Nico Samaniego, president and CEO of the Lorain County Chamber of Commerce, delves into his vision for Lorain County, how the Chamber can boost local businesses, his favorite spots in Lorain County and more.
What does it mean to you to be named the leader of the Lorain County Chamber of Commerce?
Nico Samaniego: It was an incredible honor. Understanding that Lorain County is a county with so much opportunity and so much momentum and to be able to contribute toward that work is incredibly exciting.
What are your vision and goals for the organization as its new leader? And how can the Chamber enhance businesses in Lorain County?
NS: We’re here to support the broader business community, our members and the communities that make up Lorain County.
We want to support and connect businesses and act as a third-party resource to all businesses, like an extended staff that is on call, ready to support them with whatever challenges they’re facing. Or connect them to people who can solve those problems.
For our broader community, we want to shape and invest. We want to construct programs that address key gaps in the market. For example, with Main Street Lorain and the Lorain Port & Finance Authority, we held a downtown development symposium because we recognize there’s a large first floor retail vacancy on Broadway in Lorain, and we said, ‘Let’s bring together great minds, folks who know this space well, and come up with a solution together.’
We plan to launch a number of additional events and programs that are in areas of opportunity in Lorain County. From small business development to bringing together young professionals from across Lorain County. There is real opportunity to build on the great momentum already happening.
We also want to invest in organizations that are spread throughout the community. So, what does our financial support look like? What does our time support look like?
We also want to make sure that when people are getting on social media, what they’re seeing about Lorain County is positive, uplifting and tells a true story of all the great things happening in Lorain County.
What has been your favorite part of being involved with the organization?
NS: Getting to know all the leaders of these different organizations that are working nonstop to make their community a better place. There are so many different organizations spread throughout the county, so it’s been amazing to meet those folks and see how they are all interconnected with one another and working together to solve the problems that are facing their community.
What do you love most about Lorain County?
NS: Lorain County is truly a microcosm of America in the sense that you have urban cities, you have suburbs and then you have rural communities, all within one county. I can go from sitting on the lake to sitting in a dense downtown to sitting on a front porch from where I can see out for 200 acres.
What are some of your favorite spots within Lorain County?
NS: I grab food to go and eat in Ely Square in Elyria often. I am known to walk up and down Broadway in Lorain; I love the streetscape that they just did there. I also go to The Slow Train Cafe in Oberlin and Wellington’s Bread-N-Brew. There are so many different little communities in Lorain County, and I’ve started to collect my little go-to places in all of them.
