Editor’s Note: This article was authored in collaboration with 1Berkshire’s Marketing team.
At the May Entrepreneurial Meetup—1Berkshire’s first in-person event since February of 2020—Michael Beck, Executive Director of the Berkshire Botanical Garden, spoke to a gathering of business owners and employees from around the region about connection.
“After we and so many other cultural nonprofits were forced to close our gates, several of us started to have monthly check-ins via Zoom. It was a great way to stay connected, to collaborate and review the ever-changing restrictions, and to just be there for one another during uncertain times,” said Michael. “Our organizations really benefited from these deepened connections, and I feel we will all stay in much closer contact, even after the pandemic passes.”
This message of connection and collaboration is a recurring theme in the Berkshires, and likely in many other communities too. Businesses and organizations have had to come together in new ways, collaborating to support one another’s missions and goals, and forging connections to help everyone survive an unprecedented shared experience and challenge. The following businesses and organizations are just a few of our community’s exemplary role models in this regard.
“When COVID hit, there was an organic coming together of nonprofits involved in food insecurity,” said Mark Lefenfeld, co-president and co-founder, along with Jay Weintraub, of Berkshire Bounty. “When the schools shut down, a lot of families no longer had access to food. So a bunch of nonprofits banded together.”
Berkshire Bounty collects and distributes excess produce, meats, and baked goods, working with local farms and grocers like Great Barrington Farmers’ Market, Guido’s, Wohrle’s, High Lawn Farm, Big Y, Price Chopper, and others. Food insecurity affects 15 percent of the Berkshire population, up from 10 percent before COVID. Immigrants, minorities, and the elderly are all disportionately affected. Mark and Jay actively sought new partnerships to address this hardship. One outcome of their efforts is a new relationship with the Berkshire United Way, which helped recruit other collaborators, sponsors, and volunteers, as well as provided space to store and prepare food. Berkshire Bounty is also involved in a new pilot program with Berkshire Grown, who has committed to pre-purchasing produce from local farms to help ensure a guaranteed food source for distribution outlets and provide a measure of financial security to the farms.
“These collaborations have allowed us to have a much greater impact. We now have opportunities to do things we wouldn’t otherwise be able to do on our own,” said Mark. “There’s a synergistic outcome from these collaborations.”
A number of other businesses in the food and beverage sector have also come together—before and during the pandemic—to capitalize on resources and brand appeal. On the MASS MoCA campus in North Adams, Bright Ideas Brewing and A-OK Barbeque created a shared outdoor space for diners to safely enjoy their fare at picnic tables and under a tent. Earlier this year, Berkshire Mountain Distillers released the Craft Brewers Whiskey Project, the result of a 5-years-in-the-making collaboration with Big Elm Brewing and a few other beer makers. Located just down the road from one another in Sheffield, the two businesses have actively cross-promoted one another for years.
Cross-promotion is not just solid marketing—it’s a way for businesses to buoy one another during shoulder seasons and economic downturns. Downtown Pittsfield, Inc. launched a gift card program early in the pandemic to encourage the community to financially support small, local businesses in Pittsfield, and each business, in turn, urged their customers to patronize neighboring shops, restaurants, and services. Berkshire Mantiques serves and sells a large variety of coffee from Six Depot and Greylock Grounds, along with tea and hot chocolate, at their snack bar, giving the large antique shop a warm, inviting feel and delicious smell while exposing a variety of local products to potential customers. Local candle purveyor Soma’s Aromas regularly partners with area businesses to develop private labels—a few of their local collaborations include Berkshire Roots, Boston Symphony Orchestra for Tanglewood, Four One Three Salon, and The Red Lion Inn.
“I’m incredibly grateful for collaborating and working with other businesses in the community,” said Soma DiNicola, founder and owner of Soma’s Aromas. “It gives me the opportunity to grow and connect with more people who love my products. It also gives me confidence and allows me to create in different ways.”
A spirit of entrepreneurship and creativity is part of what gives the Berkshires its vibrant personality. The Cornell Inn, now under new ownership in Lenox, recently opened its remodeled doors with a flashy designer showcase presented by the Kaleidoscope Project. Twenty-three BIPOC designers came together to redesign each room of the inn, and while the artistry on display is truly remarkable, the forging connections are of even greater value. Many of the designers had never been to the Berkshires, but have left this project with plans to return and bring friends and family with them. The press for this showcase has been wide and varied, putting Berkshires’ creativity in front of many new audiences.
Raising the region’s profile is one goal shared by Mill Town Capital and Berkshire Regional Planning Commission (BRPC). The businesses have forged a collaborative partnership to promote the Berkshires as a premier destination for access to the great outdoors. Together they created The Berkshire Outdoor Recreation Plan, which is designed to expand trails, bike paths, campgrounds, and facilities, all to provide greater access to our natural resources while preserving local ecology.
“Community collaborations are essential for our work at Mill Town,” said Carrie Holland, Managing Director. “Our goal is to deliver a positive impact to the Berkshire community, and to do that we need input, advice, support, and resources from our partners who have touchpoints beyond our own network.”
Through the Recreation Plan both Mill Town and BRPC have highlighted other organizations with similar missions, like Berkshire Natural Resources Council, Berkshire Camino, Greenagers and Hancock Shaker Village.
“Finding the synergies with community partners in areas where our missions intersect, and utilizing our collective resources and expertise, really drives quality and speed in our shared work,” said Carrie.
The Berkshire outdoors has been a particularly inspiring space for recent collaborations. Mass Audubon Pleasant Valley hosts birdwatching at The Mount, and Lenox Yoga currently teaches outdoor classes on the Mount’s manicured lawn.
On the grounds of Berkshire County Historical Society’s Arrowhead, people are invited for guided tours of the historic property in Pittsfield, as well as engagement with an upcoming special exhibition opening in August at the Berkshire Museum. Muh-he-con-ne-ok: People of the Waters that are Never Still will showcase historic and contemporary objects with oral and written histories that present the past and present of the Stockbridge-Munsee Community. This exhibition is a collaborative effort by the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohicans, Berkshire Museum, Bidwell House, Stockbridge Library, The Trustees of Reservations, Housatonic Heritage, Williams College, and BCHS.
The types of collaborations and partnerships in the Berkshires are as varied and unique as the businesses themselves. As Michael Beck speculated at the Entrepreneurial Meetup, many businesses and organizations are likely to stay in close contact, even as we all emerge from an unprecedented moment in time. The success of one business feeds that of another, and collaboration and partnership are two key ingredients of a healthy local economy. The Berkshires will rebound. We are rebounding already. If we continue to work together, our only outcome is that of success.
