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Business & Tech

Chamber Aims to Put More Feet on Elm Street

A new public relations campaign is focused on drawing more consumers to New Canaan to shop, dine and play.

In June, the New Canaan Chamber of Commerce, headed by newly-appointed Executive Director Tucker Murphy, launched a public relations initiative to bring residents downtown to do more of their shopping and dining, as well as draw out-of-towners to New Canaan to shop on a more frequent basis. 

The town selected MaxEx Public Relations, led by Linda Kavanagh, to spearhead the campaign based on Kavanagh's experience with the Connecticut Bureau of Tourism, and her deep knowledge of New Canaan. Murphy says this is the first time the Chamber has ever hired a PR firm to run a long-term campaign.

Goals of the campaign include building upon the success of past events and creating new ones to draw both residents of New Canaan and nearby towns to shop and dine. Efforts are also underway to market New Canaan as a tourist destination for New England weekenders.

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Building off the successful Holiday Stroll of recent years, the Chamber of Commerce is launching the Thursday Evening Stroll. Beginning with the Dog Days of Summer on August 20, a themed event will be held the third Thursday of every month. The upcoming Dog Days events targets pet owners with an open invitation to stroll downtown with their leashed pets in tow. Groomers, trainers and even canine massage by Aetheria Spa will be featured. Plans for future Thursday strolls include a photography exhibit for the adult crowd and a battle of the bands to draw younger residents and their families downtown.

A new event called "New Canaan Treasures" is also scheduled for this fall. Editors from Connecticut Gardens & Cottages magazine will be hunting for must-have treasures at shops and restaurants downtown to feature in their October 2009 issue. The event culminates on October 15 with a full day of entertainment, shopping and a "Treasure Chest" contest in which qualifying shoppers can win high-end lifestyle products and services from New Canaan businesses.

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In addition to being included in town events and publicity, merchants are able to utilize MaxEx public relations services to garner media attention for their businesses' activities. For example, New Balance of New Canaan is putting the word out for their First Annual All Out for Autism Walk/Run to benefit New Canaan students with autism, scheduled for Friday, August 28. HTG Investment Advisors Inc. announced their naming in Wealth Manager magazine's 2009 listing of the top United States advisory firms for the third time in three years.

Forty-three merchants have signed on, representing a wide range of stores and services, and a few restaurants around town. Jill Saunders, co-owner of Pimlico, says the campaign "will help put New Canaan on the map as a cute, quintessential New England town." Saunders says it is a great feeling to have so many merchants working together to promote positive energy for the town and all it has to offer.

The chamber, MaxEx and participating merchants meet at least once a month to dialogue on the status of the campaign. The current contract with MaxEx runs through the end of 2009. At that time, the success of the campaign will be evaluated to determine next steps and plans for the new year. 

For now, merchants like Keith Simpson of Keith E. Simpson Associates, a firm specializing in landscape architecture, have a "much greater sense of optimism" for the future of downtown New Canaan and are heartened by "all commercial interests and the town government working collaboratively to market the town as a whole."

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