Episode #19
Jocelyn Brennan, CEO of South County Chambers of Commerce
Jocelyn Brennan, CEO of South County Chambers of Commerce, joins Ashlea Foster Boyer, Shannon Bowdey & Jordan Hamm on Living In Pismo Beach.
Ashlea Boyer:
I am pleased to invite Jocelyn from the Chamber on today. And let’s tell folks a little bit about Jocelyn before she comes on. So Jocelyn Brennan, who is the president and CEO of the South County Chambers of Commerce, has served in that position since the start of 2018. She has a passion to help others and serve her community and her current role allows her to achieve these goals.
The South County Chambers of Commerce was originally established as the Arroyo Grande Valley Chamber in 1961. In 2012, they consolidated with the Grover Beach Chamber and most recently consolidated within the Nipomo Chamber to better serve the South County business community. The Chamber has over 700 members throughout South San Luis Obispo County. The mission of the South County Chambers of Commerce is to create partnerships and opportunities that ensure South County businesses prosper.
Jordan Hamm:
Before joining the Chamber, Jocelyn was the District Director for the Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham in the 35th district. The assembly district represents all of San Luis Obispo County and Northern Santa Barbara County. She has also served as the Children’s Director at a local nonprofit before beginning her work at the County with the Board of Supervisors and the Grand Jury.
Shannon Bowdey:
With years of experience running family owned business on the Central Coast, Jocelyn is a strong advocate for business. Jocelyn resides in Arroyo Grande and has lived and raised her family on the Central Coast for 25 years.
Ashlea Boyer:
Let’s welcome Jocelyn.
You owned a family owned business. And I was wondering, I was curious, what that business was.
Jocelyn Brennan:
Yeah. People do ask me that sometimes. It seems like a long time ago now, so people don’t really realize it, but we had a landscape installation company, my husband and I. And it’s a struggle to live on the Central Coast as a young family. And our third daughter was born and he loves outdoor. He was doing landscaping work on the side. And so he said, “Why don’t I make this into a business?” And that was in 2005. And they say the first five years of a business, they make or break you. And then of course we ran smack into the recession. So that didn’t last long and he ended up to go on to work in that field for other companies.
But it was good because I feel like I got a taste of when it’s like to work, to have to make payroll every month and to keep your employees happy and to try to get jobs out there in the community. And it was a great experience. It wasn’t successful by any means, but it was a really good experience. And I’ve taken that with me into my Chamber work.
And it’s probably how a lot of businesses are feeling right now, especially if any started in this last couple of years or so and were still just trying to get really off the ground and then COVID happened. So, I know what they’re feeling. I’m feeling their pain.
Ashlea Boyer:
Definitely. Yes, for sure.
Shannon Bowdey:
Yeah.
Ashlea Boyer:
It’s one of those times where if you are able to make it through it, you’ll probably have a really strong business on the other side.
Jordan Hamm:
Yeah.
Ashlea Boyer:
So hopefully the greater of them can.
Jocelyn Brennan:
Right, yeah. And I know they are. I mean, I have been absolutely amazed by our businesses on the Central Coast. They have just been so resilient and so patient and they’ve complied with all these orders and now you can open, wait a minute. No, now you can’t open and now you can open halfway.
Jordan Hamm:
Right.
Jocelyn Brennan:
And I mean, they’ve just been amazing. And we have 700 Chamber members and I would say by and large, I mean, I can’t even really think of any that haven’t had a great attitude. I mean, it’s just been inspiring to see how they’ve handled all this.
Jordan Hamm:
Awesome.
Shannon Bowdey:
That’s wonderful. So the South County Chamber is doing an excellent job promoting all the various Chamber supported projects via social media. Yay rock stars. I love the MVP Program that Pismo Beach Homes Team is a sponsor of, proud to say. Tell us a little bit more about the program and what it has done in helping local businesses at this time.
Jocelyn Brennan:
Thanks, Shannon. I am so glad you asked me that because that program has just really been the highlight of 2020 for me. So of course, as a Chamber, it’s really hard when you’ve had a business maybe for 20 years say. I cannot [inaudible 00:04:50] 20. I’ve been paying my memberships for 20 years and this is the first time ever. I’m not in a position to do that. And then we had all these new businesses that wanted to join because they need the Chamber right now more than ever, or maybe for the first time. And they’re not in a position to join. And so it was really an idea of one of our members and they said, “Well, we want to support the chamber and we want to support these businesses. So how about doing an MVP program?”
And MVP stands for Member Valuing Peers, and it’s a very elite group. They truly are MVPs and Pismo Beach Homes is one of them and there’s eight total. And they each contributed an amount, a thousand dollars. And that gave us the ability to bring on almost 40 new Chamber members. And these members are so engaged and so excited and they’re so grateful that they got sponsored. And I just got off two meetings today and on each of those meetings there was about four or five of the MVP recipients. And they’re just super grateful and they’re just taking advantage of all the benefits the Chamber has. So we love to see that. And so thank and thank you to our other MVPs. And we kind of have a waiting list. So if anybody else wants to be an MVP go for it. And I hope that the MVPs have gotten a lot of fulfillment and reward out of it as well.
Ashlea Boyer:
Well, you know what it struck me as is that I’ve won things like this before. I’ve been lucky enough to win things like this before. And when you win something that someone else has sponsored, you take it a lot more seriously, almost. You value it a little bit more so you’re going to take advantage of all the program has to offer, versus maybe you listen to the pitch and you pay for it and you forget 50% of the items you were offered. But when it’s a gift, you really want to try everything out so you can see if it adds value going forward and everything. So I’m glad to hear that they’re all kind of inspired to take advantage of all the features. That’s neat, so.
Jocelyn Brennan:
Yeah. And I think also one thing that I’ve realized lately is how interconnected all the different business industries are. So we had salons where one of the businesses that really wanted to join that couldn’t afford it because at that time they weren’t even allowed to be open at all. And so you wouldn’t necessarily think a real estate company and a salon would go hand in hand, but it’s just been incredible to see how everyone’s supporting each other and how the community is supporting businesses too. Yeah. [crosstalk 00:07:18].
Ashlea Boyer:
Well we have to have that hair for those pictures on the business card.
Jocelyn Brennan:
[crosstalk 00:07:22] Actually, maybe those two do really go hand in hand. [crosstalk 00:07:24] That wasn’t a good example.Shannon Bowdey:
Yeah. We need nails too.
Jocelyn Brennan:
We need those salons.
Jordan Hamm:
Okay. So you’ve lived on the Central Coast for 25 years and have seen all the changes in our community. What have been some of your favorite things about living here?
Jocelyn Brennan:
Well, I don’t know. It’s hard to choose my favorite things about living here. I would have to say that just the natural beauty is amazing and we are so blessed and fortunate to live here. And we look at what’s going on in our state right now and I think everyone wants to come here because it’s amazingly beautiful. So I came up here to go to school and I never left and I am so glad that I was able to raise my family here.
I think one, I’m a total foodie so I love going out to eat. And there’s so many good restaurants that sometimes it’s just hard to choose and now they all have outdoor dining. So I love to go out to eat to all of our local restaurants. And then I love the beach. We have a canoe and we go take it out in Avila Beach and go over to the light house and go for a hike and stuff. So that’s probably one of my favorite activities, especially when there’s otters.
Jordan Hamm:
Oh yeah.
Jocelyn Brennan:
Yeah.
Jordan Hamm:
Mine too.
Shannon Bowdey:
Good. So I heard the Chamber is helping put in a California Welcome center in Pismo. Where’s that going and what will it offer?
Jordan Hamm:
Yeah, so it was there in the past. The California Welcome Center was at the Pismo Beach Premium Outlet right off the 101. A lot of people don’t know this, but it is the most visited California Welcome Center in the state of California. So I think there’s 22 in the state, a couple actually had to close permanently because of COVID so we might be down to under 20 in the state.
So that has been closed since October and in the past it’s been run and managed by the outlet mall and they came to us and said this isn’t really our wheelhouse and we’re not doing a great job at it. And so we talked with them and we talked to Visit SLO CAL, which is the county-wide marketing arm for San Luis Obispo County. And we talked to the city of Pismo Beach. And so we said, you know what, there’s a lot of potential here. This could be a great strategic spot to connect visitors with local businesses. And so we will be reopening it in October.
Well we’re doing some construction. So we’re updating it and refreshing the space. So we’re putting out an RFP for design for it and then I think the week of November 9th, we’re scheduled to have a grand reopening just in time for the holiday shopping. And so Visit SLO CAL and all the DMOs, the destination management organizations, are part of this, so the center will now represent each destination that you can go to within our county. And so a visitor can really stop there and they can come up with an itinerary to visit the whole county and see, maybe they want to go to the beach here and then maybe they want to go wine tasting in Paso. So they can really plan a trip and hopefully stay longer in our county and spend more money.
Ashlea Boyer:
Awesome.
Shannon Bowdey:
Love that.
Ashlea Boyer:
That’s awesome. That’ll be neat to see it evolve because it was kind of just almost like a living room for the restroom area. So it’ll probably look a lot better when you get done with it, so.
Jocelyn Brennan:
Yeah. We’re excited to see how it turns out and hopefully it’ll look a lot better and we’ll do some strategic marketing campaigns from there. So we’ll give away free stuff to visitors and really use it as a spot for businesses to advertise to those visitors that are just coming off the 101. And then we can really capitalize on all the marketing that Visit California does because Visit California spends a great deal of money marketing California to the entire world. And then they do a special series of marketing campaigns just for the California Welcome Centers, especially to those foreign travelers. So it’s really going to be a whole new space. I’m super excited about it.
Ashlea Boyer:
Awesome.
Shannon Bowdey:
Oh good.
Ashlea Boyer:
Okay. Well, in this unprecedented, a word we have heard a billion times, time. How has the Chamber had to pivot and how have they assisted their business members? I know we’ve already talked about the great MVP Program, but what other ways have you had to step in and kind of bridge the gap with your business members since the pandemic started?
Jocelyn Brennan:
Yeah, I will have to say it has been the most rewarding time to be a Chamber CEO because I think we have a lot of value when there isn’t a pandemic and there aren’t all these impacts to businesses. I think we have a lot of value, but right now in the circumstances that the businesses are in, I mean, we’re hearing some people we’ve never heard from before. This week on certain meetings, we have some business owners in tears and so we are there for them at every level. Sometimes it feels a little bit like a counseling session, but we’re here for them in that way.
So in March we had to pivot immediately to everything virtual, everything online. So the very first Zoom meeting I ever did, I think the very first time I ever used Zoom was that third week in March. The announcement had just been made and we had a webinar with the SBA and you wouldn’t believe we had 350 people on my first webinar. And really, honestly, I look back now I’m like, I didn’t know really what I was doing. And it’s amazing that it went as well as it did.
Ashlea Boyer:
Wow. Trial by fire.
Jordan Hamm:
Yeah.
Jocelyn Brennan:
So that was the first change was just doing everything virtually. So we have steering committees for every community as a regional Chamber. We have a Pismo Beach steering committee, Arroyo Grande, Nipomo, Oceano and Grover Beach. And so we took all those virtual and it’s actually easier for business owners to just hop online and participate because normally we would meet at a restaurant or in a conference room. So that’s been kind of nice for them to just… We’ve seen an uptick in participation on some of the meetings. But everyone, don’t get me wrong. We were really excited to go back to in person meetings when we can, but for now we’ve pivoted to virtual. And then I think the other thing that was really different for us is that some of our revenue streams as an organization were event based. And so we really had to rethink our budget. And so we’ve had to make some adjustments just like all the businesses have, but I don’t think it’s slowed us down at all.
And then the big thing that is different for us is that a lot of the businesses that maybe didn’t need our assistance before because they were so busy and they were so successful, suddenly our phone is ringing off the hook. And so we’re really trying to do everything we can for them. We’re doing a lot of advocacy. We’ve always done a lot of advocacy, but now it’s on a daily level. We’re constantly in touch with our representatives at the local, the state and the federal level to try to get the businesses the resources they need, and when it’s safe to get them to be able to open that up again.
Ashlea Boyer:
Awesome.
Jordan Hamm:
Well, it’s an election year and I’m assuming you were involved in past elections working as a District Director. Do you miss that at all.
Jocelyn Brennan:
I am so happy. What I loved about politics was I left helping people. I was in a position to be able to help people cut through all the red tape and really assist them. And I loved working with all the businesses and all the Chambers, and I really loved the land use issues and the advocacy issues. And so I still get to do all that minus a little bit of the drama. So it’s been perfect for me.
Jordan Hamm:
Perfect.
Jocelyn Brennan:
[crosstalk 00:15:13] We’re still very connected with all those, with the assembly district and also with County supervisors and of course with all our local city councils. And we are hosting the candidate forums. Our first one’s on the 29th. It is the Grover Beach Candidate Forum. That one’s at 4:00 because the presidential election or first debate is right after that.Ashlea Boyer:
Got it.
Jocelyn Brennan:
And then on Wednesday, the very next night, we’re hosting the Pismo Beach Candidate Forum, which is at 6:00 PM. And then the following night, we’re just doing a virtual meet and greet within incumbents from Arroyo Grande because there were no challengers there. So we’re doing them back to back Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, 4:00, 6:00, and 6:00.
Ashlea Boyer:
Oh, that’s awesome. I like the fact that you’re giving the AG incumbent some time to talk.
Jordan Hamm:
Yeah.
Ashlea Boyer:
Because while it’s good to not have any challengers, it’s probably also good to get out there and repeat your message, so.
Jocelyn Brennan:
Yeah. And it’s going to be a new year, especially with COVID. So they want to talk about that and hear from the community what those challenges are. And I like to see every election. I like to see there be a variety. I like to see there be challengers because I just think that’s good for democracy. So since there wasn’t this year, we thought, well we’ll at least give them the opportunity to connect with their constituents.
Jordan Hamm:
Yeah.
Ashlea Boyer:
That’s awesome.
Jordan Hamm:
Love it.
Ashlea Boyer:
I was wondering if there was any other topics or events that you would like to bring up before we finish our chat?
Jocelyn Brennan:
No, just thank you so much for doing this. You guys are doing an amazing job. I look forward to watching these. I’m going to have to binge watch them because I’ve gotten pretty behind, but I know that you have some fellow foodies on here too.
Jordan Hamm:
Yeah.
Jocelyn Brennan:
So that’s always fun for me to watch.
Ashlea Boyer:
Yeah.
Jocelyn Brennan:
[crosstalk 00:16:54] Doing a great job and thank you for being MVPs. And I am hearing from our real estate businesses that things are looking good right now. And I just hope that they stay that way for a long time.Jordan Hamm:
Us too.
Ashlea Boyer:
Yes.
Shannon Bowdey:
Yes.
Ashlea Boyer:
We didn’t enjoy the last recession. We will take a pass on that.
Shannon Bowdey:
Yeah.
Jordan Hamm:
Yeah.
Ashlea Boyer:
And hopefully, I mean, what I’m hoping is that our industry, hopefully will be able to maybe help the rest of the economy, bridge the gap a little bit. Maybe we’ll be sort of ballasts for the ship in this storm. So, but thank you so much for coming on.
Jordan Hamm:
Yeah, thanks Jocelyn. [crosstalk 00:17:34]
Ashlea Boyer:
I really appreciate you making the time.
Shannon Bowdey:
Thank you. [crosstalk 00:17:37]
Jocelyn Brennan:
Yes, absolutely. And thank you Shannon for being an ambassador. I should’ve said that at the beginning.
Shannon Bowdey:
Oh that’s okay. No, thanks very much. [crosstalk 00:17:43] Yeah.
Jocelyn Brennan:
Thank you for your time.
Shannon Bowdey:
Wonderful. I’m jealous of your background. Vivian Krug, is that who did that photo?
Jocelyn Brennan:
Yes. That’s one of hers. I like to pretend that I’m this person sitting on the bench right there.
Shannon Bowdey:
Yeah.
Ashlea Boyer:
Yeah. [crosstalk 00:17:54] That’s an amazing picture.
Shannon Bowdey:
If I had that photo, I would put my head right center of that sun because it’s very Beyonce-esq.
Jocelyn Brennan:
[crosstalk 00:18:01] I’m not sure.Ashlea Boyer:
I love it.
Jordan Hamm:
Queen.
Jocelyn Brennan:
All right. Well thank you ladies.
Ashlea Boyer:
Thanks Jocelyn.
Jordan Hamm:
Bye Jocelyn.
Shannon Bowdey:
Bye.
Jocelyn Brennan:
Bye.
Ashlea Boyer:
This is Ashlea Boyer.
Jordan Hamm:
Jordan Hamm.
Shannon Bowdey:
And Shannon Bowdey with the Pismo Beach Homes Team.
Jordan Hamm:
With the Pismo Beach Homes Team.
Ashlea Boyer:
With the Pismo Beach Homes Team.