Pekin Area Chamber of Commerce joins forces with Turner Center to help small business owners succeed
The Pekin Area Chamber of Commerce practices what it preaches.
Named the 2023 Community Partner of the Year by Bradley University’s Turner Center for Entrepreneurship for its support of the center’s programs and staff, the chamber mirrors the Turner Center’s mission to support new and established small businesses and provide guidance for entrepreneurs.
‘I had no idea how to start a business’
Claire Whiting, a recent graduate of the Oehrlein School of Cosmetology in East Peoria, wanted to open her own salon in Pekin.
Her mother, Pekin Chamber Executive Director Amy Whiting-McCoy, stepped up to the plate in her professional role.
‘Most have a dream more than an actual business plan’
“I had no idea how to start a business. I was at ground zero,” Whiting said. “My mother helped me create a business plan and connected me with the Turner Center as a resource. After that, I wasn’t nervous about starting a business anymore.”
After a location for her salon was selected, Whiting’s fiancé, Austin Kleiber — of Austin Kleiber Construction & Improvement — did the renovation work on the space and selected the name of the salon from among five choices given to him by Whiting.
Rustic Roots Cosmetology opened on Aug. 25, 2022 at 513 Court St. in downtown Pekin, in a space once occupied by the Rhythm & Blues bar. The building had been empty for a few years.
A year after Rustic Roots opened, five of six stations there are filled by Whiting, 22, and four independent contractor cosmetologists. It’s the closest to capacity in the salon’s short history.
And Whiting and Kleiber are eagerly awaiting their November nuptials.
Just needed a little seasoning
Like Whiting, Mary Haynes is a downtown Pekin small business owner.
The owner of Maddie Mae’s specialty retail store at 522 Court St., Haynes was interested in selling Excalibur Seasoning’s locally made and nationally known products in her establishment, but she wasn’t having any luck making a connection.
Excalibur, based in Pekin, has been a maker of meat and seafood seasonings, rubs and marinades for more than 35 years, supplying them for hundreds of grocers and meat processors nationwide.
Whiting-McCoy came to Haynes’ rescue with an easy solution to the problem.
“The CEO of Excalibur Seasoning (Mike Shrier) serves on the Chamber board,” Whiting-McCoy said. “I was able to make an introduction for Mary.”
Maddie Mae’s began selling Excalibur seasonings early this year. Excalibur helped out a Pekin small business by not requiring its usual minimum order for each product.
“We sell about 20 to 25 varieties of Excalibur products and they’re very popular with my customers,” Haynes said.
‘Most have a dream’
A new Chamber initiative launched this summer is designed to create an ecosystem that supports new small businesses in Pekin.
Launch Pekin, directed by vendor SmartStart Pekin, also is for established small businesses looking for guidance.
Whiting-McCoy said the first monthly meeting of Launch Pekin, held in June, attracted 20 attendees including eight owners of established Pekin small businesses who were willing to serve as mentors, and 12 people who recently opened a new small business or were thinking of starting one.
Realtor and Chamber board member Baylee Gambetti is a mentor and recruiter for Launch Pekin. Through her profession, she said, she meets many folks looking for a spot for a new small business in Pekin.
“Most have a dream more than an actual business plan,” Gambetti said. “They can really benefit from Launch Pekin, so I’ll make sure they know about it.”
‘we refer callers to the Turner Center … the Turner Center will help formulate a business plan’
The Turner Center’s close relationship with the Pekin Chamber is nearly a decade old. It began with former Executive Director Bill Fleming in 2015 and continued with Whiting-McCoy after she replaced the retiring Fleming in 2020.
The Chamber’s website promotes the Turner Center’s Illinois Small Business Development Center, which provides free business counseling and low-cost training programs for existing and startup small businesses in central Illinois, and Turner Center programs are listed on the chamber’s calendar of events.
“Also, we refer callers to the Turner Center,” Whiting-McCoy said “If someone calls us and is interested in starting a new small business, we know the Turner Center will help formulate a business plan so it’s done right the first time.”
