Gurnee Chamber leaders tell trustees membership and events are growing after staff hires and new software

Representatives of the Gurnee Chamber of Commerce told the Village of Gurnee Board of Trustees during a presentation at the board meeting that the chamber has expanded membership, boosted event attendance and improved online visibility after hiring a full-time executive director and adopting a chamber-management platform.

The chamber’s presenters said the organization has stepped up in-person mixers, partnered with the Gurnee Park District on community events and created committees to manage membership, events, advocacy, marketing and finance. The presenters also urged more annual sponsors to sustain the effort and highlighted a software tool, Growth Zone, that they said increases members’ search visibility and makes dues and event registration easier.

Julie (chair, Gurnee Chamber of Commerce) told trustees the chamber currently lists 89 members and that membership has grown “about 50%” over the past year. Julius Faust, who led a portion of the presentation, said the chamber has used new web and content tools — including a podcast-style feature and member “spotlight” write-ups — to reach customers and prospects. Faust said the chamber’s documents show a broader membership surge and a strategic plan that aims to double membership over two years.

Why it matters: chamber leaders said the changes are intended to make membership directly useful to small businesses through convenience (online dues and event registration), visibility (an indexed business directory) and networking (regular, free mixers). Trustees responded with praise for the chamber’s increased activity and the practical benefits some members reported.

Chamber presenters described several concrete changes and programs. They said the chamber now operates a more user-friendly website that allows members to post job openings, advertise member-to-member deals and publish event listings. The chamber also established five board-led committees focused on membership and engagement, events and programming, economic development and advocacy, marketing and communications, and finance and fundraising. Presenters credited a dedicated executive director and closer coordination with the Village of Gurnee and the Gurnee Park District for much of the recent progress.

The presentation emphasized Growth Zone (referred to in the meeting as “Growth Zone” or the chamber management platform) as a technology backbone: presenters said it offers member dashboards, online payments and a searchable business directory that the chamber believes is indexed by Google and thus improves members’ public search results. “It’s like built in online visibility just by being an active chamber member using the platform,” Faust said.

Presenters highlighted recent event collaborations, including a chamber presence in the Gurnee Days parade and a bingo event with the park district, and said the mixers — currently free to attend — have seen rising attendance. The chamber asked trustees and the community to consider annual corporate sponsorships to provide stable funding for programming and digital tools.

Trustees offered positive remarks after the presentation. Trustee O’Brien thanked the presenters and said the mixers have been a “game changer.” Trustee Thorstenson suggested sharing short audio or video snippets of the presentation to promote participation. Several trustees and attendees credited the chamber with visible improvements around the village.

Formal actions at the meeting were limited. Trustee Balmus moved to adjourn the meeting; the motion was seconded by Trustee O’Brien and carried. The board noted there was no public comment at the start of the meeting (the agenda listed public comment up front) and that the public comment period at the end of the meeting was also not used.

The chamber’s stated near-term goals are to continue demonstrating clear value to members, increase the number of annual sponsors and grow membership substantially; presenters noted there are more than 1,200 businesses in Gurnee that could be prospective members. The board meeting included the chamber presentation as a single substantive discussion item; no ordinances, resolutions or other formal board votes tied to chamber funding were recorded in the transcript.