04 PCA Interview Part two

The transcription is about an interview discussing the upcoming People's Choice Awards organized by the Trove City Business Chamber. The event will be a gala evening on November 14th with changes like a shift to a Friday night, a more relaxed atmosphere with canapes instead of a sit-down meal, entertainment including a dance performance and a magician, and a focus on networking and recognition for local businesses. Tickets are $70 available through their website or social media. The chamber aims to support and connect local businesses through networking, advocacy, and events. They are also looking for new committee members for the upcoming year. Connecting the community, 104.7 Gippsland FM. And we're back. Today we're talking with Scott Lowwater from the Trove City Business Chamber and we are discussing the People's Choice Awards which are happening next month or have been happening for a while now. So I guess all eyes now, Scott, are on the gala evening in Taralgon on November the 14th. What can people look forward to on the night? How will it be different from previous years and where can people go to get their tickets and some more information? First of all, the gala evening itself is the biggest part of the year for the Chamber. We see it as a great event for the community, gives everyone an excuse to come out, let their hair down with their staff and have a great time. And plus for the community itself, we've usually had a pretty bonkers 12 months, so it's almost like a Christmas party as well as a community. So we enjoy just sitting back, relaxing a little bit when we can. Oh, Friday night this year too, isn't it? It is. It is a Friday night. So yeah, really there's been a few things that we have changed with this year's event, I suppose. So really one of them, as you noted there, is that last year we did have it on a Wednesday night but we felt that a Friday night would be better suited and people don't need to worry about work the next day or at least most of them don't have to because if you're going out and you want to enjoy yourself, yeah, you really don't want to think I'm going to be in bed by this time because I'm going to be up at this time to open the shop. So we think that's a positive change that's happened as well. And certainly Fit Down Meal this year, this year at the cocktail event, we want people who are coming along to enjoy a casual, relaxed night to mingle with other people and move around. Yeah, because it's traditionally a sit-down meal, isn't it? And this year it's canapes, walking around, being floated in front of you and a little bit more inclusive like you can talk to anybody. Yeah, that's it. Yeah, last year we felt that it was a great event last year. No doubt about that, we were very comfortable about that. But we felt like the people sat on tables with their staff and generally speaking, people stayed where they were. So we wanted to make sure that this year is a bit more of a relaxed, you can roam around vibe and have a good time. So you really decide all that as well. We've stepped it up from a singer last year just with a guitar to a dance this year. Nice. So they'll be performing. We have a magician as well coming along, so he'll be roaming around doing a few tricks and there might be some other thing he does, main event as well that he does. And the best part of all as well, there's a dance floor as well. Not going to be standing on that metal, but yeah, I'm sure there's a lot of attendees that will be keen to get involved. So really we want to kick off the night, as you said, at Fincher Albion at the Woodshire Performing Arts Centre, corner of Breed and Grey Street. So it's not a G-PAC, it's at the... No, no, no, it's... ...in the courtyard area there? Yeah, yeah, it's on the same, I suppose the same piece of land. So it's the complete opposite corner. Yeah, yeah, so lovely to see. Yeah, absolutely. So we're very comfortable with the venue size and how it's all going to work. So we've got a good plan. We've got some emcees involved as well. So yeah, we're really looking forward to that. And I suppose this year as well, we want to get all the, I'm going to call it, formalities out of the way earlier. Yeah. Get out the awards, get all that stuff out of the way and then everyone can let their hair down, relax, celebrate, do what you want. Bring the magician out, make the boss disappear. Yeah, something like that. So yeah, really we see this as a great excuse to bring your staff along as well. Historically, you know, people have their Christmas parties around this time of the year, you know, that's to celebrate another year's done and dusted as well. Where we feel like this event that we run is a little bit more of that direct recognition to your staff and yourself as well. Give yourself a pat on the back and just have a great night out. And plus as well, you're around a lot of other like-minded businesses as well. The conversation should be flowing. Yeah, we hope so. Yeah, and to kick that all off, the conversations as well, there'll be a welcome drink at the door. That'll be a nice little inclusion as well. Standing around the door then. Yes, yeah. That's right. So yeah, and sorry, you've talked about it as well before now, tickets. You can't just rock up and walk in free of charge. It's just a $70 ticket only where you get all this great inclusion for a great night. Nice. Tickets are available. You can go through our website. Yep. Whether they'll be available, there'll be a link there to purchase the tickets or it's all over our social media as well. And if you still can't find anything, there's plenty of email contacts that you can send out inquiries to and yeah, arrange your tickets from there. Or you could try, is it try booking or the La Trobe City Business Chamber website which is www.lcbc.org.au and that should give you a link to where you can get your tickets and some more information or you can call Scott. Scott personally, no. No, that's awesome. So I guess we've just sort of touched on the business chamber there. Obviously you guys organise it run by a group of volunteer committee members which is amazing who are all local business owners and leaders in the community who give their time up to make sure that the business chamber ticks along. So for those who aren't aware of the La Trobe City Business Chamber or are not yet involved, how can becoming a member help local businesses and what opportunities does membership provide for local businesses? Well now the LCBT is all about supporting and connecting local businesses. When we become a member, we join a network of like-minded people who want to see the region thrive. We offer the opportunities for networking, professional development, advocacy and promotion. That's all aimed to help businesses grow and succeed. Whether you're a small start-up or a large established business, there is real value in being a part of the chamber that works together to strengthen the whole community. We do run various events all around the year and only becoming more prominent in the region. So even just recently Mel's who's had the Reserve Bank of Australia, they came down and met with a select group of attendees as well which I suppose were local businesses. A large part of those were members. So we selected the attendees. So we reached out directly to members and asked them if they would like to attend. So it's these kind of exclusive opportunities that becoming a member of the chamber you can gain. Yeah perfect. I think that sort of advocacy type there is definitely a benefit. My business is a member of the chamber and obviously I do a lot of work within the chamber as well. So that's awesome. So what have you guys got coming up? How can people get involved? Well really Mel, all eyes now turn to the gala night, gala evening in November 14th. And aside from that, our other main event for the year is going to be our Annual General Meeting. Fifth of December, 8am, JD's Cafe in Morwell. Morwell, yes. So 8am it's not going to be just sit there and listen to a bunch of people speak and say I second that. There's going to be a little bit more to it. So we are just going to push out the formalities quite quickly because we don't need to dwell on those things too much. It's already almost scripted so to speak. We've got all of it prepared. But really we're going to roll into them, post the formalities, a round table as well where we really want to just focus on the economic future of the Wiltshire Valley businesses. We do just want to make a, I suppose, take all those ideas and comments and feedback that we do get in this round table and really as a chamber we want to turn our focus to what is our strategic goals for next year going to be. So we hear some certain pain points or areas that local businesses want us to, I suppose, shine a light on, pay a bit more attention to or get better exposure to. We'll listen to that and we'll design some, I suppose, initiatives and events based around that because we are formed and work for the local business community. So we need to listen to what they have to say and make sure we do something about it. I think you'll probably have some good insights after the RBA round table that took place in October and also I believe there was a round table at the start of the year as well with local businesses trying to get their pain points and challenges and maybe we've got some feedback on that as well. So it sounds like you guys are going to be busy. What about committee members? Are you searching for any more in 2026 or what does that look like? We are, Mel. We are. So there are vacancies on our committee for the year to come so we do welcome new committee members. We'd love you to be a part of the team. It's a great group of people. I'm sure you can attest to that, Mel. Definitely. Really we're very flexible and supportive as a group. We make sure that we break up into subcommittees and focus on key areas. So as an example I've been, as you know at the start of the interview, the chair of the People's Choice Awards subcommittee this year. We've had an events subcommittee and also memberships as well. So really you get exposed to a lot of different aspects of the business chamber and really we listen to where I suppose your focus or motivation lies and we place you in a suitable area. So really if you do want to come along, be a part of the committee next year or even if you just want to have a chat and work out just for you or get a bit more information, you can contact us through the website www.lcbc.org.au and contact the secretary at lcbc.org.au email address. Think through your inquiries and then we can either answer your questions you have or we can provide you with a form to fill out to the Expression of Interest committee member next year. Yeah, great. I think it's a really nice opportunity for people involved in businesses and even sitting in say professional services, you might not be exposed to events but you can actually learn something from being in or on any committee I guess or board for that matter. So yeah, it's a really good opportunity for businesses to get involved and see how things get done and also a really good opportunity to connect with other businesses which is what the business chamber is about. Essentially, it's networking and connections, those community connections. Thank you, Scott. That was awesome. Thank you for letting us know. So People's Choice Awards, November the 14th. You can get tickets via the business chamber website or you can search for them on try booking, www.lcbc.org.au, is that right? I think so. Yeah, you got that right. Yeah, or you can search for it on try booking, jump over to the Facebook page. There's always some updates being posted there but I'm sure you would like to see as many people there as possible. Thank you so much for taking the time to join me I guess today on the business huddle. No worries. Thanks for having me, Mel. Appreciate you making the time. Thanks, Scott.