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County Chamber will honor North Country This Week as Business of the Year at annual dinner in Potsdam

Posted 10/29/18

POTSDAM -- The St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce will honor North Country This Week as its Business of the Year and two other businesses at the Nov. 7 annual dinner at SUNY Potsdam. North …

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County Chamber will honor North Country This Week as Business of the Year at annual dinner in Potsdam

Posted

POTSDAM -- The St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce will honor North Country This Week as its Business of the Year and two other businesses at the Nov. 7 annual dinner at SUNY Potsdam.

North Country Showcase Inc. of Massena and The Soap Guys of Potsdam will also be honored at the dinner.

The Business of the Year award honors North Country This Week, a free weekly publication and online site NorthCountryNow.com.

This award recognizes a business that has “contributed to the growth of the St. Lawrence County economy and brings pride to the business community.” the announcement from the chamber said.

North Country This Week was founded in 1984 in Bill Shumway’s West Stockholm living room. Today, 19,154 copies of the paper are read each week, making it the “most-read paper in St. Lawrence County.” NorthCountryNow.com receives about 1 million visits and nearly 3 million page views each month, making it the most-viewed website in the county.

Nominations noted that “North Country This Week is the ‘go to’ source for up-to-date information in St. Lawrence County and a way to stay ‘connected’ to home for St. Lawrence County natives who have moved away. Their commitment to this area is further evident by the purchase and renovation of their new offices on Clarkson Avenue in Potsdam.”

The Customer Service Excellence award will recognize North Country Showcase Inc of Massena as a chamber business that has provided “extraordinary service in their delivery of product and/or service to their customers.” The idea grew out of the community action group, Re-Imagining Our Tomorrow (RIOT) with the goal of providing locally produced products in a central, retail location.

The store opened in the St. Lawrence Centre Mall in Massena on July 8, 2017, with 33 vendors. Having recently relocated to the Harte Haven Plaza, also in Massena, they now have over 100 vendors, with 80 shareholders, 40 of which are also vendors. One nomination stated “If a product is not found in the store, or a customer is looking for something specific, the staff at North Country Showcase will contact the vendor who makes the product or find out who does. That's Customer Service at its finest!”

The Local Producer of the Year honors The Soap Guys from Tucker Spring Organics of Potsdam. This award is for a chamber producer that has “developed their capacity for creating and selling a product that is handmade, locally sourced or value-added, raising awareness and pride for local products.” They started their business with artisan soap making due to the lack of quality, local cruelty-free products.

A nomination stated “They have won several awards for their attractive bar soap, vendor displays, and creative advertising. In addition to being an award recipient at the Park Avenue Festival in Rochester, they recently received their 5th Award from Remson Barn Festival, one of the largest and premier shows in NYS.”

Tucker Spring Organics has wowed their customers since opening with cruelty-free, quality handcrafted artisanal soaps and skincare products that exhibit the aromatherapy of nature’s bounty. Their products can be found online at tuckerspringorganics.com and at their shop at 17 Maple St., on Fall Island, in Potsdam.

The dinner will be held Wednesday, Nov. 7 at SUNY Potsdam’s Student Union Fireside Lounge. Cocktails and silent auction start at 5:30 p.m. Dinner and the awards presentations begin at 7 p.m. with a live auction.

The cost is $45 per person or $430 for a corporate table for 10.

For details including dinner choices and RSVPs, click on “Help Us Celebrate” under 2018 Annual Dinner at SLCChamber.org, email jo@slcchamber.org, or phone (315) 386-4000.