Chamber Considers 2019 “Milestone Year”

The Saint John Region Chamber recognizes the importance of its 200-year history but also embraces the 21st century.

CEO David Duplisea said the Chamber has survived for this long because it remained relevant during uncertain times in challenging economic conditions.

Duplisea said their members are making their mark on the world which became evident while researching the chambers’ long history going through files, meeting minutes and looking through archives housed by the New Brunswick Museum.

“I wonder if when Lochlyn Davison first met with other local businesspeople at Cody’s Coffee House to form our association. I wonder if they could imagine that we would still be here two centuries later,” Duplisea said.

CEO David Duplisea said the Chamber will survive COVID-19 because it has been through a lot over the years.

“We survived two world wars, multiple skirmishes, played a major role in Confederation and Maritime Union discussions and saw the building of our nation’s railway system.”

On Tuesday, June 30th, we held our first-ever virtual annual general meeting! We reviewed our record-setting 200th year and welcomed a special guest speaker, Mr. Nadeem Velani, CFO of @CanadianPacific. You can now view the full meeting online! https://t.co/zp8VZW9np2

— The Chamber SJ (@TheChamberSJ) July 2, 2020

Duplisea described Saint John as a city of innovators including being home to Canada’s first chartered bank and inventing the first steam whistle at Partridge Island.

“Now if we fast-forward to 2019, we members continuing with this tradition of excellence. National Bank performed major upgrades to their facilities on King Street, Port Saint John and the Saint John Airport saw infrastructure improvements,” Duplisea said.

Duplisea also noted the addition of the Irving Oil home office to the uptown.

The Saint John Region Chamber held their first virtual annual general meeting on Tuesday.