you want table tents delivered to your business or if have any questions, email Cegi
or call the Chamber.
You get out what you put in….
Something from Mary! …You get out of it what you put into it. Much like your gym membership, your results from the chamber depend on if you USE the membership.
Learn more in Mary’s blog!
Business Connection – December 6
Thank you to everyone that registered and attended the November’s Business Connection Friday, November 1, hosted at Ecumen Oaks and Pines.
Please join us for December’s Business Connection hosted by Jay Malone Motors on Friday, December 6 from 7:00 
AM to 8:00 AM at 1165 Highway 7 W., Hutchinson. Learn how Jay Malone became Hutchinson’s “Dealer for Life” and find out how the local dealership provides top-notch customer service. Sit in a new car and try out heated seats to keep you warm this winter.
Business Connection is a morning networking event that takes place at a Chamber business on the first Friday of each month from 7:00 AM to 8:00 AM. Chamber members are invited to gather, enjoy coffee and a light breakfast, share a quick update or information on their business/organization. We will always have a Chamber update for you as well.
Door prizes will be given out, so make sure you bring your business card to be entered into the drawing. The new networking opportunity is a great way to know people in the community and keep in touch with Hutch!
We are currently working to fill our 2020 Business Connection calendar, so if your Chamber business would like to learn more about becoming a Business Connection host, contact Jill.
Business of the Month
November’s Business of the Month is Chamber member, Hutchinson Pet Hospital. This veterinary clinic provides 
comprehensive care for pets, including grooming and boarding services. They are celebrating 35 years in business with an Open House on Friday, Nov. 8 from 5-7 p.m. Learn more about Hutchinson Pet Hospital here.
The Chamber’s Business of the Month program is a free marketing opportunity that is only available to Chamber Members. The featured business is interview on KDUZ by Mary, the business logo and company information will be featured on the Chamber’s website for one month, we will put your logo and information in the Chamber’s monthly newsletter, as well as the Chamber highlighting your business in the Hutchinson Leaders’ business section.
If you are interested interested in this opportunity, please email Mary or call Mary at the Chamber.
Maximize Your Membership!
As the height of retail shopping season begins, the Hutchinson Area Chamber of Commerce wants you to think local/shop local. The Chamber strongly encourages everyone to thinkLOCAL when making a purchase. 
Please consider where you will be spending your shopping dollars this holiday season! That doesn’t only mean shop small but shop LOCAL as well.
Small Business Saturday, which is Nov. 30, is a nationwide event intended to encourage residents to shop local and to shop small businesses in each participating hometown. Previously mentioned in the Newsletter are the details of Hutchinson’s exciting plans for Small Business Saturday 2019.
Just think, if you were to switch just 50 % of your online purchases to store front pick up you could greatly impact the Hutchinson Community. When we shop local the entire community we live in is positively impacted!
Did you know?
- If every household were to take 10 percent of what they typically spend online or out of town and spend it LOCALLY and every business spent 5 percent more locally, that would equal $42 million in annual revenue for our community.
- Revenue from local purchases keeps tax dollars in our community. These are dollars that support our police and fire departments, our schools and parks, our streets and utilities and much more.
- Local businesses offer great customer service. Shopping at a local store and tapping into local expertise, you’re as much as 3 times more likely to discover something new.
Sometimes maximizing your Chamber membership is about supporting local efforts to aim to make Hutchinson the best community it can be. There are ways to promote thinkLOCAL at your Chamber business. How do you do that? We have free resources and materials available for your business right here at the Chamber office. You can request:
- thinkLOCAL business cards to hand out to customers. The cards feature facts that explain the value in shopping locally and thank customers for a local purchase.
- thinkLOCAL magnets are also available and serve as a great visual reminder.
- thinkLOCAL window clings can be put on your storefront or door.
- a digital version of the thinkLOCAL logo to show your support on your Web site or other social media.
- and several other promotional materials to
Want to know more? Download your copy of the thinkLOCAL Business Guide.
Contact Jill at the Chamber office or email her with questions or to work with her to maximize your membership.
New and Renewing Members
We would like to thank the following members for joining the Chamber or renewing their partnership with the Hutchinson Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism!
NEW
- FireLake Manufacturing, Inc.
RENEWING
- B&C Plumbing & Heating, Inc.
- Hutchinson Area Community Foundation
- Hutchinson Toastmasters II
- Jonny Block
- MeshedDesigns LLC
- New Journey UCC
- Qdoba Mexican Grill
Professionals Under 40 Leading Socializing and Educating
PULSE, a committee of the Hutchinson Chamber, is a group of Professionals Under the age of 40 who asked themselves that same question and then created the answer. Our goal is to help young people in the Hutchinson area become better Leaders, create a concrete Social network with professional value, and continue to Educate themselves on important life and business topics.
PULSE meets for Lunch & Learn events on the second Wednesday of each month from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM at Squeaky’s Grill and Bar. The events are free to attend, a $10 lunch option is available.
Like the PULSE Facebook page to get the latest event information and registration links. Register for the Nov. 13 Lunch & Learn by Friday, Nov. 8 to be entered into a $25 gift card drawing! November 13 Lunch & Learn Registration
The group also gets together at quarterly social events (green dates listed in calendar below). Looking ahead to the new year, PULSE has released their 2020 event calendar. New in 2020, PULSE will take the summer off. See all the 2020 events listed below.
The Hutchinson Ambassadors serve as the welcoming and social area of the Hutchinson Chamber by actively supporting and promoting Hutchinson and its surrounding business community.
The Ambassador’s Facebook page is a great place to see photos of all the visits and other special events hosted by the Ambassadors.
You may have seen our Ambassadors around town – you can recognize them by their blue shirts and friendly smiles. They host Business After Hours, welcome new business openings, as well as, celebrate business renovations and milestones with an Ambassador Business Visit.
October’s Ambassador Business Visits:
- Queen’s Inn
- FireLake Manufacturing, Inc.
- Kelly’s Dance Academy
Save the Date!
NOVEMBER
1 Business Connection – Ecumen Oaks & Pines
13 PULSE Lunch & Learn
14 Taste of the Holidays
30 Small Business Saturday
DECEMBER
6 Business Connection – Jay Malone Motors
12 Holiday Business After Hours 19 Crop Management Input Seminar
JANUARY
8 Business Connection 8 PULSE Lunch & Learn 9 Business After Hours – B&B Sports
24 Annual Chamber Event & Community Awards
FEBRUARY
7 Business Connection
12 PULSE Lunch & Learn 13 Business After Hours – Edina Realty
More Information For Your Business To Grow…
