Spring is Here! What Smithsburg Business Owners Need to Know

April 2025

Happy Spring, Smithsburg! Welcome to the first edition of the Smithsburg Economic Development Commission’s (EDC) quarterly newsletter. We are launching this product as one more way to keep the valued members of the Smithsburg business community informed about the regional economic climate, opportunities for business development, and important events in and around town. To receive this directly in your inbox, email us at VisitSmithsburg@gmail.com.

Economic Climate

The first quarter of 2025 has been rocky. Concerns about tariffs and the impact on prices are driving down consumer sentiment and expectations, according to the March Consumer Confidence Index. This can create a difficult environment for businesses because higher prices can affect both sides of your ledger. Declining consumer confidence means some of your customers may start dialing back spending while a potentially higher cost of doing business can also cut into your profits. Meanwhile, Maryland has its own budget crisis as tax revenue slows across the country, creating additional uncertainty. However, the state’s businesses scored a “win” when a proposed business tax was dropped from the 2026 budget.

Local Business Opportunities

The EDC hosted its second annual Smithsburg Business Leaders Dinner, where attendees received practical advice about economic planning and information about free resources. Business owners also shared their challenges and successes with us and each other, including that they:
✔️ Love our small town feel but want to feel more connected with other town business owners.

✔️ Are concerned about prices and how to grow their customer base.

✔️ Need additional resources to sustain and expand their success.

✔️ Want more help with promotions and getting the word out.

✔️ Value a community-driven approach.

Click here for the 2025 Smithsburg Business Leaders Dinner summary to learn about the free county resources available to help business owners. It also includes contact information for individuals at the Washington County Department of Business and Economic Development who are available to provide free advice and tailored feedback.

What the EDC is Doing for Businesses

The EDC takes a two-part approach to increasing prosperity for the Smithsburg business community:
1. Increase the customer base by raising regional awareness of Smithsburg as a whole and what it has to offer.
2. Connect business owners with one another and with additional resources that can help them achieve their goals.

To that end, the EDC's "Third in the 'Burg" events series is BACK! The monthly events will run May-October and help us meet our dual goals of increasing foot traffic downtown and regional awareness of Smithsburg's downtown core. We are taking an even more strategic approach this year to help local businesses directly benefit from these exciting events.

📢 Advertising earlier and in various mediums (online, print, video).
🥳 A NEW theme for June's event that focuses on Smithsburg history, its businesses, and gets customers walking around downtown. Business owners without a downtown storefront can still participate for free! Contact the EDC about reserving a table to advertise your services.
🎯Direct incentives via gift cards or other prizes that reward people for shopping at a Smithsburg local business (qualifying businesses are those in the 21783 area code.)

**Important message regarding EDC resources**
The EDC is doing the best it can to proactively reach out about opportunities and help your business benefit from these events and incentives. However, the town council in place last year decided not to rehire for its economic development coordinator position leaving the EDC as an all-volunteer organization to do its work with limited time and resources. Please--help us help you by reaching out and letting us know that you'd like to be involved somehow! Reply to this email, message us on Facebook, or call EDC Chair Liz Bedard at (240) 734-0012 (landline).
**Please visit us on Facebook or go to our website www.VisitSmithsburg.com for more details about more town events and opportunities for businesses.**

Live, Work, Play

The EDC is also focused on fostering community and showing off why people love this town. There is NO place like Smithsburg and we are proud of our unique blend of businesses and people–let's show it off! Here are just a few things the all-volunteer EDC is doing to increase general/regional awareness and attractiveness of Smithsburg as a place to live, work, and play.

🥇Social media maven! You may have noticed our Facebook account, Visit Smithsburg, has stepped up its game in a huge way in 2025. That's thanks to one of our new commission members who is growing our reach by--literally--the thousands. We strongly encourage Smithsburg businesses on Facebook can benefit from this hard work and increase their own reach by:

Engaging with the posts that are relevant to you by commenting or reposting.
Tag "Visit Smithsburg" in posts you want us to see and help promote.
Direct message Visit Smithsburg on Facebook messenger with specific social media questions or requests.

📽️ Lights, camera, action! Last year, the EDC invested in a videographer to create a short promotional video showcasing the best of Smithsburg. Those who attended the business dinner got to see the full rough cut! The 30-second, general audience cut is nearly ready and will be used for local advertising purposes. The EDC plans on investing in producing additional, audience-specific versions to debut over the next year.

💜 Embrace the purple! There's no getting around it--Smithsburg loves its purple. As the town's tourism and promotion vehicle, the initial branding of "Visit Smithsburg" completed in early 2021 sought to create a unique identity using blue and peach tones. But over the years, we have often been asked--where's the purple? The EDC recently engaged with the original graphic designer to incorporate the purple and gold that are so linked to our town's identity and pride. Be on the lookout for those logos this spring!

Until next time

We hope you enjoyed the first edition of the EDC newsletter and found the resources helpful! Remember, you can always find us on the third Thursday of every month for our regular meeting at 7 PM in the Smithsburg Town Hall AND on Zoom (video meeting information is posted below).

The Smithsburg Economic Development Commission, April 2025
Liz Farmer Bedard, Chair
Jamie Fogle, Vice-Chair
Cathie McCormick, Secretary/Bookkeeper
Amber Dwyer
Janet Gilmartin
Holly Mohler

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