Karen Chapman, Corridor Nine Area Chamber of Commerce
February 16, 2015
Shop Talk
Q&A with Karen Chapman, President, Corridor Nine Area Chamber of Commerce
Karen Chapman, President, Corridor Nine Area Chamber of Commerce, Westborough
RESIDENCE: Oxford
EDUCATION: South High School, Worcester; Institute of Organizational Management at U.S. Chamber of Commerce
By Rick Saia
When her predecessor, Barbara Clifford, retired last year, Karen Chapman had already been well established at the Corridor Nine Area Chamber of Commerce, having been its vice president for 12 years. At the time of her promotion, the chamber's chairman, Steve Anderson, said Chapman has “a keen understanding of Corridor Nine's past, as well as proven experience in bringing innovative and visionary ideas for the future.”
You're running this organization at a time when there's positive momentum in the area's economy. Do you see that as well?
Yes … business has been booming. Genzyme just moved (into Westborough) in November with 500 employees, and I've seen a lot of new business in the last year. Chick-Fil-A moved into town, Taco Bell moved into town. They're talking about a micro-brewery that's going to be moving in. The proposed Whole Foods coming into Shrewsbury. I can't think of a better time to become president of a chamber.
What do you think is fueling this growth?
Many reasons. Definitely the stellar school system (which) attracts businesses, (and) with them come families. We have single tax (rates) in our communities. That's definitely positive for people who want to do business here. And I think also the access — 495, Route 9, 20 — we're just the hub of that kind of business activity.
AstraZeneca is leaving Westborough after being somewhat of a cornerstone of the town's econmy for years. How is the chamber involved in trying to fill that upcoming void?
We were aware a few years ago that they were going to be downsizing. They've been a very good corporate community citizen. It was a big disappointment. But we're working closely with the town to help bring in that next tenant.
Of course, the chamber has many and diverse businesses. Are there one or two concerns that are common to all of them?
(For) a lot of them, it's definitely still striving through a tough economy. When you own your own small business, you don't have enough time, you don't have enough staff. You're working very lean. So that's still a concern, although I would say I've been seeing a little more momentum from small business; they're getting a lot more engaged.
We're at a demographic crossroads with baby boomer business leaders nearing retirement and millennials moving into leadership roles. Do you see a change in the priorities of millennials?
We started a young professionals group in 2007, and one of the things that came along with that was to develop those (leaders) and to figure out what is of interest to them … they're very interested in community service. We've been partnering with the Community Harvest Project in North Grafton, which is a great place because all the food they raise there goes to the Worcester County Food Bank. They've done (the) big part of our annual food drive, which is something the chamber does every year. So we're trying to … make them future leaders of our communities.
With the change in governors, what do you see as the new administration's top priority for business?
One of the things we're very interested in knowing is how they feel about tax incentives. Marlborough is doing a very good job with that. And retaining and recruiting businesses. I'm very interested in hearing their position on that issue, since we want to continue to bring business to our region.
What are the top three things member businesses approach the chamber for?
For us, it's to grow their business, so they're looking for networking opportunities to make business connections. Second, some visibility within the community, get their brand and their name out there. And third, assistance. We want to be a resource to them.
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