VBA's origins – bringing business support closer to home
To understand the value the VBA brings to the Town’s business community, it helps to understand how and why the organization began.
In 2012, the Vienna-Tysons Regional Chamber of Commerce (now the Tysons Regional Chamber of Commerce) moved from Vienna to Tysons Corner. The Town of Vienna’s business community — led by business partners Kathy Georgen and the late D.H. Scarborough — decided it needed to form its own chamber. The community wanted a group that would better represent the small and locally owned businesses that predominate in Vienna.
Georgen and Scarborough recruited seven more businesspeople in Town to join them as founding board members. Those founders included Peggy James, who became the VBA’s executive director.
“We all worked really hard to build something that was great and represented our business community’s values and needs," James said. "My personal goal was to give Vienna businesses a voice and to provide more opportunities for education, networking, and camaraderie. I also wanted to build an organization that was not about the bottom line."
VBA's mission
VBA's mission statement has remained connected to the association's roots. Directed to the businesses the VBA serves, the statement describes the VBA as "YOUR Community Chamber of Commerce." In line with that philosophy, the association strives to:
- Promote greater business opportunities and growth through professional development, networking, and marketing opportunities.
- Support a strong local economy by "nurturing the bond between businesses and citizens through community events and outreach."
- Encourage Vienna residents to shop and dine in their own Town.
VBA benefits
Currently — in November 2022 — the VBA includes about 265 member businesses, including 45 nonprofits. All members are located within Vienna or conduct business with customers in the Town.
Among the benefits the VBA provides to members are:
- A weekly email blast — distributed to more than 4,000 residents in the greater Vienna area — that includes member businesses' promotions, grand openings, and events.
- Additional opportunities to market products and services through posts on the VBA's Facebook page and coupons in a "welcome kit" distributed to new residents.
- A VBA-sponsored "referral group" in which participating businesses educate each other about their products and services. Participants are encouraged to refer business opportunities to each other.
- Business-hosted happy hour mixers and other networking events.
- Monthly member meetings with guest speakers.
The VBA also encourages partnerships between for-profits and nonprofits. It continually looks for ways to grow these joint ventures through dine-out days, retail fundraisers, and other "adopt-a-nonprofit" efforts. These efforts raise awareness about community service organizations and the businesses that support them.
VBA members pay a flat membership rate, which covers most benefits.
“Our goal is to have our rates as low as we can," James said. "We want it to be obtainable."
To learn more about the benefits and opportunities the VBA provides, visit the Vienna Business Association website.
