This morning was the monthly “Third Thursday” networking event of Our Milwaukee, the “buy local” trade-group I belong to. Third Thursday is a fun meet-up where Our Milwaukee members can meet and connect with other business members, and businesses considering membership can see what the group is all about. For those who don’t know, Our Milwaukee is a trade-group for locally-owned Milwaukee businesses that advocates for the value local businesses bring to the greater Milwaukee area. “OM” helps local businesses by helping them connect with like-minded business partners/vendors (there’s plenty of members providing “business services” like printing, credit card processing, and design to name a few). OM helps local consumers flex their buying power by informing them about which businesses really support the local economy!
Today’s meeting was held at Anodyne Coffee, a roaster in Bay View, just north of the intersection of Kinnickinnic and Oklamoma. There was a good turn-out and chatted with current members like Indulgence Chocolatiers, Third Sector Creative, and The Cabinetmaker, new members like CTC Supplies, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, and Bolzano Artisan Meats, and potential new members like WI Public Radio 90.7!
–Our Milwaukee and the Our Milwaukee directory of Milwaukee-loving businesses!
–Anodyne Coffee (the only coffee shop I know with a kids’ area to help coffee-drinkers with tykes!)
–Indulgence Chocolatiers (wholesale sales in nearly 100 locations now)
–Third Sector Creative (providing great design/creative service to non-profits)
–The Cabinetmaker (always friendly, easy to see why his customers like him so much)
–CTC Supplies (one-source supplier for janitorial/maintenance supplies, and woman-owned)
–Milwaukee Chamber Theatre (forward-thinking in that they just had their 2nd “tweet-able” performance with “Crimes of the Heart)
–Bolzano Artisan Meats (had a real nice chat about their efforts to educate people about fine meats and their efforts to get the best meats for their customers)
–WI Public Radio (am excited for their membership, as public radio is often my station of choice!)
