Chamber, under new leader, is counting the ways to grow

So many new ideas are floating around an energized Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce these days that its president and CEO, Kyle Woosley, can be forgiven for nearly losing count.

“I lay awake at night just thinking of ways to improve the chamber,” Woosley said in a recent interview at the chamber’s Mesa Verde offices.

But with his exuberance and uncanny ability for speedy talk, he can rattle off many of the new initiatives and does — with the caveat that it’s not about him but about the hundreds of members the chamber aims to assist.

“How can we help?” is Woosley’s unofficial motto. He uses it in emails and everyday conversation.

Woosley, a Washington state native and alumnus of Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, is a former teacher and financial advisor. In 2014, he became a chamber ambassador, which helped pique his interest in the organization.

He enjoyed the ambassador experience — ambassadors promote membership and involvement, acting as goodwill representatives and mentors — so much that he decided he wanted to work for the chamber. “All of the members were like family to me,” he said. “I was struck at how much the chamber members wanted to help out local businesses.”

After a few months serving as the chamber’s membership director, Woosley officially began the CEO post Jan. 1, taking over from longtime President and CEO Ed Fawcett, who led the group for 23 years.

Woosley said he is driven by his belief that chamber “members should benefit from their membership.”

Woosley noted that since October, the Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce budget has nearly doubled and its membership has grown 10%, from about 380 members last fall to 420 as of this month.

“We’ve always been about our members,” said Rose Quinn, chamber director of operations. “But with the changes this year, including bringing Kyle Woosley on board as president/CEO, we are working hard at bumping up our membership experience to a newer and even more exciting level.”

In the social media world, the chamber is seeing upticks. Officials said its social media awareness is up 30% since October; it now has nearly 6,200 Twitter followers and about 1,300 “likes” on its Facebook page.

Woosley wants to start a “mystery photo” contest. Photos of chamber businesses would be posted online, and participants would have to correctly identify the location to win a discount and then go to the business to receive it. Woosley sees this as a means to increase traffic to chamber businesses.

The chamber is also developing committees.

The new Economic Development Committee is a four-member group headed by Peter Naghavi, a retired Costa Mesa official whose last role at City Hall was deputy chief executive and economic development director.

The six-person Government Affairs Committee was revived as a watchdog of political movements and how they affect the business community.

The chamber has also created the Welcome/Retention Committee, which aims to welcome new members and keep in contact with them throughout the first few months of membership to see how they are benefiting. The new Apprenticeship/Internship Committee will look to find jobs and skills training for high school graduates who are not college-bound.

On the events side, the chamber is working on some new ideas too: a teacher recognition event, a military recognition barbecue, an annual “meet the charities” mixer and a formal, black-tie gathering to honor longtime chamber members.

Jeff Hirata, owner and manager of Edible Arrangements at 2200 Harbor Blvd., has been a chamber member since 2004. He’s one of the chamber’s spotlight ambassadors, a position that has him attending nearly every chamber function and ribbon-cutting.

“My job is to help grow us,” Hirata said.