Under the leadership of Cook County Office of Contract Compliance Director Nicole Mandeville, Dr. Makeba Butler, Deputy Director Education, Outreach, & Strategic Engagement spearheaded the Cook County-ELM collaboration; commencing with the Cook County hosted Vendor Meet & Greet with e-Local Marketplace (ELM), Thursday March 23, 2023. Cook County Chief Procurement Officer, Raffi Sarrafian, county 6th District Commissioner Donna Miller, La’Mont Williams – Chief of Staff for 3rd District Commissioner Bill Lowry, and Northwestern University Executive Director of Procurement, Jim Konrad, welcomed, encouraged and praised small business owners in attendance.
The purpose of the Cook County hosted event was to introduce county vendors and greater Chicagoland area small business owners to e-Local Marketplace (ELM). Attendees networked with leaders from Cook County, Northwestern University, ELM, Value Innovation Technologies, and fellow business owners. The event was extremely well received. “e-Local Marketplace appreciates Dr. Butler for her vision and assistance in sharing the ELM opportunity.” shared Anita Summers – ELM Executive Director. Ms. Summers worked in tandem with Dr. Butler to promote the sold out event. “We had almost 150 confirmed registrants within days of posting the event.” Dr. Butler shared.
Along with their respective teams, Dr. Butler and Anita Summers presented a successful event. The two were co-emcees of event segments for the evening. The Cook County team managed the welcome and information stations where they checked-in guests and shared Cook County Diversity Certification information. Clarence Weaver, ELM President, gave rousing remarks, and ELM co-founder Bryant Wallace directed business owners to ELM registration stations. Business owners were personally introduced to the e-Local Marketplace concept by Cy Kennedy, CEO of Value Innovation Technologies, the technology partner to ELM. “The crowd was really receptive.” noted Cy. After his 20-minute presentation and demonstration, business owners were invited to network and register on-site with the ELM team and volunteers, or by using posted QR codes.
Guests were given bagged coffee samples provided by ELM Vendor Melissa Garcia Villanueva, founder/CEO of Brewpoint Coffee. Two additional ELM Vendors, Digital Worxx Designs and Street Level Marketing showcased digital, promotional and marketing products – which were also on display throughout the event as ELM signage. e-Local Marketplace business cards and writing pads gifted to attendees, as well as event photography were also provided by Marilyn Johnson and Bryant Jones, respective owners of the companies.
The $400 annual e-Local Marketplace Vendor registration fee is waived until 11:59p.m. April 3, 2023. Chicagoland small business owners can learn more about e-Local Marketplace (ELM) and register under
“Start Selling” at e-localmarketplace.org. ELM is powered by eLink Gateway™, a proprietary software of Value Innovation Technologies.
Media Contact
Company Name: E-Local Marketplace
Contact Person: Anita Summers
Email: Send Email
City: Chicago
State: Illinois
Country: United States
Website: e-localmarketplace.org