Black Mountain Swannanoa Chamber of Commerce embraces collaborative leadership under new director

Melinda Hester strives for strong bonds with local businesses

Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
March 28, 2024

Black Mountain Swannanoa Chamber of Commerce Director Melinda Hester emphasizes collaboration and commitment to local businesses, as the nonprofit organization holds its first Business After Hours, March 28, at the RailYard. Photo by Fred McCormick

Nearly four months ago, as she entered her new role as executive director of the Black Mountain Swannanoa Chamber of Commerce, Melinda Hester came to town with a plan. The former Edisto Island Open Land Trust administrator resolved to familiarize herself with the internal operations of the nonprofit organization while working with the board to formulate a vision for the future.

The path ahead for chamber and its approximately 260 members remains an emergent one, but navigating it will require a collaborative culture that reinvigorates bonds with Swannanoa Valley business owners.

Hester was introduced last December as the successor to interim director Tim Helms, who filled a vacancy created the previous August with the departure of Sharon Tabor. Although the new director brought 24 years of nonprofit experience to the office, she initially set out to develop an understanding of the community and the needs recognized by the board.

“It became clear to me, based off the conversations I had with board members, the focus here had long been more about the visitor center and tourism, as opposed to chamber-member relations,” Hester said. “What was emphasized to me as a top priority was regain the trust of this community by letting everyone know our only focus is supporting local business.”

While the Visitor Center, which serves as the chamber’s headquarters while drawing more than 30,000 visitors a year, remains a vital component of service, re-establishing the organization as “the voice of the business community” is the director’s primary goal.

“This chamber of commerce has been part of this community for over a century, and we are proud of that,” Hester said. “But, we want to keep building on what we have and become an organization everyone in Black Mountain and Swannanoa can be proud of.”

That process begins with a unified sense of purpose, she added.

“We just held a board retreat and the whole experience exceeded my expectations,” Hester said of a March 15 workshop attended by 13 of the organization’s 16 board members. “In the world of nonprofit boards, you don’t always see that kind of participating, but not only did they attend, they came in ready to work.”

The event, which was the first of its kind for the chamber and catered by Bush Farmhouse, addressed several objectives.

“One of the things I wanted to do was have everyone come out of there feeling like we’re all on the same team,” Hester said. “I also wanted everyone to feel better equipped to create a plan of action for the next year and to further educate the board on how the governing body of a nonprofit organization operates. They volunteer their time, but they have a huge responsibility and I want them to serve with a strong understanding of what that is.”

Forming a strong alliance between chamber board members, partners and volunteers allows the organization to work toward common goals, according to the director, who is establishing internal committees in an effort to better plan and facilitate initiatives.

“We are already hard at work on improving Sourwood, which is something we want to become a bigger money-maker for the chamber than it has been in the past,” she said. “Our Sourwood committee meets every two weeks, and that’s largely due to how willing our board is to work. I attend all committee meetings, so that has really helped me familiarize myself with how things work and the people involved.”

Hester also established a financial committee during her first few weeks, and plans to add “many more.”

“These committees do the home work off to the side, study and understand what needs to be done and bring the condensed version to the entire board for final approval,” she said. “One of the best things about these committees is that they’re made up of board members, volunteers, partners and community members. You don’t have to be a member of the chamber to join a committee, so that gives us a broad perspective on a given topic.”

A structure of supporters in defined roles is a critical part of creating a sustainable infrastructure within the organization, according to Hester.

“This is a small nonprofit organization, with myself and (Visitor Center Coordinator Lisa Hicks Kinney), and this can’t be a one- or two-person show, because that can stretch you too thin,” she said. “But, if you build a strong team, you have many people working towards the same goals, and that’s something we will see happen here.”

The chamber will host its first Business After Hours of the year at 5:30 p.m., Thursday, March 28, at the RailYard, as Hester mingles with local business owners for the first time.

“I’ve spent a lot of time working on internal pieces of the chamber these past few months, so I’m really excited to get together with the people in this community,” she said. “I’ve only been living here for a little while, but I can already see why people love it so much. I want that excitement and energy to carry over to the chamber, because with the right support we can support the businesses that help make this place what it is.”