LGBTQ Business/Prof Networking: Celebrate Local Food @ State (N. Adams, MA)

Event Details:

• What: Berkshire LGBTQ Business & Professional Networking Event: “Celebrating Innovation & Diversity of 12 LGBTQ-owned Local Food, Beverage, & Farm Businesses”
• When: 3rd Wednesday, 10/21, 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM
• Where: State Food + Drink, 508 State Rd, North Adams, MA 01247

10/21 Celebrating Innovation & Diversity of 13 LGBTQ-owned Local Food, Beverage, & Farm Businesses

NORTH ADAMS, MA – In the last few years the Berkshires has seen the rise of more than 13 LGBTQ-owned local food & beverage businesses that are infusing amazing innovation, creativity, & community into the region.

To celebrate this trend and foster regional collaboration, the Berkshire LGBTQ Business & Professional Networking group, co-sponsored by Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce, Berkshire Magazine, Western Mass Rainbow Pages, & Q-MoB, will host a special event highlighting “LGBTQ-owned Businesses Lead Renaissance in Local Food & Beverage Innovation & Community-building” on the third Wednesday of October, 10/21, 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM at State Food + Drink (North Adams, MA), & co-hosted by the Full Well Farm.

The October event will shine a spotlight on the hospitality, creativity, and collaboration demonstrated by LGBTQ-owned local food, beverage, & farm businesses like:

• Coco’s Candy (Great Barrington, MA)
• Common Table (Cheshire, MA)
• District Kitchen & Bar (Pittsfield, MA)
• Full Well Farm (Adams, MA)
• Goldenrod Country Inn (Worthington, MA)
• Hexagon Bagels (North Adams, MA)
• Moon in the Pond Farm (Sheffield, MA)
• Neon Newt (Becket, MA)
• Public Eat+Drink (North Adams, MA)
• State Food + Drink (North Adams, MA)
• Steeple City Social (North Adams, MA)
• The Elm (Great Barrington, MA)
• Wander Berkshires (Pittsfield, MA)

Event Highlights:

• Local Food/Beverage Innovation Panel: A creative discussion featuring the owners of some of these innovative businesses. Panelists & other local food & beverage owners will share 1) some of the strategies that have contributed to their popularity, including collaboration with other local businesses; 2) challenges they are navigating in the changing climate, and 3) preview of some of their exciting fall/holiday offerings
• Strategic Networking: Local business owners and professionals will have the opportunity to introduce themselves, present their own fall initiatives, and build a robust cross-referral network to better serve locals & visitors from all over.

"This is more than just a networking event; it's a showcase of how LGBTQ entrepreneurs are redefining Berkshire local food & beverage hospitality, creativity, and collaboration," said Bart Church, Q-MoB Executive Director & Publisher of the Western Mass Rainbow Pages. "By working together with many other local businesses, they are ensuring their diverse guests experience an unmatched level of hospitality, warmth, and inclusion."

“The Berkshires and Western Mass are becoming a magnet for new business and innovation because diversity is a long-held value in the region AND is good for business,” said Alexandra Eberhardt, Executive Director of the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce, and one of the cosponsors of the 9/16 event. “We are seeing LGBTQ+ leaders moving here from more repressive parts of the country because they are not just tolerated, but welcomed. Diversity and creativity are contagious.”

The 10/21 event is part of an ongoing monthly series—the Berkshire LGBTQ Business, Professional & Community Leaders Networking Events—held on the third Wednesday of each month. Jointly sponsored by the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce, Western Mass Rainbow Pages, Q-MoB, and Berkshire Magazine, the series is designed to foster collaboration and increase the community’s capacity to navigate the unique economic and demographic challenges and opportunities facing local LGBTQ+ businesses and professionals. The series is supported by generous grants from Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, Homestead Foundation, and Berkshire Health Systems, who are also funding the development of the Western Mass Rainbow Pages, a comprehensive directory of LGBTQ-owned & welcoming businesses, professionals, community organizations, resources, and events.

SEND US A NOTE IF YOUR LGBTQ-OWNED BUSINESS WOULD LIKE TO HOST A NETWORKING EVENT: if your Berkshire-based queer-owned business would like to host a monthly networking event in November, December, or January, please email Angie Montalvo-Greene & email Bart Church

REACHING US DAY OF THE EVENT: If you have trouble finding us, will be late, or need to cancel the day of the event, please call/text Bart at 413-344-8162