Stratford’s chamber of commerce names new general manager

The Stratford & District Chamber of Commerce announced this week that it has named Aaron Martin as its new general manager.

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Martin takes over the position that was left vacated after Eddie Mathews announced his retirement from the role in April.

Martin, who grew up on a farm in Huron County, comes to chamber with about a decade of experience in agriculture and business growth, which includes time working in the agricultural sectors of Australia and New Zealand. His most recent role was for the London-based Western Fair Association, where he served as the agri-Food operations, program, and development manager of the Grove Agri-business Incubator & Accelerator.

“I’m a person who really believes in serving the local community. I think it’s something everyone should do in some capacity. And so when this came up, it kind of aligned with giving me the time to do my own business, which I think is also important for a person in this role, because then they know the challenges and what everyone’s going through themselves,” Martin said.

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“I’m just really excited for the role. I think it’s going to be a ton of fun. There’s so much opportunity to do things. I’m really excited to get started on it,” Martin said of joining the chamber.

Martin, who studied agriculture at the University of Guelph Ridgetown and Athabasca University, also worked for Penta Equipment, an agricultural equipment manufacturer, where he worked with several international dealerships, including in North America, Japan and Australia.

Martin is hoping to build off his years of experience in the agricultural sector to help bolster the number of chamber members from that industry, he said.

“I think they could be a huge asset to the chamber. . . so that’s one of my goals and also manufacturing. We do have some representation in both categories, but both could be dramatically increased. . . because the more people we have talking on behalf of local businesses here, the better it is,” he said.

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At the Grove, Martin worked with agrifood businesses to help scale up their operations, supporting companies that were just starting out, as well as those that already had a bit of a track record.

“They might have fantastic product, a great idea, but they don’t have any idea on the regulatory side or the financial side. So we would walk them through that – kind of build them up, get them to that stage they need to be at – (and) then (we would) kind of facilitate the connections that they need to get to that next stage. ” he said.

Martin, who also runs a winery and cidery with his wife, Jacqueline, is looking to help more female entrepreneurs in the Stratford region overcome any challenges they may face in starting their businesses.

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“We also want to help with the empowerment of women entrepreneurs, my wife being one of them herself. She’s been doing amazing with her business. I’ve been blown away by it, but there are some barriers when it comes to women, so we want to address that and also be there for them and help them with certain programs or anything along those lines,” he said.

At just 31, Martin may not fit the typical mold of a chamber general manager, who typically boasts multiple decades of local business experience, but he thinks his time in business operations will be an asset to the chamber.

“I’ve seen operations in different countries. I’ve seen how foreign trade works. I’ve been very blessed in the amount of experiences that I have, and I think that’s built up my confidence to the point where I feel like I’m an asset to those around me,” Martin said.

His age should also allow him to remain involved with the chamber for a long time, he noted.

“I think it’s good to have people in a position like this for a long period of time, and that’s something that I would like to be able to supply to the chamber as well,” he said.

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