On Tuesday, March 1, 2016, the Pelham Chamber of Commerce and the JLP hosted a cocktail hour to reveal the results of the JLP 2015-16 Provisional Class’s “Love Pelham” survey.

Each year, the provisional members of the JLP collaborate on a class project that aims to serve the local community. This year’s project focused on raising awareness of and encouraging greater community engagement with local business.  The beneficiary for this year’s project was the Pelham Chamber of Commerce.

From December 15, 2015 through February 14, 2016 the JLP provisional class hosted an online survey at lovepelham.com in order to gauge community statistics, preferences, and feedback regarding the shopping, dining, and services offered in Pelham. The JLP Provisional Class promoted the survey using word of mouth, social media, and the incentive of a free Pelham car magnet for participants who completed the survey.  The campaign to promote widespread participation in the survey was a resounding success, with over 1,000 participants completing the survey in just two months.

The information gathered for use by the Chamber and its members included: (1) demographics of the participants, (2) statistics on how frequently participants patronize Pelham businesses, (3) specific attributes that participants consider important when deciding whether to patronize Pelham businesses, (4) types of shops, services, and restaurants that people would patronize if they were available in Pelham, and (5) open-ended feedback about ways to improve Pelham business.

A presentation summarizing the results of the survey was presented at the cocktail hour on March 1, and is now available to the public at lovepelham.com

The survey results reveal event was well attended by current and future Pelham business owners alike. “The results of the LovePelham.com survey reinforce our decision to open a Mexican restaurant downtown,” said Clayton Bushong, Director of Programming at The Picture House and co-owner of a new Mexican restaurant called Cantina Lobos, which is slated to open this summer. “As this community continues to grow, so should the choices. I love being a part of this effort to improve our town.”

Food for the event was provided by The Chipper Trick Café, a local restaurant specializing in Irish food. The restaurant’s owner, Alice Bermejo, observed that her restaurant seems to align with the survey’s finding that the community desires dining options that are both authentic and kid-friendly.  “[The community is] looking for something authentic, which we are.” She said following the event, “[the Chipper Truck Cafe tries] to make everyone feel welcome and comfortable especially with kids. I know what it’s like having three myself.”

The event was co-hosted by Joe Solimine, Jr., President of the Pelham Chamber of Commerce and President and Founder of Meridian Risk Management, who commented that “it was wonderful to see all the JLP’s hard work come to such a productive conclusion. Sharing actionable feedback with our local businesses and finding ways to better serve our community is what the new Pelham Chamber of Commerce hopes to accomplish. I’ve always said Pelham will thrive when we work together and that was true tonight – in spades. I look forward to future partnership with the JLP and our business community – we’re better…together!””

About the Chamber of Commerce

Working as a unified network of Pelham businesses, the Chamber of Commerce’s goal is to collaborate and initiate strategies to help increase sales and grow business. The Chamber strives to improve the spirit of enterprise and community that will result in an enhanced quality of life for all of Pelham.

Please visit www.pelchamber.com for more information.