Rhinelander Area Chamber of Commerce

What Rhinelander Area Chamber of Commerce does

The Rhinelander Area Chamber of Commerce is a membership-based nonprofit chamber of commerce established in 1905, serving the Rhinelander area and broader Oneida County in Wisconsin's Northwoods region. It operates from a single office at 450 W Kemp St, Rhinelander, WI, with 1–10 employees, and is led by CEO Lauren Sackett. The organization positions itself as the central convening body for local businesses, residents, visitors, and community partners, coordinating business advocacy, tourism promotion, and community enrichment initiatives.

The Chamber's service portfolio spans a Member Directory, Community Events Calendar (with 224 events listed across 2026–2027), Job Postings board, and programs including Business After 5 networking, Leadership Oneida County, Business Education Series, Buy Local Campaign, Chamber Bucks gift certificates, the Real Rhinelander Podcast, and Public Art Initiatives. All operations run on the GrowthZone membership management platform, which powers the member directory, event calendar, and communications. Revenue is generated through three primary streams: recurring membership dues from area businesses and individuals, one-time event admission fees (e.g., $32 per ticket for the Thunderstruck Classic Rock Tribute), and transactional fees from the Chamber Bucks program redeemable at member businesses. Marketing spans Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, a monthly e-newsletter, and a public community events calendar.

The Chamber holds strategic partnerships with the North Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (NCWRPC, on a 2026 Conference Center Feasibility Study), ArtStart and WXPR (In Progress open mic series), the City of Rhinelander (Fourth of July coordination), the Rhinelander Tourism & Marketing Committee, and Ripco Credit Union (community events). Recent initiatives include a downtown public art mural project at 2 N. Brown Street and pursuit of a potential conference center to expand event infrastructure for the region, which the Chamber identifies as a service hub for more than one million people within a 100-mile radius.

Name

Rhinelander Area Chamber of Commerce

Legal name

Rhinelander Area Chamber of Commerce

Website

https://rhinelanderchamber.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1905

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Rhinelander Area Chamber of Commerce is a nonprofit chamber of commerce founded in 1905 that provides membership services, business networking, community events, and tourism promotion for businesses, residents, and visitors in Rhinelander and Oneida County, Wisconsin.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Rhinelander

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees for businesses, organizations, and individuals to join the Chamber and access member benefits, directory listing, and networking opportunities.
2. Event Revenue: Admission fees and tickets for Chamber-organized events such as the Thunderstruck Classic Rock Tribute ($32 per ticket) and other community programming.
3. Chamber Bucks Program: The Chamber Bucks program allows purchase of Chamber Bucks gift certificates that can be redeemed at local member businesses.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Rhinelander Area Chamber of Commerce is a nonprofit member-based business association that promotes the economic vitality of the greater Rhinelander, Wisconsin area. It sells annual business memberships, produces community events and festivals, operates a local gift certificate program called Chamber Bucks, and provides networking, advocacy, education, and tourism-promotion services to its member businesses and the broader community.

Product overview

The Rhinelander Area Chamber of Commerce offers a unified platform of membership and community services rather than a modular software product. The core offerings include a Member Directory, Community Events Calendar, and Job Postings for member businesses. Supporting programs include Business After 5 Networking, Leadership Oneida County, Business Education Series, Buy Local Campaign, Chamber Bucks gift certificates, and the Real Rhinelander Podcast. The Chamber also operates the Rhinelander Chamber Foundation and coordinates Public Art Initiatives. All services are built on the GrowthZone membership management platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Chamber Membership
• Chamber Bucks Gift Certificate Program
• Business After 5 Networking
• Leadership Oneida County
• Business Education Series
• Real Rhinelander Podcast
• Community Events Calendar
• Job Postings Board
• Member Directory
• Tribute Concert Event (Thunderstruck Classic Rock Tribute)

Quantifiable outcome

• 224 community events supported through the Chamber's events calendar

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• North Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (NCWRPC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 June 2026NCWRPC conducted a Conference Center Feasibility Study commissioned by the Chamber on behalf of the Rhinelander Tourism & Marketing Committee to evaluate whether Rhinelander can support a conference center for larger meetings, conferences, trade shows, and events.
• ArtStartcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerArtStart partners with the Chamber and WXPR to present 'In Progress', an open mic art sharing event at The Hilgermann Center for Community. ArtStart is also involved in public art initiatives and cultural programming.
• WXPR (Community Radio)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWXPR co-presents the 'In Progress' open mic event with ArtStart and the Chamber, serving as a community radio partner for arts and cultural programming.
• Rhinelander Tourism & Marketing CommitteecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Chamber acts on behalf of this committee, conducting studies and initiatives for tourism and economic development opportunities in the Rhinelander area.
• Ripco Credit UnionminorGTM or Marketing PartnerRipco Credit Union hosts community events including the Third Thursday Social and Common Scams & Fraud Targeting Seniors Presentation at their location.
• City of RhinelandercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe City of Rhinelander organizes and funds the community's Fourth of July fireworks display. The Chamber coordinates the Fourth of July Parade and related America 250 activities in collaboration with the City.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Stevens Point Area Chamber of Commerce: Central Wisconsin chamber with parallel membership dues, events calendar, job board, and leadership program offerings. Closely comparable service portfolio serving a non-adjacent regional market.
• Wisconsin Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce: Mid-size Wisconsin chamber providing the same membership, directory, event, and community-program structure as the Rhinelander Chamber. Comparable in scale and operating model for a smaller Wisconsin city.
• Eau Claire Area Chamber of Commerce: Regional Wisconsin chamber providing membership dues, business directory, events, and leadership programs to the Eau Claire area. Closely comparable to Rhinelander in scope and service mix though serving a larger western Wisconsin market.
• La Crosse Area Chamber of Commerce: Western Wisconsin regional chamber delivering the same member directory, networking events, leadership programs, and community-promotion services as the Rhinelander Chamber. Similar organizational scale and programming mix.
• Wausau Chamber of Commerce: Central Wisconsin regional chamber operating the same membership, events, and economic-development model as the Rhinelander Chamber. Similar mid-size Wisconsin chamber profile with comparable programming categories.

Others

• GrowthZone: Membership management software vendor powering the Rhinelander Chamber's member directory, events calendar, job board, and member portal. Adjacent ecosystem enabler — not a competitor, but the underlying technology platform on which the Chamber's digital services run.
• Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC): State-level economic development organization that complements (rather than competes with) local chambers like Rhinelander's by providing grants, funding resources, and statewide programs that the Chamber actively routes to its members via its Financial Funding & Grants resources.

Broad incumbents

• Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce: Large, established Northeast Wisconsin chamber offering a wider portfolio of economic-development, advocacy, and major-event services. Comparable membership-organization structure but at materially greater scale and broader geographic scope.

Direct peers

• Minocqua Area Chamber of Commerce: Neighboring Northwoods chamber serving a tourism-heavy Oneida/Vilas County market. Same regional economic base, similar member mix of hospitality and small businesses, and directly overlapping geographic catchment with the Rhinelander Chamber.
• Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce: Wisconsin's largest metro chamber offering the same membership, networking, advocacy, and community-event suite as the Rhinelander Chamber, but at substantially larger scale in Madison. Same business model and member services, different geography.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@rhinelanderofcommerce
• Facebookfacebook.com/RhinelanderChamber
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rhinelander-chamber
• Instagraminstagram.com/rhinelanderchamber

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rhinelander Area Chamber of Commerce