Happy Thanksgiving

The Chamber Board of Directors and staff would like to wish you and your families a very Happy Thanksgiving! 

Business After Hours at 

The Inn at Solvang

Please join us on Thursday, December 7 at The Inn at Solvang from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. They will be celebrating their 25 year business anniversary in 2018! The home itself will be celebrating it's 80 year anniversary! They would love to have you come celebrate with them. They will be catering the event and will have wine and non-alcoholic beverages available. 

The Inn at Solvang has an exceptional rating on Booking.com (9.9) and 5 starts on Trip Advisor for 10 years running now! Come see what all the buzz is about and celebrate the holidays and their anniversary with us! 

Small Business Saturday

Small Business Saturday is only days away! We're partnering with several of our local small businesses for a gift basket give away! 

To enter to win the gift basket, you'll need to visit the participating business. The more places you shop, the more chances you'll have to win! 

The participating businesses are:

Some of the items in the gift basket include:

Holiday Facebook Videos

MacKenzie and Yvonne will be visiting member businesses during the next couple weeks to take photos for our short holiday videos. The 2016 videos were quite popular on Facebook. If you would like to be included, please email [email protected]. Click here to watch one from the last holiday season. 

6 Steps to Starting a Business

63% of people in their twenties want to be their own boss, according to a 2013 University of Phoenix study. And while it's arduous work, the lure of the freelance and entrepreneurial culture these days is incredibly strong. Some people are called to it with a unique idea or talent, while others spend years mulling over what kind of business they want to start. 

It always surprises me when people are more in love with the idea of "a business" than "the business." Many these days know they want to be entrepreneurs long before they have the idea that will help them become one. But if you're ready, here's how you can begin your path to business ownership. 

FIND YOUR PRODUCT

Many people decide on a product or service and then try to find a market to sell it to. This makes the process a lot more difficult. Instead, do some market research and find an underserved market or niche and ask yourself what they need. Knowing their challenge will help you solve their problem. Solve it and you have loyal customers and fewer marketing difficulties. 

To continue reading this article, please click here. 

FREE Dale Carnegie Skills 

For Success Course

Dale Carnegie is preparing to start a new Skills For Success course on January 25, 2018! The classes will be held in Altoona at Comfort Inn Duncansville. This course has transformed the careers of over seven million graduates and now they want to help you join the ranks of the world's most successful people!

The Chamber has partnered with Dale Carnegie to be able to award one Chamber member a FULL SCHOLARSHIP to attend the class! The class costs $1,995. The time commitment is one three and a half hours session for eight weeks. 

If you'd like to be registered for the opportunity to attend the course for free, please let MacKenzie Locke know before noon on January 11, 2018. You may call her at (814) 643-1110 or email [email protected]. 

Home Nursing Agency's Lights of Love Holiday Giving Program Honors and Memorializes Loved Ones

During the holiday season, many times our thoughts turn to those we love - family and friends who celebrate the joy of the season with us and those who are no longer here but whose memory burns brightly in our hearts. 

For the sixth year, Home Nursing Agency is offering "Lights of Love," a special tribute event that invites you to "shine your own special light" in honor or memory of someone dear to you. White and blue lights will adorn a selected tree at Home Nursing Agency's Huntingdon Office (along William Penn Highway). White lights represent Family Hospice, and blue lights represent grief services for children, adults, and families, including those served through the Healing Patch: A Program for Loss and Hope for Grieving Children and Their Families. 

To continue reading this press release, please click here. 

Coffee Connection: Department of Corrections Executive Deputy Secretary

Host A Business After Hours in 2018

Click here to print the pdf. 

Register now to participate in the 

2018 Winter Blues

Scottsdale to Las Vegas

October 9-16, 2018

Penn National Dividend Program

Special Announcement! Facebook Virtual Tour for Business

On The Job Training Program

• Cuts the cost of wages for employers by a minimum of 50% during the training time.
• Reduces the employer's costs for advertising and recruitment.
• Allows employers to make all hiring and firing decisions.
• Guarantees a quick referral process.
• Requires minimal paperwork.
• May involve a single placement, a number of people for one type of job, or a variety of jobs. 

• Post the job on the CareerLink system.
• A search is then conducted of the eligible applicant pool for people who match the characteristics set by the employer. The employer is then provided the information about potential candidates in the manner in which they have requested. 
• The employer decides whom they want to hire and a possible start date. The Business Services staff is notified about the circumstances of the hire. 
• The employer and the Business Services Representative negotiate a contract, which includes a training plan, length of training and costs to be reimbursed to the employer for providing the training. It is important to note that this contract MUST be in place BEFORE an eligible client begins working or the opportunity to secure funding will be lost. 

The Chamber is now offering use of our Bulk Mail Permit for FREE to our members. Bulk Mail Permits cost $250.00 per year. If you are interested in using the Bulk Mailing Stamp, we will walk you through the process to make it easy for you. You will still have to pay postage. 

If you are interested in saving money on your electric bill, please contact [email protected] or 814-643-1110 to get connected with the program endorsed by 120 chambers of commerce in PA and 80 Harrisburg based associations. OnDemand Energy manages 6 billion kWh in PA. There is no cost or obligation involved with seeing how much money your business or organization can save. In many cases it has been quite a significant savings. OnDemand Energy can also review your gas savings options with you. 

You are now able to be the exclusive sponsor of our weekly e-newsletter. The cost is $200 a quarter and includes your name in the email heading as the sponsor and an ad (2 in. wide and 3 in. tall) at the top of the left column of the newsletter. 

If you only want to have an ad (2 in. wide and 2 1/2 in. tall) in the left column, the cost is $100 per quarter or $300 per year. Please continue to share your events and special news and we will include that information for free. Contact [email protected] if you would like to include your ad in our e-newsletter or be the exclusive sponsor. 

Many of you have been asking about more opportunities to send email blasts to our database of nearly 1,000. Currently individual blasts are $50 for for-profit businesses and $25 for non-profits. You can now purchase one blast a week for a quarter for $200 or one blast a week for a year for $500. Non-profits pay $100 for the quarter or $250 for the year. Contact [email protected] if you are interested in taking advantage of this special opportunity. 

This group is being brought to you at the request of HCCC members during the most recent survey. The HCCC Member to Member group is a closed group for Chamber members only to post questions and important information that other members will find valuable. Please invite other Chamber members to join our group and share in discussions. 

If you have any business news and updates, achievements, awards or recognitions that you would like to be included, it can be done for FREE! If you have an event that is free or all the proceeds are being donated to a non-profit as a fundraiser, we'll include it for FREE! If you'd like to include a promotion or a money making event or non-profit fundraiser where proceeds will benefit the organization's operations, we charge a small fee. (Profit - $25 and Non-Profit - $10) Contact MacKenzie Locke at 814-643-1110 or [email protected] if you're interested in including an article.