Chichester business community full of praise for social media initiative

The Chichester Chamber of Commerce launched the social media project a few months ago to bring all local businesses together. It has been embraced by many local groups and businesses including the Chichester BID.

On Friday (September 4) a special Zoom call capitalised on the obvious appetite for promoting businesses in the area and bring together all the resources available to help with funding, marketing, promotional activities and networking.

The call covered funding, resources, marketing and promotion - and was supported by the Chichester Observer group whose editorial director Gary Shipton was one of the speakers.

Vicki Meddows-Smith, CEO, Chichester Chamber of Commerce and Industry said: “CCCI is in a privileged position within the business community of the Chichester District through its diverse membership and various partnerships.

“I was delighted to be able to bring those parties together to help inform and encourage the wider business community. The tone of the meeting and the feedback were both really positive and we hope to hold similar events and further updates on a regular basis.”

The first speaker Julie Kapsalis, Chair of Coast to Capital and Managing Director, Chichester College Group Commercial praised the initiative.

“In these difficult times, it is all the more critical that we collaborate and support each other. This was a really excellent opportunity to share the range of business support that is available to support local companies.

“It was also very timely as Coast to Capital Local Enterprise Partnership had just launched its Business Recovery Grants to help SMEs recover and grow from the impact of the pandemic.”

Christine Dove, Partner, UK Culture Leader | South Regional Market Leader, said it was fantastic.

“Mercer are new to the Chamber and Vicki’s energy and enthusiasm are infectious. What a great achievement to bring together all the networks in and around Chichester and showcase our thriving community and potential to grow.

“There are undoubtedly tough times ahead, but by continuing to work together we all have a better chance of success. I was so inspired I spent the afternoon in Chichester city centre getting fresh air and supporting the local shops. Let’s all get moving again – even if we are working from home, we need to find a reason to help our local communities and continue to all look after the wellbeing of our communities and ourselves.”

Catherine Cannon, Trustee and Vice Chair, Chichester Ship Canal Trust added: “This was a great event with really helpful ideas and contacts for my role as a Trustee at the Canal - thank you!”

The Observer and its sister titles are on Monday launching The Big Conversation, a survey to ask readers of its websites and newspapers about their experiences of lockdown and their vision for the future of their community.

A message from the Editor, Gary Shipton:

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With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspapers.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

Stay safe, and best wishes.