If you are an Estes Valley business owner, you know the seasonal drill: the exhilarating rush of summer and the fall leaf-peeping season, the sparkle of the “holidaze” season, followed by several quieter months that test your nerves and stretch your reserves.
And 2025 has added new layers of complexity to an already challenging season. With federal tariffs reshaping supply chains, a government shutdown creating uncertainty and impacting local federal workers, whispers of recession growing louder, and the shoulder season approaching, the questions facing our business community have never been more pressing — or more urgent.
The Estes Valley Voice is pleased to bring together speakers from around the state and the region for Beyond the Busy Season: A Business Resilience Summit — a networking event designed to help you not just survive these challenges but position your business to thrive through them.
This isn’t about doom and gloom. It’s about knowledge, empowerment, and support. Because while we can’t control tariffs, economic cycles, or government decisions, we can control how prepared we are to face them.
From understanding the current economic landscape for small businesses to approaches to business resilience, we will hear from speakers Laura Rodriguez, chief strategy officer and director of innovation ecosystems at the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade, and Bryan Welker, president, CRO, and co-founder of WDR Aspen, a boutique marketing agency.
Welker “lives and breathes business and marketing in the Roaring Fork Valley and beyond” and consults on shoulder season marketing. His article, “Beyond the algorithm: The art of off-season advertising,” published in The Aspen Times, is a good introduction to his approach to dealing with the unique challenges “beyond the busy season.”
The event will be emceed by Adam Crowe, economic development manager for Larimer County Economic and Workforce Development. It will feature a Q&A panel with Estes Park business leaders, including Scott Applegate, president of the Bank of Estes Park, Maureen McCann, owner of Mad Moose, and Jeff Abel, Signature Home Team.
Estes is poised for some exciting business and economic growth in 2026 and beyond with the arrival of the Sundance Film Festival to not just Boulder but to the Estes Arts District being certified as a Colorado Creative District, and the building of The Stanley Film Center, and the unfolding of the Barb Marshal Whimsadoodle Foundation’s vision to cultivate the arts in a broad sense in the community.
Estes is entering the third year of the 6E lodging tax money, which is providing new opportunities for housing and childcare to support our workforce. This is an important piece of the bigger puzzle to make housing more accessible and affordable.
Grab a complimentary plate of appetizers, order a drink at the cash bar, and put your name in the hat for a raffle to win a two-night staycation with dinner at Latitude 105 Alehouse — compliments of the Holiday Inn — and a 13-week quarter banner ad package with the Estes Valley Voice.
Let’s talk about business resilience. Click here to RSVP, and we will see you Nov. 18 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Holiday Inn of Estes Park.
Every challenge holds opportunity, especially for business owners who choose to prepare, adapt, and innovate. We hope you will join us.