Chamber reports membership growth and tourism initiatives to Loudon City Council
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Summary
Rodney Groogan, president of the County Chamber of Commerce, told council the chamber has about 630 members, plans a business incubator opening and video promotion campaign, and reported Loudon County ranked 24th of 95 counties for tourism in 2024.
Rodney Groogan, president of the County Chamber of Commerce, updated Loudon City Council on membership, tourism performance and upcoming events during the council’s Dec. 15 meeting.
Groogan said the chamber now counts roughly 630 members — up from previous years — and set a target of reaching 800 members within three years. He described the chamber’s tiered 'influencers alliance' membership program (starting at $2,500) and said the organization will open two business incubator spaces Jan. 1 to help new businesses get started.
On tourism, Groogan said Visit Loudoun County remains the chamber’s primary tourism program and reported the county ranked 24th of 95 Tennessee counties for tourism in 2024. He said visitors generated an estimated $441 in state and local tax savings per household through collections in 2024 and described a multi-video promotional campaign (24 videos to date) that the chamber will use in fiscal year 2026–27. He also described partnerships with Tennessee Riverline, the Loudoun River Fest and other regional chambers.
Groogan listed major upcoming events including the Taste of Loudoun County Business Expo in February, the Chamber Choice Awards on Saturday, May 2, and a golf tournament on Sept. 24 at Avalon. He invited local businesses to quarterly networking events and urged council and staff to participate in promotional roundtables.
"Our total membership for the chamber is 630...there's no reason why we can't be an 800 member chamber in 3 years," Groogan said.
The council thanked Groogan for the update and noted the chamber’s partnership role in tourism promotion and event logistics.
