The Knoxville Chamber of Commerce is joining forces with their counterparts in Des Moines and elsewhere in the region.

The Knoxville Chamber is now an associate member of the Greater Des Moines Partnership; it is one of 24 local chambers which belong to this organization, and all 140 of Knoxville’s members are now officially regional business members of the partnership.

Hannah Vander Veer is director of the Knoxville Chamber; she tells KNIA/KRLS News joining in with this larger organization will give the Chamber and its members access to a wider variety of marketing and service opportunities beyond what can be offered at the local level.

“There’s a lot of educational opportunities, recruitment tools for getting new employees, just some advocacy at the state level and marketing opportunities,” Vander Veer says.

“We are good at providing maybe Knoxville-centric educational opportunities that are good…from a local standpoint, but it’s also good to know from a regional standpoint as well to provide more resources in that sense.”

Becoming a member of the partnership means Knoxville businesses will also have access to an online job and resume database, regional events which can serve as networking opportunities, and marketing tools such as exporting assistance and a listing in an online regional business directory.