“We’re willing to step up and help local businesses,” said Jim Casey, owner of M3Company in Warrenton. “This is a tough time for businesses, and we want to come up with some new ideas to help local businesses get through it. The town has grown and it’s time that it had its own say in things.”

Several organizers mentioned that the loss of the Small Business Development Center – which used to have a full-time office at the Lord Fairfax Community College campus in Warrenton – was significant and costly to the business community. With new energy and new ideas, the group thinks that some of the services provided by that organization can be replicated.

One idea is to have “Business Triage” available to members of the new chamber. Basically, a chamber member with business issues could contact the Triage for help, and be able to talk with bankers, lawyers, accountants and other successful business people immediately.

Organizer John Stewart, owner of Vantage Economics, said that in this economic climate, it might make the difference between a successful business and a business filing for bankruptcy. “I hope that the Triage will provide the types of services that I provide from my own company,” Stewart said. “If you have a problem, it will be nice to be able to bounce ideas off a business person. I think it will end up being something like SCORE [Service Corps of Retired Executives]. A former business executive could provide some great advice for a small business person. Most of the businesses in Warrenton are small, with one or two owners, and it would be nice to be able to tap into these resources. I think there are a lot of people out there, already in the community, who can provide help for local businesses.”

“The Triage is going to be the most critical thing we do,” said Dennis Taylor of Paradigm Solutions. “There are a lot of small companies that are really struggling, and since the Small Business Development Center has moved away, that really isn’t an option for a lot of people. I’m seeing it first-hand in my company. I’ve advised a client to close up shop.”

“Some people don’t know how to cry for help,” Casey added. “Their business is in trouble, and they don’t know where to turn or they are embarrassed to admit that they don’t know how to run a successful business. We think that the Triage will be a great help for them.”

Interim President, Tony Tedeschi, agrees. “Now is the time for the business community to come together like never before. We’re ready.”

For this new chamber, the emphasis will be on businesses in Warrenton or nearby. Like Jim Casey, Stewart currently is a member of the Fauquier Chamber of Commerce. (Casey’s business is also a member of the Culpeper Chamber of Commerce.) Stewart said that one of the issues discussed by the other organizers was how to provide services at a local level. “In Prince William County, several chambers emerged over the years to cover specific towns or areas, and we thought that we should provide more specific services for businesses in Warrenton,” Stewart said. “We’re going to offer seminars and workshops that currently aren’t offered. We’ve bounced ideas around about holding seminars on a regular basis as well as regular quarterly economic summits. We may have experts come in and speak to local businesses.”

“I also think that the local economy is stronger than what you see on the national level,” Taylor said. “I know that there are a lot of companies that are looking to be ready when the economy really gets going again. We think that having regular seminars and workshops will help. I think that there will be an emphasis on business education. We will have experts come in to help people understand the ideas behind running a successful business.”

Businesses in Old Town Warrenton could be the beneficiary of the new chamber’s activities. “We want to be better linked to tourism for Old Town,” Stewart explained. “We want to educate the public about the impact on this community when they spend their dollars locally as opposed to traveling to Prince William or Loudoun to buy something. It has a huge impact on a community, so educating the public is something that this group hopes to take on.”

An interim Board of Directors includes founding members Jim Casey, Mark Child, Andreas Keller, Les Nichols, Angela Smith, John Stewart, Dennis Taylor, Tony Tedeschi, and Linda Voelpel. Elections for a full board are scheduled for late January 2010.

“We’re really excited about the new chamber,” Stewart said. “I think that a lot of local businesses are going to be excited about what we plan to offer. We’re looking forward to helping these businesses.”

“Our focus will be on: ‘What can we do to better serve the community?’” Taylor said. “We want to work with the [Fauquier] Chamber, with the Balanced Growth Alliance, with the Partnership for Warrenton. This organization is going to be very open and welcoming.”