In January 2021, Westerville City Council member Coutanya Coombs and several other Westerville citizens gathered to discuss diversity in Westerville’s business community. The result of this conversation established the Westerville Area Chamber of Commerce Business Inclusion and Opportunities Council (BIOC).
BIOC’s mission is to “advance and foster an environment for diverse business owners and professionals to grow and foster productive business relationships.”
Since 2005, when Coombs, council chair, moved to Westerville, she’s been heavily involved in the community and has continued to share a passion for diversifying and supporting local businesses.
“I fondly remember how embracing the community was to my family when we moved into the community,” Coombs says. “I am encouraged that Westerville is a city that seeks proactive change and progression, and therefore I look forward to serving Westerville in a leadership capacity. Our accomplishments can be infinite when our mindset is Westerville together.”
BIOC first assessed its own members’ strengths and weaknesses and established a mission and values. Once its members were satisfied with its internal structure, it shifted their focus externally.
It’s first goal was to assess the state of the Westerville business community. For example, it determined how many businesses were run by people of color. The council realized there were some businesses owned by people of color that members of the council weren’t even aware of.
“When we first got together, we had about 32 businesses in Westerville whose owners were people of color,” she says. “We realized we didn’t know each other was here. So, our first objective is to promote inclusiveness. That’s not based necessarily on race or culture, but it includes all the different backgrounds, ethnicities and abilities of people.”
So, it set to work on its next task: to foster an environment in Westerville where these diverse business leaders could interact with each other, support one another and raise awareness of these businesses, with the end goal of bringing more diverse business leaders to the area.
“One of the things we wanted to do was attract other diverse businesses to the Westerville area,” she says. “Some people mentioned that getting their footing in the community was a bit tedious. We want to compile data that we can put in a chest of resources for the next person to make introductions. If we can collectively assist the chamber as they go out and try to draw businesses into our community, that would be great because people feel more comfortable when they know there are people much like them in thought processes.”
BIOC members set their sights on businesses as well as diverse talent. Their aim is to strengthen the business community both through attracting businesses to the region, but also to encourage diverse talent to live and work in Westerville.
BIOC continues to advocate and gather data and assess Westerville’s strengths and weaknesses in the world of diverse talent and business in order to fortify the economy and make it a more attractive place for people of all backgrounds.
“We’re not doing any projects yet, as we decided to start with our self-analysis and what we brought to the table,” she says. “What we brought to the table was the ability to get the attention of other business owners and the ability to network within the chamber. We recognize and articulate some common concerns in business and in the Westerville area.”
One such concern, Coombs says, is not a lack of resources in Westerville, but a lack of knowledge about those resources. Individuals might not know who to contact or where to go for questions.
“Westerville is a very inclusive community, and we want to showcase that,” Coombs says. “We want to be there to help anyone that needs assistance.”
With a blend of resources from the Westerville chamber and the City of Westerville, Coombs assures the business community that BIOC is here to grow and uplift the entire region.
“We want them to know that we don’t operate outside the chamber; we are part of the chamber just as we are part of Westerville,” she says.
Mariah Muhammad is a contributing writer at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
