Skip to main content

chamber of commerce

Chamber of Commerce Award: Business of the Year, Max Pies Furniture

By Joanne Beck

chamberwardsfeb172023.jpg

Squirrels, a dead-end street across from an elementary school, and the four seasons.

Those have been some of the challenges being situated in a fairly remote — and animal-friendly — section of the city in Western New York for Phil and Steve Pies over the years, Steve says.

Yet despite that and the typical ups and downs of retail business, Max Pies Furniture has endured 118 years since its settling into that comfy spot at the end of Jackson Street in 1905. Founder Max Pies and family built not only a small business but also their home, and the place was handed down to now Steve, the fourth generation of the Pies family.

No wonder they have earned the Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Award. And there’s no other place they would have continued the tradition that began for furniture and flooring sales.

“As far as this structure and this business from this location, it’s the same location. Obviously, they added on to the store since 1905. But the original location and their house were in the parking lot you pulled into,” Steve Pies said. “They went all over the board from Rochester to Buffalo, and I think even close to Syracuse at one point in the 80s. Rochester Linoleum bought out all of the flooring aspects. But the furniture, even though we do flooring here as well, the original furniture store Max Pies name started right here.”

And they both must have just naturally fallen right in line with the business, yes?

"Well, not really,” Phil said. “I went to college, then I was in the Air Force. And then my uncle was here at the time, and my dad.”

Phil was married with two children, Steve and Natalie, and living in Sacramento, Calif. at the time. After his Uncle Jake died, he ended up returning to Batavia and worked alongside his dad, Sam. Business must have been good for longevity: his grandfather worked until he died at 93, and the same for his father until he was 83. Phil has been the friendly face of Max Pies for the last 53 years.

It was a similar crooked path for Steve, who didn’t immediately return from college to join the family business. He went off to pursue a business degree at Plattsburgh State College, and something drew his attention to working on a cruise ship — he had visions of “Love Boat” — and went aboard to work as a Blackjack dealer and then worked around Nevada in casinos building a career as a card dealer.

He eventually returned and decided to help his dad, who turns 80 in May. They thought back to what has changed over the years, and certainly, costs have been a big one.

“Freight rates have changed, insurance, overhead,” Phil said. “And styles, we sold a lot of colonial, and now we sell a lot more modern styles.”

Steve added that retro comes and goes, but a shift that has added time, labor and unexpected expenses has been how furniture arrives now versus years ago.

“It used to be all assembled,” Steve said. “Now it’s called KD, for knockdown. It's, take them off the truck, unpack them out of the box, set them up with screws and a drill and dispose of the garbage. It's a lot more tedious.”

While costs have shot up on their end, the waste management business is booming. The Pies have a 40-yard roll-off Dumpster that costs $800, and sometimes it gets filled three times a month with styrofoam and boxes, Steve said. For the most part, they depend on sales reps for advice and guidance on what’s trending, what’s hot, and what to buy throughout the year, Steve said.

“My dad has a good relationship with a lot of our reps. The reps know what’s out there,” he said. “But we try to have a variety as well because, you know, you’ve got 20-year-old couples, and you’ve got 70-year-old people and you’ve got in between, and there's such a different dynamic.”

A walk through the downstairs showroom features a painter’s pallet of gray hues — from charcoal and slate to lighter silvers. Grays are definitely in right now, the father-son team agreed, and other hot items include power recliners, sleeper sofas and sectionals. They will cater to people’s tastes, but with a focus on this locale, Steve said.

For example, unlike more eclectic geographical areas such as New York City, this region has a mixed appetite that includes a lot of rural country.

“We have hunters, they want the classic. They want a camouflage recliner, they want a rocking chair, and a certain bedroom set that looks like a plank cabin look,” Steve said, adding that there was a camouflage recliner in stock that day just waiting for an avid hunter.

For the approximately $2.5 million of sales volume they accomplish, the staff is small, Steve said: seven people, including Jimmy, Peggy, Eddie, Reggie and Hunter, plus subcontractors. Hours have been reduced over the years, especially when COVID hit, from a crazy 9 to 9 schedule to 9 to 7 and then 9 to 5 work day, Steve said.

“The biggest challenge for a store like ours in a town like this in a state like this is we deliver furniture winter, spring, summer and fall. We've gone through roofs, we've gone through windows, we take off doors, we go up and down. We unload trucks in blizzards. And we have a building that has, you know, leaky roofs. We have squirrels … so I would say, having an old building and four seasons,” he said. “And I would also say that if you look at our location, you could arguably say this is the worst location on planet Earth for a retail furniture store, dead-end residential neighborhood across from an elementary school. That's my long-winded answer to the challenges.

“ (Turning to his dad) But you’ve been here 53 years. So yeah, there was a time where my dad said, the accountants used to say, ‘you made too much money this year, you got to do something with it.’ And there's been other times where we can't pay our bills,” Steve said. “So it's a very cyclical business in the notion of, you just gotta keep grinding and keep going. It is what it is. So there still are heydays, and there still are lows, and there still are in between.”

Given it is a “cyclical business” that definitely still experiences those good times of Batavia’s yesteryear, what’s the secret? Max Pies motto, Steve said, giving a nod to his dad.

“Where customers send their friends,” he said.

The nomination committee selected Max Pies, partly due to Steve’s “tremendous” contributions for bringing the business “into the 2000s” via online ordering and a website, excellent customer service and marketing the business in many unique ways.

Photo of Steve and Phil Pies at Max Pies Furniture store at 400 S. Jackson St., Batavia. Photo by Howard Owens.

Chamber of Commerce Award: Special Service Recognition, GO ART!

By Joanne Beck

chamberwardsfeb172023-4.jpg

Sitting in the Batavia GO ART! building next to a white baby grand piano with walls of artwork and embracing a definite quiet, creative vibe, Gregory Hallock shares his journey since arriving seven years ago.

It really couldn’t have gotten much worse.

“Yes, we were in a 'save the organization mode.' We were doing really bad. We were in the red. So we were trying to get ourselves out of it. And I made the decision, with the support of my board, to spend money that we didn't have so that we could be seen in the community and start to do stuff so people would know what we do because people don't like to support a bleeding organization. We needed to show that we were doing more than just bleeding,” said Hallock, who was promoted to executive director two years later. “So we started doing classes and activities and a whole bunch of stuff so that people would start talking about us. And I started applying for a ton of grants. And we received a lot, but not a ton. Like 20 percent of the grants.”

Some of the new initiatives were children’s creative arts camp weekends, a Ramble Explore Art tent, regularly opening the kitchen and bar, and obtaining a liquor license at Tavern 2.0.1, which has worked handily for drawing more customers in and selling more art — nearly two dozen pieces for a record at a recent exhibit, Hallock said.

The nonprofit has also substantially increased grants it disperses to the community — going from $47,000 to $210,000 for artistic endeavors.

“I tell people that honestly, if you go to something artistic in Genesee or Orleans County, there's a really strong chance that we sponsored it, that we gave it funding to happen. We've been really working at letting people know they think of GO ART! as go ART!, as a cheer. And trying to show the GO stands for Genesee Orleans,” he said. “So we don't just do stuff in support. We now create stuff ourselves. Every single one of my employees is an artist, as well. We all have that background and want to be able to enjoy what we do at the same time. You know, we're good at the admin stuff. But we also love art. So we bring that in.”

chamberwardsfeb172023-6.jpg

GO ART!, the oft-used acronym for Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council, captures the two-county organization. However, Batavia has a bustling site with galleries, exhibits and receptions, a kitchen, bar, comedy shows, kids’ activities, bartender competition fundraisers, music, and other special events on a regular basis.

In the earlier days, upon Hallock’s arrival, there was one gallery and office space, he said. Now, in addition to those offerings above, there are seven galleries, a film studio, a podcast studio, library, stage, makeup studio, a culinary program, classes and demonstrations, and there’s no point in stopping now.

“We’re whole-heartedly looking at adding additional space here in Batavia and in Medina. We're currently working on these two spaces so that we can expand and offer a lot more programming. Because we're also looking into mental health. Where the community, the world, is in a big space for needing mental health stuff. So we're talking like we'd love to have music therapists, art therapists, and are trying to get it, so we have a lot more available,” Hallock said. “A bigger gallery, like on the level of competing with major galleries in Rochester and Buffalo, you know? We're trying to do a bigger coffee shop, artists and shop, little boutique clothing place. I mean, there are so many things that we want to add to it so that it's an immersive experience. And then if you're coming for one thing specific, hopefully, you'll see that there's so many other things happening. We really want to be arts -- we want to be a community arts and cultural center, not just an arts and cultural center. So that's where we're going.”

Except he wouldn’t disclose exactly where they’d be going.

“Everybody keeps saying, ‘well, we're halfway between Rochester and Buffalo.’ So I want this to be the reason that people come from Rochester and Buffalo to Batavia because we do amazing arts and cultural activities,” he said.

GO ART! supports the arts, cultural and wide-ranging diversity programs, he said, such as religious, LGBTQ, Black Lives, Just Kings, and various support group organizations.

“We will work with anybody,” he said. “What we do is for anyone, as long as they will work with anyone.”

He referred to a mural on the building’s backside, dotted with faces representing various ethnicities and cultures. Yet to be completed, he said, it is something he wanted as a way to let the public know “all are welcomed here.”

The organization more recently produced a printed calendar of GO ART! events and is mulling the idea of including additional arts organization events as well for a quarterly edition. The site has gaining speed through word of mouth, Hallock said, as he’s been getting phone calls and emails from folks who have heard about GO ART! and want to visit. The list of members has grown from about 150 to 200, as just the beginning.

“We’re hoping to get a marketing director in March,” he said, adding that one doesn’t need to be a member to participate in events, but it provides discounts on the myriad of year-round activities. New happenings have included a Peruvian dinner fundraiser, an RIT animation program, a murder mystery event with a charcuterie board and desserts.

Established in 1962 and quite active in the last few decades, Hallock finds it difficult to hear people say they’ve never heard of GO ART! Thankfully, many other organizations have stepped up to help out with cleaning the 7,000-square-foot site, including Arc GLOW, BOCES, and the Senior Center’s RSVP program.

“I had a lady just call today asking, ‘how can I help, what can I do?’” he said. “When I started, it was just me and a volunteer at 30 hours a week. We didn’t have funding to pay anyone else. Now we have four full-time staff and two part-time staff, and a full-time marketing director to be hired, and a GLOW folklorist.”

The nomination committee selected GO ART! for the dramatic change in perception and recognition of the organization in the past six years, a nomination form states.

“It has become an active, vital member of the community. For years it was a marginal part of the community, city. The acquisition of the old Batavia Club was a drain on the resources of the council,” it states. “The building has been transformed from an occasional glance by people to a place that is well known. With the organization's dream and vision, the building has grown from only using 30 percent of the space to now utilizing the entire building. While keeping the integrity of the historic structure, each room is now a space for the arts - visual, performing, media and culinary. Every time one visits, there is something new that excites. GO ART! is deserving of recognition for the tireless and "out of the box" vision of the arts and culture in our community.” 

Top Photo: GO ART! Executive Director Gregory Hallock takes a seat in the foyer of the nonprofit at 201 East Main St., Batavia, and the talented staff gathers for a pose from left, Angie Dickson, Gregory Hallock, Jodi Fisher and Mary Jo Whitman. Photos by Howard Owens.

Chamber of Commerce Award: Innovation Enterprise of the Year, Empire Hemp

By Joanne Beck

empriehempchamber2023-6.jpg

Sinus steamers, muscle mousse and scrubby bars may not seem to be your typical hemp and cannabis company products, but they’re exactly a reason why Empire Hemp Co. has become so popular in its field.

“We create a lot of unique products you wouldn’t find in other stores,” Chief Operating Officer Shelly Wolanske said. “In order to keep current, we’re constantly coming up with new ideas for products.”

The company, based on the first floor of 34 Swan St. and expanding into 23,000 square feet that includes the second floor for production and storage, with a retail store at 204 East Main St. in downtown Batavia, has been selected for the Chamber of Commerce Innovative Enterprise of the Year Award. While Chief Executive Officer Chris Van Dusen and Wolanske were surprised, they agree the type of business is all about being innovative.

empriehempchamber2023.jpg

“We’re the first cannabis business in Genesee County,” he said. “As far as what we’ve come from and where we’ve gone to, we ordered a lot of equipment and brought on a lot of investors to fund that expansion. We are so we have our whole line of adult-use cannabis products or THC products, and those include pre-rolled ‘cones,’ gummies and vape cartridges and flour. We needed the new equipment to do those products and locked down the gummy recipe. We just took our first orders for gummies to dispensaries in New York.

“As we’ve grown the business, we’ve had to learn each aspect of the business, start off with CBD, and we have to learn not only the regulations and the state compliances, but we also have to learn how does the machinery work? What's the most efficient way for them to work, train employees, and, there's all these different nuances around it, that's part of growing a business,” Van Dusen said.

There has been no blueprint to follow, Shelly added, no trailblazer ahead of them to follow. They’ve been the trailblazers, forging their way through the state regulations, certifications, inspections and protocols to ensure they’re doing things the right way.

“It’s been trial and error; we’ve figured this out; regulations and testing’s been a challenge,” Van Dusen said.

They’ve had to find out through trial and error how to do things as efficiently as possible, when it was time to recruit and hire more staff, and what products were hot or not. Making gummies, for example, might seem like an easy task, and yet it took one and a half years to perfect the recipe, Wolanske said. They worked with different preservatives and flavorings, and it came out either too mushy or too stiff and took a lot of adjustments to get it to the chewy, gummy consistency they wanted.

There have been other challenges, including a lawsuit right now in New York State that’s holding up deliveries from dispensaries.

“That’s a whole other challenge we’re working on,” Van Dusen said. “We’re constantly solving problems. It’s exciting but challenging at the same time.”

They raised “a substantial” amount of money to buy equipment for their production needs and hired five people in the last three months to work at the store. One goal is to educate people about their products while the field has dwindled in certain arenas, Wolanske said.

“It takes a certain attitude. There’s an ebb and flow,” she said. “There’s very few of us left from the CBD days.”

empriehempchamber2023-3.jpg

Despite all of the hurdles, Van Dusen sees that “the opportunity in front of us is really incredible.”

“We’re really excited about where we are going with the expansion. We're quadrupling our footprint. That's our next phase of focus, how we're going to build that out. And then we have to get it okayed by the state, and then we have to get it Good Manufacturing Practices certified before we can start production out there,” Van Dusen said. “So we have to clean it, we have to paint it. And we have to then have a consultant come in and make sure we have everything ready for our audits for both the state and from the third party auditor to make sure that we're in compliance.”

The plan is to fill up that upstairs space with an indoor growth facility and keep rolling together as a cohesive group.

“Any little step is a huge step for us,” Wolanske said. “Everybody we’ve hired so far is part of the team. They’re in.”

And so, too — obviously — have Van Dusen and Wolanske been in since the beginning, which began long before they founded Empire Hemp and planted their first site on Swan Street in 2019 and then opened the store in April 2020 downtown.

Their award nominations included articles about the early days of Wolanske, whose path to the hemp industry brought her by way of being a policy-maker in the alcohol and substance abuse and prevention field, and Van Dusen as an entrepreneur, furniture maker, contractor, bicycle mechanic, tour guide, and father of three, whose history with cannabis dated back to the nineties during his battle with cancer. It was the intense effects of chemotherapy, in particular, that pushed him to explore alternative methods of recovery from the side effects of Hodgkin's Lymphoma treatment. 

"During that time, California had just legalized medical marijuana for cancer and AIDS patients, and I was having a tough time with chemotherapy," he said. "It relieved nausea and the terrible feeling I had from the chemicals being pushed through my veins and allowed me to have a level of normalcy in my life. It was like night and day, and I could go back to work. I knew at that point there was something about this plant that had some serious healing. It was life-changing." 

Fast forward to 2020, when COVID hit, and the couple learned another form of survival during pandemic shutdowns. Nomination forms included yet other articles about the tenacity of Van Dusen and Wolanske to operate a walk-up window, followed by the opening of their store, which was a success. While some places have merely posted a sign, it’s not as easy — or legal — as that, Van Dusen has said, wanting to clarify and educate the truth for consumers to know in further articles, all used as part of the nomination process.

empriehempchamber2023-4.jpg

Top Photo: Chris Van Dusen, founder and Co-founder Shelly Wolanske at their Empire Hemp shop on East Main Street, Batavia, and several of their self-created products. Photos by Howard Owens.

Chamber Awards: Agricultural Business of the Year, Fenton's Produce

By Joanne Beck

fentonchamberawards2023-2.jpg

When Paul and Gail Fenton met in Pembroke High School and were fellow 1981 graduates, she had a grand vision for her future: to be a news reporter, live in the big city and drive a red Corvette.

Marrying a lifelong farmer meant erasing a few of those high school girl daydreams, Gail says.

“I now live in the country, I farm and drive a red pickup. So it went complete opposite of what I was thinking,” she said. "So, in fact, I had a couple of jobs right after we got married. And I got pregnant with our oldest in ’87. And it was shortly after it was that summer that Paul was like, ‘You know what, I think we could make a run of the farm, you and I both working on the farm. And now that I live on a farm, I was like, You know what, I don't know if I would have enjoyed living in the city. I know it was nice with this occupation because I wasn't technically labeled a stay-at-home mom, but I had all the perks of a stay-at-home mom, I got to do all the field trips with the kids … not many families nowadays eat three meals a day together, but we were able to do that.”

What she and Paul got, instead of a life in the city, was a life of pursuing the family tradition, living off the land, meeting Mother Nature’s unexpected challenges, changing with the times, learning new technologies and methods, and making a real go of Fenton’s Produce.

The Batavia-based company, which operates three sites of 60 acres along Pratt Road, is the recipient of this year’s Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Agricultural Business of the Year Award. When Gail took the phone call, she heard a man say he was a lawyer, and she thought ‘what have we done?’ It was tense few moments until he mentioned that she and Paul had won an award, she admitted.

They were surprised, but recognize that small certainly doesn’t mean bland or cookie-cutter.

“We’re just a tiny farm,” Gail said. “We grow all kinds of stuff. “Anything new coming out, we’ll try it.”

“We like being our own bosses. This type of farming, every day is different, by 8 a.m. you’re headed in a different direction. We never do the same thing all day,” Paul said. “It’s provided us with a decent income, our health, it’s a physical job that keeps us in shape, you get to see things that most people don’t get to see … a critter, the sunset, a sunrise. I’m carrying on my grandfather’s and uncles’ hard work.”

They sat in their home, circa 1830s and situated in the middle of the main farm. It is the original homestead of his uncles, surname Kiefer, who ran the establishment before selling it to Paul and Gail. They wanted to follow in the family's footsteps with a variety of cash crops, as Uncles Fred and Louis, and his grandparent’s blueberries on Route 5.

Look for the Fenton’s farmstand on Pratt Road during the warmer months, and produce also fills shelves at Tops in Batavia, Le Roy and East Aurora, and seasonally at the East Aurora Farmers Market. The couple is not afraid to try new produce — asparagus, five varieties of potatoes, peppers, brussels sprouts, broccolini, kale, beets, and new this season, hanging strawberry baskets and other vegetation.

fentonchamberawards2023-3.jpg

“We start in the spring with transplants, and have slowly added other stuff,” Gail said. “We’ve had to adjust. We’re headed more towards broccolini and root crops and away from winter squash. People love whatever’s easy to make.”

Along with following trends and current demand, the Fentons have turned to the mechanics of farming to help reduce the need for labor, since finding it can be difficult, and they cannot do everything — or lift hefty weights — themselves.

“It wasn’t a big deal to get a group of teenagers out on the field, now … it’s a juggling act with our labor. We are seasonal, there’s just not that much work,” he said. “We’re surrounded by multiple-acre farms. We are the small family farm.  We’ve had to adjust what we can do, and get mechanical help.”

“I used to have a T-shirt -- it said, 'farming is not just a job; it's a lifestyle.' And that's true. Yeah, we live this job 24/7. If you look at our place, our house sits in the center of our farm. We don't get away from the farm. You don't walk in the house, you don't close the door, and you're done for the day. There's something that could come up at two o'clock in the morning that you're going to have to go turn to,” Paul said.

“Paul always jokes that he has Bontrager on speed dial,” Gail said.

Another saying that Gail joked about sheds some light on the sentimental aspect of the business that's near and dear to their hearts: We’ll expire before we retire.

Paul and Gail were nominated for bringing “a sharp business focus to their cropping approach, seeking out and adopting efficiency-improving equipment. They have an eye for innovation and understanding emerging trends.”

“Take, for instance, their early adoption of food safety practices and GAPS certification. Fentons also position themselves ahead of the curve when it comes to new production techniques - they are a key part of developing them! For decades they have been a generous host farm for Cornell research trials. In 2022 alone, they cared for two variety trials, tested a laser scarecrow, and hosted the regional sweet corn pest monitoring traps.”

Paul and Gail are extremely observant and thoughtful crop managers, Fenton's Produce has a reputation for fabulous product, whether that be flowers, blueberries, or vegetables, and they foster a fun, informative, laid-back, and personalized experience for their retail customers, the nomination states.

“Paul and Gail are extremely community oriented. They truly want to see everyone be successful as growers and open their farm up to share their knowledge with others. They've hosted many field days over the years. Paul often adds on his own after-meeting tour, often to check out his favorite cultivating equipment,” it states. “They are also frequent hosts for tours of their farm from Leadership Genesee to Decision Makers. Their passion for agriculture is evident when speaking to the public about their business.” 

fentonchamberawards2023.jpg

Paul and Gail Fenton at their homestead farm on Pratt Road in Batavia, working in their greenhouse, and one of the five varieties of potatoes that they grow. Photos by Howard Owens.

Vendor space available at 2023 Home Show in April

By Press Release

homeshow2022-7_1.jpg

Press release:

The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce is calling for vendors to participate in our 2023 Home Show on April 14,15,16, 2023.  Seeking a variety of vendors:  Home Improvement, Realty, Lawn Equipment, Farm Equipment, Windows and Doors Gutters and Siding, Entertainment, Home Goods, etc.

The Home Show will be held at the David McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena, 22 Evans Street, Batavia.  This 8th Annual event brings together 2,500 people over the course of three days.

Interested vendors will need to return the application and booth fees by March 10th to be included in advertisements. Applications can be downloaded from the Chamber's website at https://geneseeny.com/home-show/ and are available at the Chamber's office, 8276 Park Road.  Space is limited and on a first-come basis. 

Photo: File photo from 2022 show by Howard Owens

Photo: New chamber president meets members at Eli Fish

By Howard B. Owens

briancousins.jpg

Brian Cousins, the new president of the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, mingles with local business owners and community leaders on Thursday at Eli Fish Brewing Co. at a meet-and-greet set up so community members who might not yet have met Cousins could get a chance to shake his hand and say hello.

He's been on the job for about a month so we asked him the best part of the job so far, and the worst part.

"The best part is learning something new every day," Cousins said. "The worst part is learning something new every single day."

Previously: Second career path means representing 'best place on earth' for former Darien Lake executive

Celebrate Ag Dinner scheduled for March 25, tickets going fast

By Press Release

sunsetsjune112016.jpg

Press release:

Plans are well underway for the 19th Annual Celebrate Agriculture Dinner which will take place Saturday, March 25, 2023 at 6 pm at the Alexander Fire Hall. This annual event is a celebration of Genesee County’s #1 Industry, Agriculture! The highlight of the night is a delicious meal using locally produced foods prepared by the Culinary Arts Students from the Batavia Career and Technical Education Center. Let by Chef Tracy Burgio and Denise Kaus, Culinary Arts teacher aide, this will be the second year of this perfect collaboration between the Chamber’s Agricultural Committee & Culinary Arts Program. The dinner is open to the public.

Tickets go on sale December 5th at the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, 8276 Park Road, Batavia. Tickets are $30 each or a table of 10 can be purchased for $275. Sponsorships are also available which help support agriculture educational events in Genesee County. Only 400 tickets will be sold. Please RSVP BY MARCH 17, 2023. For more information or to download the registrations flyer visit the Chamber’s Website www.geneseeny.com.

The Celebrate Ag Dinner is coordinated by the following partners: Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Genesee County, Genesee County Soil & Water Conservation District and Genesee County Farm Bureau.

Sponsors of the 2022 celebration included: Alleghany Farm Services, Arctic Refrigeration, Baskin Livestock, Inc., Carolina Eastern Crocker, CPL, New York State Senator Edward Rath, Farm Credit East, Farm Family Insurance, Fieldstone Private Wealth, Five Star Bank, Freed Maxick CPA, Growmark-FS, L&M Specialty Fabrications, LLC, Lamb Farms, Lawley, My-T Acres, National Grid, OXBO International, Perry Veterinary Clinic, Scott Adams Trucking, Tompkins Community Bank, Torrey Farms, Western New York Energy, LLC, Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc. William Kent, Inc. and Windy Acres Farm.

Farms and businesses that donated locally grown food for the 2022 dinner included: Angry Bees Apiary, Dorman Farms, Fenton’s Produce, SJ Starowitz Farms, Torrey Farms, Upstate Farms, Harrington Produce, Farm Fresh First Inc. Star of the West, Jeremy Neal Poverty Hill Farms. 

 File photo by Howard Owens

Second career path means representing 'best place on earth' for former Darien Lake executive

By Joanne Beck

def5c17b-9f5a-4808-aa36-e36bbb501668.jpeg

As someone who has traveled to 40 countries, Brian Cousins seems steeped in perspective when it comes to judging his own residence.

And he has deemed Genesee County as a top place to live.

“The strengths that I see, really, I can kind of equate a little bit to my personal life. Cherie and I have traveled quite extensively, but every time we come home, we've physically looked to each other and said that we live in the best place on earth. It's got the best climate. It's got the best area. You can either stay in the city of Batavia or one of the villages and kind of have that village environment or that close but not overwhelming metropolitan feel," he said during an interview Friday with The Batavian. "Or you could be out in a rural area and have your space and be able to relax. So we've got the four seasons that play very well ... Agriculture obviously is the number one industry in the county, which is great because people always need to eat.”

It’s important for Cousins to care about the county’s attributes, given that he is the new president of the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce as of Dec. 19. A longtime employee of various departments — from seasonal and sales to marketing, entertainment and his most recent position as director of accommodations — at Six Flags Darien Lake, the Corfu resident steadily grew professionally from his four seasonal gigs and then a first full-time job working as an inside sales rep.

Initially thinking he would work the mic for a radio station after testing the waters at Genesee Community College and then pursuing Communications at Fredonia State College, Cousins eventually followed the trail that led to a steady job. And then to a successful career at Darien Lake, where he comfortably remained for 25 years.

There’s also the other important element of meeting his wife Cherie. She also worked at Darien Lake.

“She was working there seasonally and has worked there seasonally ever since. So that's been kind of near and dear to my heart. Obviously, whatever place you meet your significant other that will always mean something to you,” he said. “She was a Pembroke graduate. She had never worked at the park until the couple of years that I met her there. So that was kind of neat. She's obviously local. And we still live in Corfu.”

So why leave now?

That’s an interesting question, he said. He has shared a similar career story with former President Tom Turnbull and Chris Suozzi of the county Economic Development Center, Cousins said.

“You get to a point in your career and in your life that you stop, and you kind of take a look around you, and you say, ‘Where have I been? What have I been doing? And what do I want to do for the rest of my, working career?’ And I … was going to work for Darien Lake until, you know, retirement age,” he said. “But as you stop and you kind of do a little self-reflection, and you realize, you've lived in a county for the majority of my life, all my career working age life, and you look around, and you've been working so hard, but you don't really know anybody in the county or, you know, places around it.”

So he thought about his time with Leadership Genesee back in 2018, and how he worked alongside so many business people to effect change or help people achieve what they’re trying to do. Being a glass-half-full kind of guy, Cousins saw the Chamber vacancy as an opportunity for a whole new “second path career” to do those things again.

“The Chamber job checked all those boxes. And so that was what really drew me to it,” he said.

There were long conversations with Cherie, he said, since their current lifestyle has been two and a half decades. On the other hand, it “quite literally feels like a blink of an eye.”

His first two weeks have meant learning everything “from soup to nuts” from Interim President Tom Turnbull, “basically showing me everything that I  needed to know, the high-level stuff,” Cousins said.

“I really look forward to trying to make sure that I protect this place and carry on in his footsteps and make him just as proud of the organization as he was when he was here,” Cousins said. “The staff is incredible here. They just want to work hard. So out of six people here, four of us are new within this las year … And what’s great about it is everyone’s open. And people are here with that interest, and industrial knowledge to be able to show us the way.”

He hasn’t always been what he now describes as a “happy-go-lucky person,” but the 49-year-old has learned that you can only control so much in life, and there comes a point when you have to let things go.

“And if you let those things get you down that you can't control, then you can never overcome those things that you can control,” he said.

What he can control are drafting goals and a to-do list that include observing how the staff works together as an overall organization and creating an “incredibly strong team,” he said.

“First and foremost is learning what has been done before, seeing how it works, understanding how it works, and talking with not just the staff here, but talking with the board, listening to what they would like to achieve and seeing what they would like to do and understanding what has worked and what hasn't," he said. "But also talk to all the members and seeing why they liked the chamber, how it helps." 

Part of his philosophy is to have a vision, and he sees the Chamber embracing customer service for everyone -- no matter if from out of county or from Canada -- and providing proper and accurate information.

“To somebody that is having a business challenge that walks into the door and wants to talk about a different resource or something else that we could do for them — just being able to lean together as a team to be able to answer that call,” he said.

Cousins believes in systems — systematically addressing issues and operational elements, he said. That being said, he also has an open door policy with communication as a tried and true tenet, “the lifeblood,” of any organization, he said.

There will be a change in one of his routines, and that’s his and his wife’s travel schedule. They typically have had to work around Darien’s busy summers, and can now plan to enjoy a Fourth of July and other warm weather getaways. As for his work style, folks can count on the status quo.

“An open door, a smiling face, an extended hand,” he said, quoting the Chamber’s mission. “If a business calls us, we will do anything we can to promote, support and connect. That’s our job, to figure out how to connect them.”

Cousins filled the vacancy left by former President Erik Fix, who is now Batavia's Assistant City Manager.

Photo of Brian Cousins in his new Chamber of Commerce office on Park Road in Batavia, by Howard Owens.

Chamber announces 2023 Home Show in April

By Press Release

Press release:

The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce is excited to announce the 2023 Home Show has been scheduled for April 14, 15 & 16, 2023. The Show will be held at the David McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena, 22 Evans Street, Batavia.

Vendor applications are being accepted at this time. Applications can be downloaded from the Chamber’s website at https://geneseeny.com/chamber- signature-events/ and are available at the Chamber’s office, 8276 Park Road. Space is limited and on a first-come basis.

Any questions regarding the Show, please feel free to contact Kelly J. Bermingham at kbermingham@geneseeny.com or 585-343-7440, ext. 1026. 

Photo: File photo by Howard Owens. Guy Clark of Cedar Street Sales and Rentals shows off a riding mower for a young customer at this year's show.

Chamber announces Celebrate Ag Dinner on March 25

By Press Release

Press release:

Plans are already underway for the 19th Annual Celebrate Agriculture Dinner, which will take place Saturday, March 25, 2023, at 6 pm at the Alexander Fire Hall. This annual event is a celebration of Genesee County’s #1 Industry, Agriculture! The highlight of the night is a delicious meal using locally produced foods prepared by the Culinary Arts Students from the Batavia Career and Technical Education Center. Led by Chef Tracy Burgio and Denise Kaus, Culinary Arts teacher aide, this will be the second year of this collaboration between the Chamber’s Agricultural Committee and the Genesee Valley BOCES Culinary Arts Program. The dinner is open to the public.

Tickets go on sale December 5th at the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, 8276 Park Road, Batavia. Tickets are $30 each or a table of 10 can be purchased for $275. Sponsorships are also available, which help support agriculture educational events in Genesee County. Only 400 tickets will be sold. For more information or to download the registrations flyer, visit the Chamber’s Website www.geneseeny.com.

The Celebrate Ag Dinner is coordinated by the following partners: Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Genesee County, Genesee County Soil & Water Conservation District and Genesee County Farm Bureau.

Sponsors of the 2022 celebration included: Alleghany Farm Services, Arctic Refrigeration, Baskin Livestock, Inc., Carolina Eastern Crocker, CPL, New York State Senator Edward Rath, Farm Credit East, Farm Family Insurance, Fieldstone Private Wealth, Five Star Bank, Freed Maxick CPA, Growmark-FS, L&M Specialty Fabrications, LLC, Lamb Farms, Lawley, My-T Acres, National Grid, OXBO International, Perry Veterinary Clinic, Scott Adams Trucking, Tompkins Community Bank, Torrey Farms, Western New York Energy, LLC, Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc. William Kent, Inc. and Windy Acres Farm.

Farms and businesses that donated locally grown food for the 2022 dinner included: Angry Bees Apiary, Dorman Farms, Fenton’s Produce, SJ Starowitz Farms, Torrey Farms, Upstate Farms, Harrington Produce, Farm Fresh First Inc. Star of the West, Jeremy Neal Poverty Hill Farms.

For ticket information or questions, contact the Kelly B. at The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, at (585) 343-7440 or kbermingham@geneseeny.com. 

Former and new Chamber of Commerce presidents give a nod to merging footsteps

By Joanne Beck

chamberannual2022_1.jpg

Tom Turnbull had déjà vu Thursday at Terry Hills in Batavia.

The formerly retired president and current interim president of Genesee County Chamber of Commerce didn’t think he would again be front and center at the agency’s annual meeting. Turnbull stepped in earlier this year for Erik Fix when he left the position to become assistant manager for the city of Batavia.

“It’s been a lot of fun,” Turnbull said Thursday to the room of attendees. “Now first thing that comes to mind from this year was the Chamber's 50th year anniversary … those of you that don't know the story, the Batavia Chamber of Commerce and the Leroy Chamber of Commerce merged in 1972, and they were smart enough to merge two chambers to make it not just the Batavia-LeRoy Chamber of Commerce, but a county wide Chamber of Commerce, and it was a great move, and that happened 50 years ago this year.”

He reminisced about the three celebration events the Chamber hosted, including an open house at the Chamber office on Park Road; a founding fathers reception with John Dwyer and Jim Benson representing the Batavia and Le Roy chambers, respectively; and the annual chamber awards dinner.

Other events have been an agricultural dinner; a popular Batavia-based Home Show; a golf tournament; ribbon-cuttings and welcomes to new businesses; and a monthly podcast.

“Obviously, these last two years have been a challenge for tourism, with the pandemic. But our staff has been very creative. And they’ve done a very good job and had to change their strategy a little bit for the past couple of years,” he said. “And this year, this is just an example of one of the things they did, we can't focus on international, or even our Canadian travelers, for the last couple of years, so we had to focus on more local, more day trip type of people that were coming into the county. And the dining guide was part of that. So we did a giant dining guide promotion and a lot of different portions of what's going on in the county.”

Those efforts seemed to pay off. Each household in the county would need to be taxed an extra $600 to replace the visitor-generated taxes received by New York State and local governments in 2021, he said. From lodging — at $17 million— to food/dining, retail and tourism payroll at $48 million, $16 million and $62 million, respectively — visitors will have brought an estimated $184 million to the county this year, he said.

As for business news, Quality Inn has been purchased and will be replaced by Holiday Inn and Candlewood Suites, he said. A $12 million renovation will re-open the site with a revamped hotel and Palm Island waterpark, he said.

“We have a lot of great hotels in this area. But that's really been the flagship hotel, and I think with the Palm Island, it's really important that that busy building doesn't stay there empty,” he said. “I think it's going to be really good for the community when they get better.”

chamberannual2022-3.jpg

He switched gears a bit from the work of the Chamber to the people of the Chamber, including veteran staff members Kelly Bermingham, and Kelly Rapone. He also introduced newly hired president Brian Cousins, who lives with his wife Cherie in Corfu.

“I think one of the things that we're really looking forward to next year is new leadership,” Turnbull said. “Brian Cousins is currently the director of accommodations at Six Flags, with over 25 years of dedication to helping families have fun and create lifelong memories. Holding various roles in marketing operations, entertainment and accommodations has provided him with a wide variety of skill sets throughout the hospitality, tourism and theme park industry.”

A humble Cousins admitted that Turnbull was a hard act to follow. The incoming president is looking forward to this opportunity with the chamber and Genesee County, he said.

“I’ve lived here for a very long time with my wife, over 25 years, we've lived in the county and it's been great. I look forward to meeting everyone as much as I possibly can,” Cousins said “I’m very humbled and very honored to be able to follow Tom's footsteps.”

chamberannual2022-2_1.jpg

Top Photo: Interim Chamber of Commerce President Tom Turnbull looks back over the past year during the agency's annual meeting Thursday at Terry Hills in Batavia; newly hired President Brian Cousins says a few words about his new role and the future; and Turnbull shows several photos of past community events. Photos by Howard Owens.

Brian Cousins, former executive with Darien Lake, named Chamber president

By Press Release

Press release:

The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors announced that Brian Cousins has been selected as their new President.  Cousins will succeed Erik Fix, who left to take a position with the City of Batavia.

“The Board of Directors is excited to work with Brian,” said Board Chair Mickey Hyde. “He brings a wealth of knowledge and leadership skills from his previous career.  The Board has been very impressed with his vision and enthusiasm for Genesee County and the Chamber of Commerce.”

Cousins is currently the Director of Accommodations at Six Flags Darien Lake.  He has over 25 years of experience at Darien Lake where he has held various roles in marketing, operations, entertainment and accommodations.

Cousins is a graduate of Genesee Community College and SUNY Fredonia, where he earned a Bachelor's Degree in Communications.  He is a graduate of Leadership Genesee, Class of 2018.    

Cousins lives in Corfu with his wife, Cherie.  His start date with the Chamber is Dec. 19.  

Chamber seeking nominees for annual business awards

By Press Release

Press release:

The Chamber’s Annual Awards Committee has announced the “2022” Annual Award Ceremony will be held on Saturday, March 11, 2023, at Batavia Downs Gaming, Park Road, Batavia. This is the County’s premier event that honors businesses and individuals for their achievements in business, community service, and volunteerism.

Please note that a brief write-up will qualify your nominee for consideration. Nominations are now being accepted for Business of the Year, Entrepreneurial Business of the Year, Agricultural Business of the Year, Innovative Enterprise of the Year, Special Service Recognition & Geneseeans of the Year. Business Nominees must be chamber members (If unsure of your nominee, call the Chamber to verify).

Nomination forms are available at the Chamber of Commerce office, 8276 Park Road, Batavia and can also be downloaded from the Chamber Website at www.geneseeny.com.

If you would like more information, feel free to call or email Kelly J. Bermingham, Director of Member Relations & Special Events at the Chamber office, 343-7440, ext. 1026, kbermingham@geneseeny.com. 

Chamber announces new tourism website

By Press Release

Press release:

The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, acting as the official Tourism Promotion Agency for Genesee County, is pleased to announce the completion of a new Genesee County tourism website.  VisitGeneseeNY.com is the “go-to” online resource for all things tourism, hospitality, recreation and special events in Genesee County.

 The well-established site provides a digital presence for nearly 400 tourism-related businesses in Genesee County.  Each business has a landing page including business contact information, hours of operation, a description of goods or services and image gallery.  The site curates the content, so if a business is included in a blog, has events on the calendar or offers packages, the information is also displayed on the landing page – tying together all of the information that is displayed in various sections of the website. A requested custom feature on all business pages is the “What’s Nearby” filtering capability.   Users can see by distance, tourism-related businesses and filter to display the results based on type of attractions, restaurants and/or lodging.

The Chamber maintains an extensive county-wide (tourism-related) events calendar, which features over 400 events year-round, ranging from theater and arts workshops, outdoor nature programs, history-related or agritourism events, live racing and more.  A submission button is provided for area event coordinators to add their events as they become finalized.   In the coming days, the Chamber will also be announcing information on the live music section of the website (which can be easily found at JamInGenesee.com)

The site also includes information for event planners, tour operators, an in-depth collection of county-wide sports venues and more.  It was designed by Chamber member Corporate Communications located in Rochester, and replaces the 2017 site which they also created.

We encourage you to use bookmark VisitGeneseeNY.com as a resource for area businesses, as well as for year-round things to do with family and friends.

Chamber honors founders and key leaders at 50th anniversary event

By Press Release

dsc_0990.jpg

Press release:

The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce is celebrating its 50th year of existence in 2022, and with it has come a number of special events meant to bring together the local business community of Genesee County. Last night a Founder’s Event was held at GOART! in Batavia.

This invitation-only reception was held to recognize the men and women who have led the organization in its first 50 years. Past and present board members shared an evening of fellowship and remembrance, sharing stories of their time with The Chamber and how this community has changed over time. The building that currently houses GOART! in Downtown Batavia, Seymour Place, was the perfect location to hold this event as it itself is steeped in the history of the business community of Genesee County.

Special guests included two of the original members of the merger that made The Chamber what it is today, John Dwyer and Jim Vincent. Both men gave their remembrance of the events that took place in 1971 and how they along with other business leaders, like Bill Brown and Tom Cashin, came together to consolidate and connect the communities of Genesee County. The principle of a county-wide Chamber was meant to bring together people from all aspects of industry and business and was something that was already being embraced in other upstate NY communities.

In Genesee County, before 1971, there were two primary Chambers: The Batavia Chamber of Commerce and the Le Roy Chamber of Commerce. Setting competitiveness and hometown pride aside, the Board of Directors of these two Chambers agreed that a county-wide Chamber was both warranted and necessary in Genesee County. However, they not only wanted Batavia and Le Roy businesses to be involved, they wanted a balance of representation from the remainder of the businesses in the county as well. This was in hopes that The Chamber would create a cross-section of the communities and businesses that it would serve.

On July 10th, 1972 the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce was founded on the idea of this countywide community in Genesee County, NY. Last night was a way for us to remember and appreciate the past and also embrace and look forward to the future of Genesee County. The modern-day Chamber is different than what it was in the ’70s, but the idea of a countywide community of businesspeople working together is still very much at the heart of our mission.

We would like to send a special thank you to the hundreds of people that have served on our board over the past fifty years, and to all those that attended last night to celebrate with us! Here’s to fifty more years of The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce!

dsc_1039.jpg

Dinner, dancing ... and an overnight stay may be in downtown Batavia's future

By Joanne Beck

img_1007jcpenney.jpg

If Yong Guang Ye gets his wish, the California businessman will more than double his investment at 40 Batavia City Centre.

Better known as the former JC Penney store in downtown Batavia, the property was purchased by Ye in February 2021. The price tag was $500,000. He has asked his realtor, Jonathan Maurer of Pyramid Brokerage Co. in Fairport, to list the site for sale at a cool $1.3 million.

Maurer has spoken with Genesee County Chamber of Commerce President Eric Fix and Business Improvement District Executive Director Shannon Maute about prospects for the site.

“I’m trying to understand what the community would want,” Maurer said Monday to The Batavian. “A hotel would be amazing … we’re pursuing a hotel; we don’t have any strong leads yet, it’s too soon to tell. The priority is to find the best use for the space.”

The selling price is not out of range given the open floor space, “which I think is a value, given the size of the building,” he said, plus a roof repair in progress.

The buyer is a commercial real estate developer, and does not own any other property in New York State, Maurer said.

Based on his talks with the county and downtown representatives, the first goal would be to renovate it for an event space, with the second goal being a downtown hotel. It has been “difficult to find the right user” so far, he said, due to the site’s limited visibility and entrance/exit set-up.

BID Executive Director Shannon Maute said she could easily see a boutiquey micro-hotel situated within the 38,584 square-foot building. This area is lacking a venue for conferences and special events, she said, and the property is zoned for all of that, including building on two additional floors.

It has often been said that Batavia is a perfect location for being in between Buffalo and Rochester, and Maute would like to capitalize on that. "If you had family in Buffalo and Rochester, Batavia would be the perfect place to have a wedding or an event," she said.

“There definitely is a need for that,” she said Monday. “We’re still open to any ideas, but the goal is for (Maurer) to have an idea of what the need is. We try to work closely together, and Eric agreed on what should and should not go in there. The city would have to weigh in on an idea.”

She would not elaborate on what they felt should not go into the site.

Fix was not available for comment. 

Previously: Vacant Penney building purchased by West Coast businessman

Photo by Howard Owens

Photos: Home show opens at the David McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena

By Howard B. Owens

homeshow2022.jpg

Jaydence Dayka, 3, seemed fascinated by the riding mowers so Guy Clark, owner of Cedar Street Sales and Rentals, let him climb aboard one with the help of his mother, Kaylee Dayka, of Bergen during the annual Chamber of Commerce Home Show on Friday at the David McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena in Batavia.

The show runs through Sunday, open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday.

homeshow2022-2.jpg

homeshow2022-3.jpg

homeshow2022-4.jpg

homeshow2022-5.jpg

homeshow2022-6.jpg

homeshow2022-7.jpg

homeshow2022-8.jpg

homeshow2022-9.jpg

homeshow2022-10.jpg

homeshow2022-11.jpg

homeshow2022-12.jpg

Authentically Local