About the Chamber
The Qualicum Beach Chamber of Commerce was founded as the Qualicum Beach Board of Trade on December 8th, 1926 and included the villages of Qualicum Beach, Dashwood, Hilliers, Coombs, Errington and Parksville. The thirty original members included a baker, two butchers, four merchants, a clerk, a real estate agent, a physician, seven farmers, three hoteliers, a contractor and two carpenters, a plumber, a mill owner, an ice manufacturer, a garage owner, a transporter, a retired gentleman and a settler. The Chamber received official Ministerial approval on January 27th, 1927
For 16 years, until the incorporation of the village, the Board of Trade functioned as the voice and, in many cases, the decision maker of the village. The Board of Trade took the initiative leading to the incorporation of the village and the President, H.J Welch was also the first Chairman of the Village Commission.
On November 8th 1949 the members voted to change the name to the Qualicum Beach Chamber of Commerce. On January 23rd 1979 the members allowed an application for the change of boundaries of the Board to exclude the Town of Parksville, allowing Parksville to form its own Chamber of Commerce. The Qualicum Beach and Parksville Chambers of Commerce still work closely together and along with the respective municipal governments were instrumental in forming the Oceanside Tourism Association incorporated March 17th 1993.
Today the Qualicum Beach Chamber of Commerce has close to 300 members and represents all sectors of business in the community. It represents its members at all levels of government as "The Voice of Business" through its affiliation with the British Columbia Chamber of Commerce www.bcchamber.org and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce www.chamber.ca