Please join the Chamber to celebrate the Grand Opening of Fastests Labs!

Fastest Labs is an Asheville based lab company that assists in drug and alcohol testing as well as DNA paternity testing. They can test soil and water and offer policy creation as well as background testing. Fastest Labs is a rapic on site test center with no appointments needed.

Please join us for small bites, a tour of the facility and to learn more about Fastest Labs.

What they should have taught us in school!

Network and learn about local investing, risk, debt, budgeting, and entrepreneurship.

Free to attend, space is limited.

The Community Financial Education Course is a monthly resource for the greater Asheville area to help empower small businesses and families with the information and resources they need to create financial wellness on any level.

Topics will include Financial Literacy, Community Investing, Understanding Taxes, Debt Strategies, and Entrepreneurship, including a Q&A session with a variety of financial professionals.

Presenters Include
Joel Skene – Host of The Mindful Marketplace and Owner of The Skene Agency Inc.
Michael Diettrich-Chastain – Author, Coach, and CEO of Arc Integrated
Justin Sheaffer – Risk Management at Consolidated Planning
Joel Edelson – Debt Elimination Specialist at Symmetry Financial Group
Alex Cardona – Host of The Golden Key Radio Show and CEO of Cardona Business Solutions

Please join the Chamber to celebrate the Grand Opening of  WNC’s first co- warehouse, Ernest- Ready Made Warehouse!

What is co-warehousing? It’s sort of like co-working, but in warehouse form. Ernest allows you to outgrow the garage and work in a workspace of your own, in concert with other entrepreneurs, but without the overhead. It’s a place to fill orders, accept a pallet, take product photography for your site, have a meeting in a private conference room, or just post up with your laptop and a cup of coffee in a clean, comfortable, shared coworking space. It’s kind of like a subscription to a warehouse.  (Conference rooms,  meeting spaces, and photo studio available for day rentals)

Ernest will be sharing the spotlight with a new entrepreneur Brad Currin in Western North Carolina. He is a US Army Veteran and Owner of FCI Floors where they bring the mobile show room to you.

There will be tours of the space and the opportunity to chat with other members. Light bites and drinks provided.

Directions: Located off exit 51 of I40 on Sweeten Creek Road. Plenty of parking available in shared lot with Devil’s Foot Beverage.

Please join The Chamber at White Labs Kitchen & Tap for a panel discussion on the Economic Impact of Sports.

The panel will include representatives from the Asheville Buncombe Regional Sports Commission and local business owners.

Registration is Required, limited seating.

Policy on Tap is the Chamber’s quarterly discussion series highlighting topics that matter to our business community with insights shared by key leaders and experts.

Giving blood is a simple thing to do, but it can make a big difference in the lives of others. Asheville Outlets is teaming up with the American Red Cross to host a mobile blood drive on Friday, March 17, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the parking lot located behind the food court. Donors are asked to register in advance by visiting RedCrossBlood.org/give and entering the sponsor code AshevilleOutlets. For more information, visit ShopAshevilleOutlets.com.

Raymond McAnally will lead a virtual writing workshop titled “Using Acting Techniques to Write Clear Characters.”

Have you ever had trouble differentiating one character’s voice or reactions from another on the page? Do characters with strong or surprising points of view seem to evade you? Then spend a workshop with writer/actor Raymond McAnally to learn how he uses his experience as an actor to write new characters and find the decisions and actions that draw us to them.

This workshop is open to writers of all skill levels and is a fun way to find inspiration from a new prompt or revise current work. It is hosted by the Friends of Carl Sandburg at Connemara and will use Microsoft Teams for the virtual connection. A link will be emailed to participants the day before the workshop.

Raymond McAnally is an award-winning actor, a produced writer, and university lecturer.  Television acting credits include a supporting lead role in Black Mirror: San Junipero, winner of the 2017 Emmy for Best TV Movie; Guest starring roles on Better Call Saul, Modern Family, Chicago Fire, Rizzoli & Isles, Law & Order SVU, Royal Pains, and 30 Rock; as well as roles on Boardwalk Empire, Nurse Jackie, Mozart in the Jungle, among others.  He has film credits too numerous to mention here.

As a playwright, Raymond’s full-length solo-play, “Size Matters,” received its world premiere at Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati in May of 2014.  Directed by Tony Award-winning former Cincinnati Playhouse Artistic Director Ed Stern, the show ran for three weeks; garnering outstanding reviews, standing ovations, and sold-out performances.  The show was filmed before a live audience in 2015 and is now a comedy special available for streaming on Amazon Prime.  Raymond’s short plays, “The Odd Ball” and “Homeland”, have been produced at festivals on both coasts and his short play, “The Next”, will be published the Winter of 2019 in an anthology by New World Theatre.  In 2018, Raymond completed a playwriting fellowship with New World Theatre in Concord, New Hampshire.  In 2019, Raymond’s full-length play “The Cruelty of Children” was a semi-finalist at the O’Neill Center.  From 2010 to 2014, Raymond was the head content writer for the online production company Daily Fiber Films, which produced and distributed over sixty online comedy shorts, written by Raymond, and featured by FunnyOrDie.com, Fullscreen, CNN, New Media Rockstars, and The Food Network.  His short comedies also screened at festivals from coast to coast and earned “Best of the Fest” awards at L.A. Comedy Shorts Film Festival and the New York Friar’s Club.  In 2017, Raymond’s independent pilot “DPW” was filmed on location in Tupelo, Mississippi.

Raymond is currently a part-time lecturer for the Rutgers Arts Online department, Mason Gross School of the Arts.  He has been a lecturer at universities and guest artist at professional training programs since 2005.  He holds an MFA in Acting from MGSA, Rutgers University and a BA in Philosophy from Sewanee.

Please join us for the Ribbon Cutting and Ground Breaking Ceremony of Bullington Gardens. Bullington Gardens is a nonprofit botanical garden in Hendersonville, NC, their mission is to connect children and adults with natural world through science based horticultural education; to demonstrate the beauty of plants, and to enhance life skills for those with challenges through horticultural therapy. This Ribbon Cutting Ceremony is to thank donors who gave funding for the new restrooms, Tourism Development Authority, Mary Louise Corn, Ray & Judith McKenzie and Wheels in the Woods Foundation. This Ground Breaking Ceremony is to thank donors who gave funding for the new parking lot, Perry Rudnick Foundation/Community Foundation of Henderson County.

Please join the Chamber to celebrate the Grand Opening of Emergency Tech Repair!

Emergency Tech Repair is full service tech repair shop for phones, laptops, computers and more! They offer gaming commuter support and building as well as tech accessorys. The shop is located in the center of the Asheville Mall (near Victorias Secret)

Join us for some small bites and a free screen protector!

Great companies start with great people. The WNC Career Expo helps you make the right connections with qualified candidates to meet your company’s workforce needs. Booth details: Each booth includes: pipe/drape, one six-foot table, two chairs, two box lunches and access to the employers lounge with drinks and snacks.

$300 per booth; $50 for optional electricity; $10 for additional box lunches 

Find the Next Step in Your Career

Come join us for Business After Hours hosted by T-Mobile!

It’s a Magenta networking opportunity! T-Mobile is more than a wireless provider, so come out, have a drink, grab some grub, AND meet the local faces of the Un-carrier! Plus, we’ll be bringing the Un-carrier experience to Asheville with the T-Mobile Community Truck onsite at the venue! Door prizes include a chance to win one of three T-Mobile limited edition smart suitcases!

Feel free to bring a gift to be raffled off as door prizes towards the end of the evening. Bring your business cards for networking and a chance to win!

This event is offered as a benefit for Chamber membership. We welcome you to come and check us out! Please contact Jessica Kanupp, our Member Development Specialist, at [email protected] if you’re considering a Chamber membership.

Your Chance to Build Great Connections – You Don’t Want to Miss This Event! Business After Hours is the Chamber’s premier networking event and the best chance for your to make valuable connections to build your business – all while having a great time! With fantastic food and beverages compliments of our host sponsor, and the chance to win great door prizes – this event is the best combination of business and fun! There is no cost to attend but registration is required. March’s Business After Hours will be hosted by First Bank, catered by The Grafted Olive.

The inbox remains the most direct method for marketing online and statistically outperforms every other medium by a landslide! This session is a fresh overview of what email marketing is in 2023, and the best practices on how to grow an engaged email list to drive more business. You will gain a better understanding of: – Why your email list should be the “central component” of your digital marketing – Why email creates more sales and conversions than other mediums – What does successful email marketing look like? – How and where tp grow your email list – What types of emails to send to get the best results – What should you send? – Expanding your reach for every email you send – Understanding how connected email & social media are… how to work them together – Tips and Secrets to get your emails opened, engaged, and successful. – Special Chamber Discounts and Bonuses – Live Q&A Presenter Bio: Presenter Aaron Wesley Means is a communication specialist, internet marketer, and CEO of ACTIVATE Business Solutions based in Brevard, NC. He has a BA in Communication from Arizona State University.

A brand is more than a name and logo. It is the perception that people have in their mind about a company, product or service that attracts them to you. Marketing a brand is like a 6-cylinder engine. If all 6-cylinders are not working together, one does not get the full power from the engine. Having only a website, business card and social media is like only having 3 cylinders. You do not get the full power from the brand. Can the Market Your Brand Workshop help you market your company, product or service? Take this self-test. You get one point for each that fits your company. ___ Healthy Increases in Annual Sales ___ High Profit Margins  ___ Top of Search – Page 1 on Google My Business with a 4.5-5 Star Rating and High Number of Reviews ___ Branded Mobile-Friendly Website with High Traffic Numbers ___ Top Of Mind  (When people think of your business category your name pops into their mind.) ___ Branded Social Media Platform with High Number of Likes & Followers ___ Branded Content Strategy (know and use key words that attract customers) ___ Branded Collateral Material (all printed materials are current and effective i.e. business card) ___ Use Brand Pivot Point in Making Marketing Decisions ___ Have and use a Customer Database to Market the Brand ___ Market to all 3 Stages in the Customer Cycle (Prospect, 1st Time Customer and Repeat Customer) ___ Use Brand Tagline in all Online and Print Marketing Materials ___ Branded Advertising Specialties (all promotional materials are current and effective i.e. tee-shirts) ___ Branded Company Spaces (promote brand in offices, lobby, store front, hallways, bathroom, etc.) ___ Branded External and Internal Signage (use signage to promote brand and it is current) ___ Total If you have a score of less than 14, the Market Your Brand Workshop can help create a plan to better Market Your Brand.

Speaker(s): Gary Heisey, Executive Director Mission Acceleration and Vision Leadership Program

Co-Sponsor(s): Henderson County Chamber of Commerce, Brevard/Transylvania Chamber of Commerce

Have social time meet our staff and current fosters and get to know more about our Foster Program. Games, snacks, and other goodies will be provided for attendees and donations of much-needed kitten items are encouraged. Items requested include vital supplies like kitten formula and food, kitten warmers, bottles, and supplements that give foster kittens the needed boost to grow into healthy adult cats.

The full kitten supply list is available on the Blue Ridge Humane Society website at https://www.blueridgehumane.org/donate/wish-list/. There are also options available for items to be purchased online and shipped directly to Blue Ridge Humane.

As the weather warms up, the birds, bees, and cats get busy. Soon, kittens start to appear in local animal shelters, “rescued” by well-meaning animal lovers. “We are coming on that time of year when animal lovers begin finding kittens outside,” says Angela Prodrick, Blue Ridge Humane’s Executive Director. “It is important to remember that the amount of community or feral cats in our county far outnumbers the number of people living in our community. If all the kittens were brought to a local shelter, the shelter would quickly become overwhelmed.”

If you find a kitten, here are a few simple things you can do to help save lives:

Instead of immediately springing into action once kittens are found, wait and watch. If the kittens aren’t visibly sick or injured, move away from the nest and wait to see if the mother returns. If the mother returns, you can help her by providing food and shelter while she raises the kittens.

If you discover that mom isn’t returning, or if it appears that she is not coming back, then you should remove the kittens. This is crucial to the kittens’ survival. The best place for kittens to grow is with a dedicated foster. Blue Ridge Humane provides kitten kits to help kitten rescuers turn into kitten fosters.

Once kittens are about 6-8 weeks old, a finder can look to get them spayed or neutered and adopted into new homes. If you find kittens that need care and you need supplies or advice, contact the BRHS Foster and Community Outreach Team at [email protected] or (828) 393-5832. Animal lovers can also view additional resources about what to do when kittens are found at https://www.blueridgehumane.org/resources/lost-found/kittens/.

Blue Ridge Humane offers kitten care support for volunteers, as well as comprehensive training and support for fosters in the BRHS foster program. To learn more about fostering, visit https://www.blueridgehumane.org/get-involved/foster/ or contact Michaela Okuda, Foster Program Coordinator at [email protected].

The Blue Ridge Humane Society, Inc., is a 501(c)3 animal welfare organization started in 1950 and dedicated to ensuring the highest quality of life for animals in Henderson County and our neighboring communities. BRHS cares for pets awaiting adoption at the Adoption Center; offers low-cost vaccine clinics, animal education programs, pet training classes, and youth education and projects; coordinates community pet food assistance, emergency vet assistance, and the Spay Neuter Incentive Program (SNIP), which is a collaboration with Henderson County, the City of Hendersonville, and the Henderson County Animal Services Center.

If you believe in our cause, consider donating or learning how to volunteer by visiting the Blue Ridge Humane Society’s website at www.blueridgehumane.org or call (828) 692-2639.

Gelli printing is an easy, innovative way to create vibrant, one-of-a-kind monoprints. The results are striking, and all you need is a gelli plate, acrylic paint, and some kind of substrate (paper, fabric, etc.). In this fun, hands-on workshop, paper artist Kristen Grady will teach you everything you need to get started with this super versatile process.

Among other techniques, you’ll learn how to build multiple layers of design, create textures and an “old wall” look, and add stenciling and shimmer to your prints. Kristen will also teach you how to create two-sided prints, work with multiple prints at the same time, create a theme for your prints, use thick and thin paints in different ways, and find your color palette.

There will be plenty of time to practice each technique, and you’ll complete at least four, two-sided prints. You’ll also leave with plenty of ideas on how to use your finished prints, including incorporating them into junk journals, and how to care for and store your gelli plate, which will be yours to keep—a $25 value!

A brand is more than a name and logo. It is the perception that people have in their mind about a company, product or service that attracts them to you. Marketing a brand is like a 6-cylinder engine. If all 6-cylinders are not working together, one does not get the full power from the engine. Having only a website, business card and social media is like only having 3 cylinders. You do not get the full power from the brand. Can the Market Your Brand Workshop help you with your market your company, product or service? Take this self-test. You get one point for each that fits your company. ___ Healthy Increases in Annual Sales ___ High Profit Margins  ___ Top of Search – Page 1 on Google My Business with a 4.5-5 Star Rating and High Number of Reviews ___ Branded Mobile-Friendly Website with High Traffic Numbers ___ Top Of Mind  (When people think of your business category your name pops into their mind.) ___ Branded Social Media Platform with High Number of Likes & Followers ___ Branded Content Strategy (know and use key words that attract customers) ___ Branded Collateral Material (all printed materials are current and effective i.e. business card) ___ Use Brand Pivot Point in Making Marketing Decisions ___ Have and use a Customer Database to Market the Brand ___ Market to all 3 Stages in the Customer Cycle (Prospect, 1st Time Customer and Repeat Customer) ___ Use Brand Tagline in all Online and Print Marketing Materials ___ Branded Advertising Specialties (all promotional materials are current and effective i.e. tee-shirts) ___ Branded Company Spaces (promote brand in offices, lobby, store front, hallways, bathroom, etc.) ___ Branded External and Internal Signage (use signage to promote brand and it is current) ___ Total If you have a score of less than 14, the Market Your Brand Workshop can help create a plan to better Market Your Brand.

Speaker(s): Gary Heisey, Executive Director Mission Acceleration and Vision Leadership Program

Co-Sponsor(s): Henderson County Chamber of Commerce, Brevard/Transylvania Chamber of Commerce