One of the many 2019 goals for the Okotoks and District Chamber of Commerce is to continue to increase membership of community business owners.

Jayme Hall, Executive Director for the Okotoks and District Chamber of Commerce, says chamber benefits can be passed on to members' employees, and membership if reasonably affordable.

"The cost of membership is dependant on the amount of employees you have. If you're a home based business, one employee, you're looking at about 180 bucks for the year. If you have 13 or more employees you're looking at around 345 for the year. And the reason that is, is because all the benefits we offer through the chamber, are for your employees, as well," he said.

Hall adds one of the main reasons people join the chamber is due to the group benefits plan offered to members.

"It's great. It's a plan that i'm personally on, and it works really well for me. You have to be a chamber member to have access to those group benefits. If you're a one man show, and own a business that you're operating out of your home, you can have benefits through the chamber group insurance plan. so, that's a big reason why people join," he said.

Hall says in addition to group benefits, other services, such as, networking, member to member discounts, and having your voice heard as a local business owner are some of the other benefits members enjoy.

The chamber will strive to further increase its membership this year, with 59 new members joining in 2018. Their goal for 2019 is 35 new members, with eight already signed up since the beginning of January.

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