House Of 423, The Tea Tree Recipients Of Batavia Chamber Business Scholarship

Press release from Batavia Chamber of Commerce:

BATAVIA, IL — The Batavia Chamber of Commerce is pleased to announce that the initial Grow Your Business Scholarships are being awarded to The Tea Tree, 29 N. River St. and House of 423, 10 E. Wilson St., both in Batavia.

The goal of the Batavia Chamber Grow Your Business Scholarship is to subsidize the costs for businesses to work with outside resources. The selection is the culmination of a process that involved pre-screening all applicants by Harriet Parker, manager of the Illinois Small Business Development Center at Waubonsee Community College.

The initial pool of applicants was whittled down to five businesses that pitched to a selection committee assembled by the Fox Valley Entrepreneurship Center (FVEC). The excellent meeting facilities donated by 25N Coworking and located at 25 N. River Lane in Geneva, provided the perfect backdrop for two days of pitch competition in late August.

“I assisted each candidate with preparing their pitch for the competition,” Parker explained. “Everyone involved felt that the process of preparing a pitch helped them learn more about their business and get focused on their growth. It is always rewarding to see business owners dig into the details of their business and get excited about growth!”

The Tea Tree owner Missi Hartmann and Sara Whitt, owner of House of 423, were among the five business owners who presented their business plans to the committee and were ultimately chosen for the scholarships.

“The quality of applicants was wonderful, and I look forward to watch these two businesses blossom with the coaching and outside resources they receive as scholarship recipients,” commented Margaret Perreault, president and CEO of the Batavia Chamber of Commerce.

Whitt is thrilled with the prospect of furthering her business through the scholarship.

“I am super excited that I have the opportunity to further my business education,” Whitt said. “l already learned a lot when I worked with Harriet Parker to prepare my pitch; and the feedback after the presentation was great. So, I know that this entire process is beneficial to me and my business.”

Hartmann is equally happy to have been awarded this business scholarship.

“I feel so privileged and honored to be working with the Batavia Chamber of Commerce and the FVEC on future plans for The Tea Tree,” commented Ms. Hartmann. “The expertise offered by both groups will help plan the next steps to furthering our success. I want to thank everyone for choosing me to be a part of this process and I look forward to the advice and guidance over the next few months.”

Announced in May, the scholarship program was opened for applications to Batavia Chamber of Commerce business members or those who agreed to become a member.

To ensure a successful program, the Batavia Chamber partnered with the Fox Valley Entrepreneurial Center (FVEC) and the IL SBDC at Waubonsee Community College. The FVEC assisted in vetting the business’s needs, providing expert advice, and also contributed monies to the Grow Your Business Scholarship fund.

Andy Parker, the executive director for the FVEC is enthusiastic about the Grow Your Business Scholarship’s initial awards and looks forward to the program continuing in the future.

“If this first round of participation is a true indicator of entrepreneurial interest in the Fox Valley, the Grow Your Business Scholarship program is not only a success, but definitely needed by area businesses,” Mr. Parker stated. “It will be exciting to see how the first two businesses utilize the resources given to them and the resulting outcomes.”

Perreault liked that all the businesses who participated in the pitch competition benefitted.

“Even though they may not have been awarded the scholarship, all who competed were given detailed feedback that they can immediately use in their business,” she summed. “This program is what we envisioned when we noticed how some of our local small businesses lack the tools necessary to weather the changing business climate such as that created by the COVID-19 pandemic.”

She continued: “We are truly excited that we launched this program and cannot wait to see it grow.”

This press release was produced by Batavia Chamber of Commerce. The views expressed here are the author’s own.