Times have changed, with an upbeat executive the motivated group is aiming to promote the virtues of the town to anyone who will listen.
Glenda Nichol, who has chaired the organisation through much of its hardship, is now being rewarded for her hard work.
She is quick to point out that the group is not about her, or the executive, it’s about the town — and the RBN would like to see more businesses join the group.
“Having as many members as possible is how we are going to continue to gain the attention of the government bodies that can help us achieve our goals,” she said.
Mrs Nichol, who while she was speaking to me was putting the finishing touches on another application for a grant, said the recent success of the group in relation to funding applications was due to it having a strong voice.
“Rochester has come through a couple of very challenging decades — we’ve had years of drought, 10 years ago we had a flood and then we had the Murray Goulburn closure,” she said.
“To come out of it this strong is a credit to everyone who has been involved.”
Mrs Nichol and her team have become proficient at applying for grants.
It’s thanks to the experience of people such as Sam Watkins and Meagan Keating that the group has been able to secure more than $1.7 million in the past three years.
“At the moment we are applying for three grants, worth $20,000, $10,000 and the other is a $7500 grant,” Mrs Nichol said.
“We are doing things for the district.
This is not about any single business or person, our ability to secure funding for projects in the town benefits everyone.“
Mrs Nichol said some people thought the RBN was only for businesses with a shopfront in the central business district.
“Last year we sent out a Christmas card to every business listed in the Rochy phone book, whether they had a shopfront or not,” she said.
“The goal was to reach out to all businesses in the hope some may decide to join us.
“Annual subscription is only $120 plus GST for the financial year, $10 a month is not a big investment. And it’s tax deductible.”
Mrs Nichol said despite the success of the group in obtaining support through the Murray-Darling Basin Authority and state and federal governments, its grant applications were often competing against much bigger groups.
Last year the RBN had 65 members, but a couple of closures has seen that number decrease.
“It is not about survival any more. It is about being pro-active,” Mrs Nichol said.
“I know people really enjoy what we do for the town, but I know we could represent a much larger membership.”
Mrs Nichol said a couple of large-scale farmers had recently come on board and she encouraged any business with an ABN that would like to support the RBN to please consider joining.
“For being in the business network you get business exposure, networking, emails and a feeling of being part of improving our town,” she said.
“People don’t necessarily have to come to meetings, but they get to stay informed and see what we are doing.
“When we apply for grants these people get to have their say. We often reach out to our members for ideas.”
Mrs Nichol and her committee are making a lot of the decisions. The more input they get the better result for the town.
Two of the group’s newest members are the Rochester Historical Society and Janita Norman, from Realm Design.
Ms Norman lives locally and was pleased to become a member of the network to promote her Echuca-based business.
As the state emerges from the shadow of COVID-19 the opportunity to attract more people to Rochester is larger than ever.
The RBN is doing all it can to attract visitors, who in turn will support local businesses.
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