AMHERST — As the new executive director of the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce, Claudia Pazmany’s immediate focus is on promoting the interests of its 340 current members.
“They want a voice through the chamber. They want someone to speak up for them,” Pazmany said. “Advocacy is a big piece of what this role encompasses.”
But to ensure that members are benefiting by getting more customers and clients, and the membership base will grow, Pazmany has ideas for pop-up events in Amherst’s village centers and future partnerships with Hadley stores. She noted that the recent announcement of an L.L. Bean store coming to Route 9 could attract new visitors to the area who may be interested in more shopping and dining attractions.
“Our downtown is heavy with restaurants,” Pazmany said.
As she settles into her new job, much of her is work focused on getting out to meet and communicate with members, making sure they have chamber stickers affixed to their windows and doors, and that they are benefiting from being listed on the chamber website and are getting better exposure through social media.
“Being really good at that is the first priority,” Pazmany said.
Pazmany wants the chamber to assist with sharing resources that will help maintain and strengthen businesses, identifying the latest trends and technology that can help members and holding workshops on leadership, management, customer service and marketing.
Pazmany said she has started a weekly newsletter to highlight new members and has continued traditions from the past, such as ribbon cuttings for new businesses and celebrations of milestones, and the periodic After 5 gatherings.
The chamber has been without a permanent executive director for nearly a year, after Tim O’Brien was laid off after a year at the helm last August, with Jerry Guidera acting as interim and then Peter Vickery, the board president, running the chamber as a volunteer-led organization for several months.
Pazmany said Vickery brought stability during his tenure and that she has asked him to continue his monthly memo and the “Readers as Leaders” book club for business people.
“I think his leadership has been extaordinary,” Pazmany said.
Vickery returns the compliments.
“Claudia is providing the energy and can-do spirit the members have been waiting for, patiently, during our all-volunteer phase,” Vickery said.
“She is supporting the committees, reaching out to current and lapsed members, and demonstrating every day that the chamber provides invaluable services to local businesses.”
Pazmany brings two decades of marketing and fundraising experience with nonprofits and human service agencies. She understands that municipal issues can affect businesses, such as zoning and permitting, as well as parking matters.
“Parking will always be one of those issues for the chamber,” Pazmany said.
But other topics may be more complicated, such as the recent announcement of mixed-use developments on the former site of Bertucci’s. While this may bring more people to live downtown, it could put a squeeze on available parking for customers, she said.
Though Pazmany has made her home in Amherst for nearly 25 years, she is still familiarizing herself with municipal affairs by having conversations with Town Manager Paul Bockelman and Economic Development Director Geoff Kravitz, she said.
She has been pleasantly surprised by volume of travelers who stop by the Visitors Information Center, with many traveling to the area.
“It’s exciting to see the town is a destination,” Pazmany said. “How do we make people even more excited about coming here?”
One way, she said, is to build relationships with the University of Massachusetts, Amherst College and Hampshire College.
“We can work together to bring people downtown to eat, stay and enjoy local flavors,” Pazmany said
Pazmany said she also sees the chamber as incubating and promoting start-up businesses and the entrepreneurial spirit, including among students. She’s also like to see the chamber encourage and support women leadership.
To that end, Pazmany said she is having conversations with Samalid Hogan, executive director of the Massachusetts Small Business Development Corp.
“There’s a real positive impact this job can have.”
Pazmany said she doesn’t see herself as taking the chamber in a new direction, but rather making sure it remain an important part of the community.
“I’m not here to reinvent the chamber, I’m here to revitalize and reenergize it,” Pazmany said. “I’m ready and willing to work the long hours it takes.”
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
