By Mary Owen
GROW North Santiam has evolved.
Although the corporation name, North Santiam Canyon Economic Development Corporation (NSCEDC) remains the same, GROW has adopted part of the corporate identity to become GROW/EDC.
“We wanted a name that would be easy to remember and was already recognized, would honor the history and contributions of the NSCEDC’s work since 1996, and would be more inclusive of the development,” said Allison McKenzie, executive director. “We also wanted the name to include the grassroots project-oriented economic development work the NSCEDC has done for years and that we continue to do with organizations and communities throughout our service area. And we wanted an identity that reflects our bottom-up, pull-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps, collaborative approach to business development that has been working so well.”
After lengthy consideration, McKenzie said her marketing team came up with the name GROW/EDC and the tag line: leveraging grassroots resources, helping businesses grow. Kim Minten of Minten Graphics in Sublimity created the new logo that blends the NSCEDC logo with the GROW logo.
“This was not easy to do since the styles were so different,” McKenzie said. “We ran the logo and the tag line past the resource board last fall, and early this year the board officially voted to accept the new logo and tag line. We have been using GROW/EDC for the past few months, testing the waters to see how it sounded and was working for people, and decided it was time to ‘go public’ with it in a broader way.”
The new name embraces GROW’s service to clients in Aumsville, Stayton, Sublimity and Scio as well as the North Santiam cities.
“More than once we heard conversations involving words like ‘up here, down there,’ including at the board level, so we felt that by having a less geographically specific name, we would be more inclusive and welcoming to all of the people we serve,” McKenzie said.
Internally, the organization combined EDC’s board and GROW’s management teams more than a year ago for greater efficiency and to ensure that the authority to make decisions as well as the responsibility to do GROW’s work rested in the same hands, MacKenzie said.
“At a broader level, we have been thinking for some time how we can offer some of our knowledge and expertise to businesses and organizations outside our current service area,” McKenzie added. “This conversation has also occurred in our discussions about seeking other income streams that will give us long-term financial stability. More importantly, the NSCEDC paid a lot of money to learn how to work with businesses in the grassroots way we do. We would like more people to have access to the business model we use that has been so successful with our clients here. Having a name that is more inclusive will help any future constituents feel more welcome and invited to participate.”
McKenzie assures NSCEDC partners that the organization remains the same, and that the name changed to make it more user-friendly.
GROW/EDC just surpassed its 250 client mark this spring, a number that tells McKenzie the new brand – and the organization’s outreach – is working.
GROW/EDC is completing the second Community Development Block Grant for microenterprise assistance that it received as a sub-recipient through the City of Lyons, she said.
“These classes focus on offering classroom training to microenterprises of five or fewer employees, including owners, or people thinking about starting a business, and are intended to reach low-to-moderate income entrepreneurs,” she said.
When GROW/EDC first started offering classes, from marketing to collaborating to creating vision for a business – McKenzie said she was concerned that the one-on-one consulting work with clients might be diluted, a concern that remained unfounded.
“Our clients learn more and anchor information better in a group setting,” she said. “They learn to collaborate more easily after being in a class with other entrepreneurs. A willingness to collaborate with others is a key component to the one-on-one consulting work we do, and the classes and our marketing roundtables have been an invaluable place to practice working with others.
“Being an entrepreneur is often a lonely business,” she added. “Classes help entrepreneurs feel more connected and learn from others who are dealing with similar challenges and opportunities. Many class participants end up doing business with each other, and many continue to support each other long after the classes are over. We consider this a big win for everyone.”
More than 45 people attended 40 classes last fall and this spring, with many attending several.
McKenzie said she also consulted with five new clients this month, and expects the trend to continue as more entrepreneurs take their economic future into their own hands and discover the practical help available in their own hometowns.
McKenzie said the organization anticipates launching a pilot project in late fall that would take its most important classes on the road to a few outlying communities.
GROW/EDC is also developing a strategy to offer more learning events to clients already served.
“One of the advantages of holding group classes outside the confines of a CDBG grant is that anyone can participate regardless of business size, ownership role or income status. We would like our clients to be able to bring their entire business team with them to a class, if they want.”
Meanwhile, GROW/EDC’s primary thrust is to make sure that their clients are doing well, McKenzie said.
“Many of our clients are still working on implementing these suggestions, and it may take some time to gain traction,” she said. “Many are also tiny businesses that have much room to grow before they earn robust income, and some entrepreneurs have also chosen to ‘stay micro’ because it fits into their lifestyle goals.
“The point is that there is hope and practical help available for anyone who has a business idea they want to cultivate, or has a business already and wants to improve it. And we love to help!”
For information, call McKenzie at 503-871-5188.
