The Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Commerce has a new home has the Smith Center in downtown Las Vegas.
The Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Commerce is the largest business organization in the state of Nevada. With nearly 5,500 members, the Metro Chamber is committed to building a strong local economy, strengthening, enhancing and protecting business. Since 1911, the Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Commerce has been influencing public policy on behalf of the business community, helping Southern Nevada become a thriving and dynamic marketplace of opportunities.
“Nearly two years ago, Solar City was preparing to expand to Las Vegas and thought our former offices at Town Square would be perfect for their operation,” explained Cara Roberts Clarke, Senior Director of Communications at Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Commerce. “By subleasing our space to Solar City, it enabled them to get up and running more quickly, and allowed them to hire nearly 200 employees much sooner.”
The Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Commerce opened their office doors at the new location on Monday, October 20, 2014. The team commemorated the occasion with a ribbon cutting with the organization’s Board of Trustees, Mayor Goodman and other elected officials, as well as some of the leaders in the downtown Las Vegas neighborhood. The chamber’s executive offices are on the fifth floor of the building and occupy about 11,000 square feet.
Cara Roberts Clarke said relocating to Downtown Las Vegas made perfect strategic sense for the Metro Chamber.
“It’s an opportunity to demonstrate our support of the urbanization, revitalization and reinvestment in the downtown core,” she said. “Our new location puts us directly in the center of community activity. We are now in close proximity to many components and partners who comprise our community: New entrepreneurs who are bringing fresh ideas, innovation and a can-do spirit to the community; small businesses that are investing in their dreams; medicine and innovation taking place at the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center; hospitality and tourism; education; the arts and culture; and government.”
Cara Roberts Clarke says a new era for the Metro Chamber is beginning.
“We are committed to solving problems, bolstering the business climate, investing in the things we know we need for our city to compete for good jobs, economic opportunities and good quality of life for everyone in a global environment,” she said.
“Every business should be a member of the Metro Chamber,” she continued. “The Metro Chamber serves businesses of all sizes and industries in Southern Nevada. Businesses need a champion and the Metro Chamber gives it members the resources, information, expertise and connections to succeed. As the business environment and technology change, so does the Metro Chamber. Our top priority is to make sure we focus on the needs of our members, giving them what they need to thrive, grow and create jobs.”
The Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Commerce has been a supporter of the growing #VegasTech scene since the early days.
“The Metro Chamber has been helping provide coaches for Startup Weekend since 2012,” said Cara Roberts Clarke. “Soon after recognizing and assessing the needs of the startup community, the Chamber launched the JumpStart program. Its mission is to nurture and support the startup ecosystem, connecting new entrepreneurs to the expertise and connections they need, as well as potential resources.”
Recently, JumpStart has expanded into the Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Commerce Foundation. As a 501(c)3, the Metro Chamber Foundation arm has the ability to apply for grant funding for initiatives like startup guides and the organization’s Resource Bank, launching later this year.
“The bottom line for us is that it is our mission to create jobs and improve the economy and we feel we need to create the best environment possible for businesses to expand,” Chamber President and CEO Kristin McMillan told the Las Vegas Review Journal. “We feel we can expand our role in the community and expand our partnerships here. It’s a great opportunity for us to get our message out and roll out some new benefits and resources for 2015.”
The Chamber provides business-building programs, an events calendar of more than 100 events annually to help members connect and do business with one another, cost-saving programs that help its members’ bottom lines, exposure through the Chamber’s website, in the Business Voice (the Chamber’s monthly magazine) and social media, information and timely news updates to help its members make better business decisions, and advocacy and representation at all levels of government to ensure a business-friendly climate in Southern Nevada.
The Chamber has about 5,000 member businesses from nearly every industry, representing more than 200,000 people. For its members, the Chamber provides a powerful variety of tools, resources, products and services so your business can be seen and heard.
To get involved with the Chamber of Commerce, check out their list of upcoming events here.
