Brooklyn Business BROOKLYN-USA.ORG
Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce announces its
plans for the future of Kings County business
The new head of the Brooklyn Chamber
of Commerce laid out his ambitious
vision for the future of the
small business-boosting enterprise on
Wednesday — promising to improve
the landscape for the borough’s momand
pop shops.
“It’s my sincere pledge that we will
strengthen the borough’s business community
and build the best Brooklyn we
can build,” said Randy Peers. “That
starts with promoting our businesses,
pushing back on anti-small business
policies and producing new initiatives
that support job creation and economic
development in the borough.”
Peers — who took the reigns of the
chamber in September — said the
101-year-old organization needed to
adapt to better serve the high-growth
industries like tech and real estate.
“We are defi nitely not your grandfather’s
Chamber of Commerce,” Peers
told the crowd at the chamber’s annual
trade show on Oct. 23.
The newly minted chamber president
ONE BROOKLYN | W 10 INTER 2019–2020
used the event, which was held at
Gargiulo’s restaurant in Coney Island,
to unveil several initiatives aimed at
promoting economic growth — including
the formation of a political action
committee to back “pro-business” policies.
Peers also revealed the free-marketcentric
“Brooklyn Onward” — a print
magazine dedicated to covering the local
economy.
Perhaps most exciting for Kings
County entrepreneurs, chamber honchos
announced their plans to become
a “Community Development Financial
Institution,” which will allow them
to dole out micro loans to small businesses
that would typically not qualify
for funds from larger banks.
Peers joins the chamber leadership
team boasting a long resume — having
previously worked as the organization’s
number-two and chaired Brooklyn
Community Board Seven, before heading
out of town for a two-year stint as an
economic guru in Berks County, Pa.
Randy Peers, the new president of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce.
Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce
Handmade in Brooklyn
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