Small Business Thrives With City County Credit Union’s Support

City & County Credit Union ($1.2B, St. Paul, MN) is proving that branches offer more than a place to conduct banking — they can be a platform for community connection. For more than a decade, the credit union has spotlighted local businesses and nonprofits through its “Business of the Month” kiosks, turning select branches into showcases for entrepreneurs and community partners.

What began as a single kiosk located in a branch in Shoreline, MN, has expanded to three branches with a fourth that provides a business card display for local shops to promote themselves. Every month, the credit union invites local businesses or community groups to set up a display with information and swag to show off their products and interact with members.

Awareness has spread through word-of-mouth as branch managers and the credit union’s business development staff get out into the community to make the connections that bring in new partners, says Bailey Germain, the credit union’s vice president of brand and retail experience. The most common participants are small business clients or community groups with whom the credit union already has a relationship or wants to deepen it.

A Pandemic Shift

Like nearly every aspect of life, COVID-19 had an impact on City & County’s kiosk strategy. Instead of taking a more retail focus, the pandemic forced the credit union to focus Business of the Month on groups that benefit members’ finances.

“The idea at first was, ‘Let’s get outside businesses to come in,’ and then we quickly adapted after COVID to recognize that our members needed value financially,” Germain says. “We started to use it more for member-benefit partners that we were already aligned with. For example, an insurance partner would come in and do drawings for gas cards and quotes to help members save on insurance.”

As the pandemic waned, City & County gradually moved back to highlighting local businesses. Some recent examples include a new branch of Goldfish Swim Schools promoting itself and offering a month of free swimming lessons, as well as a new senior living center working to raise awareness of its services.

The response from members and local businesses has been overwhelmingly positive, Germain says.

“People are hungry to get out in front of consumers,” the VP says. “We offer a unique platform that way.”

Kiosks displays are up throughout the month, and owners are frequently on-hand on Saturdays to talk about their businesses. That kind of face time helps increase the community connection.

“We’re not just a stop for your finances — we’re so much more,” Germain says. “When people come in and see things on display and can interact … they’re automatically more invested in who we are because we care about where we live and work and play.”

Hyperlocal

City & County staff and management work carefully to ensure the program is structured in a way that’s beneficial to both parties. That means encouraging participating businesses to provide a call to action, scannable QR code, or random drawing that can generate leads. Additionally, participants must check in weekly with the credit union to ensure the display is up to that business’s standards and that any giveaway items are still stocked — all of which creates another touch point between the credit union and the business.

“There’s buy-in from both sides, but I think the biggest takeaway is that we share it on social media,” Germain says. “We make sure they know we’re invested in their display just as much as they are.”

“People are hungry to get out in front of consumers. We offer a unique platform that way.”

Although showcasing the right businesses is important, the support of branch leadership — who forge many of those business relationships — is crucial. Germain notes that some branch managers in the past haven’t believed in the concept or seen the long-term vision, but when the right staff members are on-hand to advocate for the program and recruit new participants, it’s a win for everyone.

City & County hasn’t tracked ROI from the program, but Germain says it has helped build brand awareness and improve the credit union’s small business acumen.

“Small business wasn’t always a huge focus, and we’ve really changed that,” she says. “We’ve been able to add a specific businessperson on staff because our members were asking about products and we had a need. We’ve been able to add additional business loans and product lines because we’ve been getting asked about it.”

Even better, the program has reinforced City & County’s commitment to the community.

“If we can get even more hyperlocal and partner with those businesses and let them have that experience, that’s going to solidify the relationship,” Primeau says.

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