Woodstock Chamber of Commerce members Matthew and Jennifer Allen, of NT Ferro Jewelers, take a tour of the Simon Pearce showroom at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Simon Pearce marketing director Meghan Mahoney picks a business card in the raffle for dinner for two at Simon Pearce during the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Brenda Blakeman, treasurer of the Woodstock Chamber of Commerce, and Chamber member Clay Reed, at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Jonathan Verge, of Gatherwool Theatre Company, gives 16 tickets as a raffle prize at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. Simon Pearce marketing director Meghan Mahoney is at left. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Simon Pearce marketing director Meghan Mahoney pulls a business card during the raffle at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. Beth Finlayson, director of the Woodstock Chamber, is at left. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Jonathan Verge, of Gatherwoool Theatre Company, speaks with Andrea Agan of the Courtyard Residence Inn at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. Verge offered 16 theater tickets as a raffle prize. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Woodstock Chamber members Adam Ungar and Nick Ferro watch as Tyler Justice makes a wine glass at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Julie Johnston, left, Brenda Blakeman and Sue Bryan chat during the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Chamber members wait for the raffle to begin at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
PJ Skehan, executive director of the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce, speaks with Jason Grady of In the Garden Greenhouse, during the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Woodstock Chamber member Sarah McDermet holds a gift from Simon Pearce to chamber members at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Larry Ference, of Farms for City Kids in Reading, Vt., samples the food served by LIsa Weiss of Simon Pearce at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Andrea Brown, a teller with Lake Sunapee Bank, Bill Blaiklock, a branch manager at Mascoma Savings Bank, and Lake Sunapee Bank branch manager Nichole Dexter talk at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Gayle Ottmann speaks with Nancy Russel at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Rose Pfeiffer and Beth Pollari staffed the bar at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
Woodstock Chamber member Gary Thulander, general manager of The Woodstock Inn talks with another Chamber member near a display of Simon Pearce glassware at the Chamber-to-Chamber mixer on Feb. 10 at Simon Pearce in Quechee, hosted by the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. (Gloria Towne photograph/allaroundtowne.com)
The Hartford and Woodstock chambers of commerce teamed up for a mixer last month at Simon Pearce in Quechee that drew 120 people.
The event, featuring free hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar and a raffle, was wonderful, said Beth Finlayson, director of the Woodstock Chamber of Commerce. “People had a great time and got to see a new area of Simon Pearce not everyone sees,” she said. In addition to the new bar, they viewed the upstairs loft, a “lovely space” that can be used for meetings, rehearsal dinners or other private parties.
Her cohort, P.J. Skehan, said he’s a big fan of cross-chamber activities.
Hartford is doing more “bi- and tri-chamber” events, said Skehan, executive director of the Hartford Area Chamber. They’re more fun and they draw more attendees, including new people and prospective clients, he said.
In the small state of Vermont, the chambers all work together pretty well, said Finlayson, who also favors collaboration. “It’s so much nicer when you are cross-pollinating the areas.”
The benefits are both social and financial.
“The area provides more activities than just one town,” she said. “We need to work together to enhance our visitors’ experience with the whole area so they’ll come back.”
— Aimee Caruso
