FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT:  
July 24, 2007

Maury Dobbie, President/CEO
mdobbie@ncedc.com

or

Stacy Miller, Director of Business Retention & Expansion
smiller@ncedc.com
Northern Colorado Economic Development Corporation
970-667-0905

NCEDC Launches New Business Retention & Expansion Program

Northern Colorado Economic Development Corporation (NCEDC) launched its business retention and expansion program today. NCEDC is partnering with the Fort Collins and Loveland Chambers of Commerce in a joint effort to identify and survey Larimer County’s primary employers. “This program was designed to create partnerships and relationships with our primary employers in the county, as well as identify risks and opportunities within our existing companies”, Stacy Miller Director of Business Retention and Expansion of NCEDC, stated.

Over 30 business professionals supplied from the Chambers and NCEDC staff will be interviewing Larimer county’s primary employers in the 10 month program which will run on an annual basis from January through October. The information gathered, via the interviews, aids the NCEDC and the Chambers in establishing programs and setting policies that will positively affect the business community and the whole of Northern Colorado. “Existing employers are the backbone of our community. We are dedicated to assisting regional primary employers to grow and improve employment opportunities and overall quality of life for the citizens of Northern Colorado”, NCEDC President/CEO, Maury Dobbie stated.

Extremely significant to this community, primary employers have been identified for NCEDC’s program as companies that export more than 50 percent of their goods or services outside of the region of Larimer & Weld Counties. “Other cities are actively recruiting primary employers located in Northern Colorado, so it is important to have a mechanism in Fort Collins that is dedicated to sustaining those companies in our community,” said David May, President and CEO of the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce. “The potential for existing employers to expand and grow our economy is invaluable to our economy. They have already invested in our community, in our residents and in our economy. We are extremely pleased to be partnering with NCEDC in this effort”, President/CEO of the Loveland Chamber of Commerce, Gaye Stockman stated.

Various questions interviewers will be asking the companies pertain to products & services, market, industry management and workforce issues. All information collected in the face to face interviews is strictly confidential. The NCEDC and Chambers plan to help resolve identified issues through several business resources and entities.

“The intelligence we will gather is vital for our retention and expansion efforts of existing employers. We are the only organization in Larimer County trying to attract companies to locate here, thus it is crucial for our region to have a thriving business climate”, Dobbie said. NCEDC will release the findings in a report at their annual lunch on October 31, 2007 at the Fort Collins Hilton Hotel.

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