NILES — Changes are on the horizon for the Four Flags Area Chamber of Commerce, as the networking and Niles business promotion entity seeks to restructure, form new partnerships and welcome new people to the team. 

Members of the community learned about some of these changes over coffee and French toast Wednesday as people gathered for the monthly Eye Opener Breakfast at Prime Table.

One such change is the addition of Katie Feehan, who was hired to take on the role of the membership and communications director. Feehan replaces Gina Barger, who served the Four Flags Area Chamber of Commerce for about a year and a half as a membership coordinator. Barger accepted a job with Cressy and Everett Real Estate in South Bend. Her last day was Jan. 5.

Feehan is originally from Portage, Indiana, and currently lives in South Bend. She earned a bachelor’s degree in new media, with a focus in graphic design from Indiana University South Bend. She is also in the process of earning a master’s degree from IUSB in communication studies.

Prior to accepting the position with the chamber, Feehan worked as an admissions advisor for Southwestern Michigan College. She has also worked for IUSB as a research assistant and in and in academic advising.

“The Niles area in general right now has been seeing a lot of economic growth,” Feehan said. “For me, I think it will be a really good fit. [Niles] is small enough where I can gain really good experience and be able to grow. I am excited to be able to do that. I am really passionate about seeing hard-working people succeeding.”

As membership and communications director, Feehan will be responsible for promoting chamber members, events organization and working to help local businesses get put on the map.

In the months to come, Feehan said she hopes to get to know Niles business owners.

“I want to let them know that if they need help, I am here to [assist] with marketing, social media, as well as organizing events and ribbon cuttings,” Feehan said.

Barger said the chamber had considered applicants from a pool of about 10 candidates. Feehan stood out among the rest, Barger said.

“Katie’s awesome,” Barger said. “She has amazing [graphic] design experience and is very in tune with [using] Facebook for business and promoting small businesses.”

Since beginning her career with the chamber in May 2016, Barger said she was happy to be part of the transition to more modern methods of connecting and promoting local businesses. For example, she cited the chamber’s efforts to help all Niles businesses become Google verified, helping to put business on the virtual map and connecting them with more customers. With more than 370 members now part of the chamber, Barger expects to see more growth and innovation when it comes to spreading the word about local businesses’ efforts. 

“Chambers are moving away from rubbing elbows at golf outings and [transforming] into a marketing machine,” Barger said. “For as little as $198 a year, you can get a market machine, who will do Facebook advertising for you and photos of your listing. “

Forging a new partnership:

Adding a new staff member to the team is just one aspect of the changes to come for the Four Flags Chamber of Commerce. In the next couple of months, the chamber plans to merge with the Southwestern Michigan Economic Growth Alliance. The partnership has been a discussion for the past nine months and Randy Hendrixson, the interim executive director, said becoming one entity just makes sense.

“There is a good bit of overlapping in what the two organizations should be doing: creating economic growth,” Hendrixson said.

While full details about the merger are still in the works, Ron Barger, the head of the chamber marketing committee and Gina’s father, said the plan is to have a board of 12 people, comprised of six members from each partnership, overseeing the development of the new entity: The Greater Niles Area Chamber of Commerce.

An executive director or president/CEO will also be hired to fill Hendrixson’s position as he transitions from interim director to running his own businesses, DPM Events and the Berrien County Record in Buchanan.

Since both SMEGA and the chamber share similar goals, their ability to share financial and employee resources are expected to initiate positive changes, Barger and Hendrixson said. When the merger is complete, officials plan to resurrect a council on tourism, which was initially dissolved from the chamber about three years ago.

“There has to be a tourism leg in our community,” Hendrixson said. “Tourism is a huge thing for Niles. I don’t think most people realize the number of visitors we get over the course of the year. That is all seasons. With the growth in business and the brewery coming, tourism needs to be a key element.”

With the chamber’s ability to flex to its community’s needs, Barger and Hendrixson said they look forward to seeing all the partnership can accomplish for the local businesses.

“It’s exciting,” Hendrixson said. “I think this will enable Niles to take giant leap forward both in economic development and business retention like Ron said.”