Chamber of commerce

The former headquarters of Chamber of Commerce of the State of New York, the oldest chamber of commerce in the United States, established in 1768 in British America during the colonial era
The Dublin Chamber of Commerce, founded in 1783
An 1894 illustration of the Toledo Chamber of Commerce in Toledo, Ohio

A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to advocate on behalf of the business community. Local businesses are members, and they elect a board of directors or executive council to set policy for the chamber. The board or council then hires a President, CEO, or Executive Director, plus staffing appropriate to size, to run the organization.

A chamber of commerce may be a voluntary or a mandatory association of business firms belonging to different trades and industries. They serve as spokespeople and representatives of a business community.[1] They differ from country to country.

  1. ^ Olorunshola, Damilola Temitope; Odeyemi, Temitayo Isaac (1 January 2022). "Virtue or vice? Public policies and Nigerian entrepreneurial venture performance". Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development. 30 (1): 100–119. doi:10.1108/JSBED-07-2021-0279. ISSN 1462-6004. S2CID 249721896.