CHIMACUM — In its first in-person event since the COVID-19 pandemic began, the Local Investors Opportunity Network (LION) will host a meet-and-greet at the Finnriver Farm and Cidery in Chimacum today during which investors will hear from local businesses that have benefited from the network.
One of those is Finneriver Farm and Cidery itself, according to LION member Kees Kloff, who said Tuesday that the business had found investors through the network.
Kloff stressed that LION is not an investment group, or tightly organized, but is a liaison group trying to encourage people to invest locally.
“We are not an organization,” Kloff said. “We’re merely a number of individual people who are facilitating the connection between investors and local businesses.”
Doors will open at 4:30 p.m. today at Finnriver Farm and Cidery at 124 Center Road in Chimacum.
The program will run from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. with an informal conversation to follow.
Kloff said LION also is working on a program to help local investors who want to address the housing crisis by supporting homeowners who want to construct accessory dwelling units on their property.
Part of Wednesday’s program will include a presentation from homeowners who recently constructed an ADU.
Investors were interested in doing something to support workforce housing, Kloff said, after repeatedly hearing from local businesses who said they were unable to hire workers due to a shortage of affordable housing.
Among the businesses set to present Wednesday include Camp N Car, which builds furniture camping vans, and Katfish Salmon Co, a seafood company.
Steve Moore, co-owner and co-founder of Camp N Car, said he was able to secure the funding to buy new equipment and expand his business through LION. Moore founded his business with a friend in 2019, and has been able to expand to seven employees, he said.
“We had a lot of sales but we didn’t have the $50,000 necessary,” Moore said. “We were able to move pretty fast with LION.”
LION only connects investors with businesses, and Moore said his company’s loans were arranged outside of the group.
Moore said all of his investors were Jefferson County residents.
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Reporter Peter Segall can be reached at peter.segall@soundpublishing.com.
