Greater Richmond Partnership, Richmond, Virginia Beach and Loudoun win economic development awards

Published October 11, 2013 by Robert Powell, III

The Greater Richmond Partnership and economic development departments of Richmond, Virginia Beach and Loudoun County have received awards from the International Economic Development Council.

The partnership received gold and bronze awards.  The gold award was given for the Business First Greater Richmond 2011-2012 Annual Report. Business First is the business retention and expansion program of The Greater Richmond Partnership, the economic development organization representing the City of Richmond and the Counties of Chesterfield, Hanover and Henrico.

Winning the bronze award was the partnership’s 2011-12 Annual Report highlighting its fiscal year results and program successes. Last year, the group incorporated photography from its video series, “Greater Richmond: Come & Stay,” which was co-produced with Richmond Region Tourism with assistance from the Retail Merchants Association and Virginia Tourism Corp.

Richmond's Department of Economic & Community Development received a gold award for its 2012 brochure in the category of Specific Purpose Brochure for communities with populations of 200,000- 500,000.

Richmond’s Commercial Corridor Snapshot booklet gives descriptions and demographic statistics on 10 commercial corridors in the city. In addition, each page includes quotes from businesses  in the neighborhoods, images, maps and bullet points on top assets of each of the areas.

The Virginia Beach Department of Economic Development received the Gold Excellence in Economic Development Award for its 2013 Community Profile iBook in the new media category for communities with populations of 200,000 to 500,000.

The iBook is a mobile-friendly presentation with key facts, demographics and statistics on the City of Virginia Beach. By incorporating videos and other interactive features, the iBook presents information in a new medium that is easily shared and updated. It is part of the city’s branding strategy that uses new technologies.

The Department of Economic Development also received a Silver Excellence in Economic Development Award for its 2011-2012 Annual Report. The report highlights the successes of the department in bringing jobs and capital investment to the city.

The Loudoun County Department of Economic Development won a Silver Excellence in Economic Development Award in the category of Entrepreneurship for communities with populations of 200,000 to 500,000.

Loudoun’s Department of Economic Development has seen significant growth in its small business and entrepreneurship program. Components of the program include:  LoudounSourceLink.org, a website for small business owners;   Idea Fusion,  a monthly meet-up group that allows tech-focused businesspeople connect and create business relationships; The Business Assistance Team: a governmental, intradepartmental team that focuses on improving front-counter customer service for small businesses; One Million Cups: a weekly meeting where two entrepreneurs pitch business ideas and get valuable feedback; and multiple networking and education events.

The International Economic Development Council is a nonprofit organization with 4,000 members serving economic developers.

The honors were presented at an awards ceremony Oct. 6 to 9 in in Philadelphia.