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Excellence in Business Award Recipients
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The Greater Akron Chamber's Small Business Council congratulates this year's Excellence in Business Award recipients. The award recognizes local businesses that have consistently demonstrated outstanding performance, growth, staying power, innovation and proven leadership in the community.
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The mission of the Greater Akron Chamber is to drive economic development and prosperity for the people of the Greater Akron Region.
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Annual Meeting Salutes LeBron, Greater Akron and the Potential of Commitment
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On March 31, the Greater Akron Chamber held its Annual Meeting, orchestrated to highlight economic development and the future of Greater Akron. The prestigious H. Peter Burg service award was given to Akron-born NBA great, LeBron James, who, with his LeBron James Family Foundation (LJFF), works on behalf of local school children. The spectacular event in historic Goodyear Hall convened more than 1,300 local leaders in a rousing celebration of Greater Akron's assets. Media in attendance included the New York Times and AP, and led to national coverage including ESPN and USA Today. The dynamic event generated much goodwill and connectivity for the Chamber and its efforts for our three-county region.
The meeting embodied the ideal of improving the quality of life in Greater Akron: by the LJFF, through positively affecting the lives of children and young adults, and by the Chamber, through economic development. "I Promise" was the theme of the evening, because education, mentoring and collaboration are imperatives that move a city forward. Children's ability to stay in school is mission-critical. The event leveraged star power in support of community in an unforgettable way.
The evening included several multimedia presentations, including the Greater Akron is... video and State of the Ak-onomy video with music by Akron's own Black Keys. |
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Economic Development Forum Focuses on Republican Convention
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More than 100 economic development practitioners from throughout Northeast Ohio participated in the Greater Akron Chamber's 11th Annual Economic Development Forum, held at Greystone Hall and sponsored by Roetzel & Andress. This year's forum focused exclusively on the economic development impact of Northeast Ohio hosting the 2016 Republican National Convention in July 2016.
Mr. Terry Egger represented the Cleveland 2016 Host Committee, and he outlined how Cleveland built a broad-based public-private partnership that worked closely with the Republican National Committee submit a comprehensive and competitive proposal.
Dr. John Green, Director of the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics at The University of Akron, elaborated on not only the electoral implications but the economic impact of this event on Northeast Ohio.
"Cleveland last hosted a national political convention in 1936. This unique opportunity to be in the national and international spotlight does not come along often," stated Dr. Green. "In addition to the thousands of visitors and millions of dollars spent, the real economic impact might be the incalculable exposure that hosting an event like the Republican National Convention presents to a region such as Northeast Ohio."
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Greater Akron Partnership Reports Success in Tri-County Region
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The Greater Akron Partnership, a collaborative effort between the Greater Akron Chamber, Medina County Economic Development Corporation, Portage Development Board and Summit County Department of Community and Economic Development, conducted 380 business retention and expansion (BR&E) visitations in 2014. Since the program was launched in 2003, the Greater Akron Partnership has conducted more than 3,600 business visitations.
Click here for the Greater Akron Partnership 2014 Annual Report.
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"Akron, USA" Attracts International Attention at Hannover Trade Fair
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The Greater Akron Chamber partnered with the City of Akron, City of Mentor, FirstEnergy, Steris, Summit County, Team NEO and Thermotion at the 2015 Hannover Messe in Germany. With more than 6,500 exhibitors and 250,000 attendees, the Hannover Messe is the largest industrial trade show in the world.
The fifteen member "Akron, USA" delegation conducted 40 pre-scheduled meetings with international companies looking to invest in the United States. While in Hannover, the Greater Akron Chamber met with representatives from the Management Team of ContiTech, the parent company of Veyance Technologies in Fairlawn, at their World Headquarters in Hannover. The City of Akron and Greater Akron Chamber are in the process of following-up with the nearly 100 leads that were generated during the Hannover Messe.
"This was the 26th consecutive year that we have attended the Hannover Messe trade show," stated Sam DeShazior, Deputy Mayor for Economic Development with the City of Akron. "As a result over the years, we have been able to attract both foreign direct investment and jobs to our community."
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Chamber, City and Partners Sell Akron at NPE Plastics Show
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The Greater Akron Chamber and City of Akron led participation at the 2015 NPE International Plastics Showcase in Orlando in March. With more than 65,000 attendees and 2,000 exhibitors from 37 nations, NPE is one of the largest plastics shows in the world.
In addition to the City of Akron and Greater Akron Chamber, the "Akron, USA" delegation consisted of more than 20 participants, including FirstEnergy, Harwick Standard, Landmark Plastic, Polymer Ohio, Premier Equipment and Team NEO.
During NPE, the Greater Akron Chamber met with more than 65 pre-qualified show attendees and more than 30 local companies from Medina, Portage and Summit Counties that were exhibiting at the show.
"With our global reputation in the plastics, polymer and rubber clusters, NPE provides the perfect venue to promote Akron as the "Polymer Center of the Americas," stated Rick Rebadow, Executive Vice President of the Greater Akron Chamber. "We are already in preliminary discussions regarding NPE 2018; that is how important the show is to us."
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NASA Roadshow Brings Experts to Stark State College
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As part of the NASA Roadshow, manufacturing companies in Summit and Stark Counties had the opportunity to spend the day with engineers and scientists from NASA's Glenn Research Center. The NASA Roadshow, held on the campus of Stark State College, provided free consulting expertise and services to local manufacturing companies in an effort to address technical challenges with products and manufacturing operations.
The Greater Akron Chamber worked with MAGNET (Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network) to identify companies in a number of targeted industry clusters for consideration. Companies from the Greater Akron Chamber footprint included Akro-Plastics, Emergency Products, EP Technologies, Fire-Dex and GOJO Industries.
Dr. Janet L. Kavandi, Deputy Director at NASA's Glenn Research Center delivered the keynote address, and she shared her experiences as a veteran of three space flights, logging more than 33 days in space and traveling more than 13.1 million miles in 535 Earth orbits.
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Economic Development Correspondents
Robert Y. Bowman, Deputy Mayor, City of Akron, retired
Samuel D. DeShazior, Deputy Mayor, City of Akron
Stephen Kidder, President, German Link, Inc.
Richard F. Rebadow, Executive Vice President, Greater Akron Chamber
Gregg P. Cramer, Vice President, Economic Development, Greater Akron Chamber
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