Hope & Main Honored as Business of the Year

The East Bay Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce Hope and Main as the 2016 Business of the Year, and its founders, Lisa Raiola and Waterman Brown, as the 2016 Citizens of the Year. The pair will be honored at the East Bay Chamber’s Annual Awards Dinner on Thursday, Oct. 20.
In 2009, Lisa Raiola and Waterman Brown approached the Warren Economic Development Board with the idea for a community-based incubator for food businesses located at the Main Street School (then owned by the Town of Warren). They asked the EDB what hopes they had for the school, and the EDB stated that they wanted a place that spurred new businesses and job growth in Warren, engaged the local community and created a destination to encourage others to visit Warren and the East Bay.
With the Town of Warren on board in 2010, Lisa and Waterman then worked exhaustively to realize and build upon this vision. They embarked on a program to gather as much information as possible to understand all facets of food incubators, benchmarking national food incubators and surveyed food professionals on local needs in the food industry. From this step, they hired an architect and a financial professional to build a visual and economic model for how the incubator could work. They also hired an attorney to modify the Town’s Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance to allow the incubator to locate on Main Street. These efforts were paid for by Lisa and Waterman—about $250,000. Moreover, Lisa and Waterman approached the challenges of the project, including months of meetings and public presentations, with determination and enthusiasm for their vision and the benefits that they knew Rhode Island (and particularly the East Bay) would see as a result. At many points, the effort looked like it was in jeopardy—a concept too abstract for many people. Still, Lisa and Waterman graciously worked through each problem, creating allies out of skeptics, until Hope and Main had a following long before construction began.
In 2012, construction launched with a $3 million USDA loan. As food incubators spring up all over the country, Hope & Main stands as one of the larger facilities. While much of the program planning, board development and fundraising is still directed by Lisa, as the Board President, Waterman has taken on new roles as the facilities manager, business development coordinator and “chief taster” for kitchen businesses. It should be noted that Waterman works entirely pro bono at the facility, and yet he works 24/7 to ensure that the incubator runs as smoothly as possible. Lisa’s focus is now on growing the new businesses, and thinking about how Hope & Main can help businesses after their first year. She is also a successful fundraiser, working closely with CommerceRI and the Rhode Island Foundation to ensure that Hope & Main provides needed support for new businesses while maintaining its own sustainable growth while repaying the USDA loan. Despite their hard work, Lisa and Waterman actively engage business people and residents in a sincere way, and contribute to the local community through participation in events.
Their hard work and dedication are paying huge dividends for Rhode Island. Since opening its doors in October 2014, Hope & Main now houses 59 active businesses, or nearly 40-percent of all active Rhode Island-based food processing businesses and about 16-percent of all food processors operating in the state overall. The impacts from these businesses reach beyond food entrepreneurs to food producers, packaging companies, designers, etc. and represents exciting, new economic development for the state.
Beth Carter, owner of Beth Carter Enterprises, was named the 2016 Chamber Member of the Year. Since joining the Chamber in 2014, Beth has joined the Board of Directors and also chairs the Public Relations Committee. With her extensive marketing background and a “members first” motto, Beth oversees the member spotlight stories and the chairman’s message, as well as being a standout leader in the Chamber’s women’s group, WEBOND.
The Annual Awards Dinner also serves as the Chamber’s installation of new board members, and the election of new officers. Bette Walpole, Chamber Membership Director, will serve as the new board chairperson for a two-year term; and Lou Victorino, owner of East Bay Manufacturing, will serve as chair-elect. Other new board members include Joe Hozempa of Round Two; Luca Carnevale of Hope & Main; and Jessica Pflaumer, Economic Development Coordinator for the Town of Bristol. Mark DeVine of DeVine and Associates, will assume the role of secretary/treasurer, relieving Joe Farmer.
All Chamber members and the public are encouraged to celebrate the Chamber’s honorees at the Annual Awards Dinner, to be held at the Ramada Banquet and Conference Center, 213 Taunton Ave., in Seekonk. The event starts at 5:30 p.m., with dinner served promptly at 6:30. Tickets are $50 per person. As this is a seated dinner, reservations are required, and can be made by calling the office, 401-245-0750; or emailing Suzanne Munroe, smunroe@eastbaychamberri.org. Deadline for reservations is Oct. 7.