Our History
In 2008, a small group of local entrepreneurs launched a program called “Find It All Roswell” in partnership with the Roswell Convention and Visitors Bureau and the City of Roswell. The program’s mission was to support local businesses during the recession by providing, among other things, a citywide marketing program.
In response to the program’s success, our organization—originally called the Roswell Business Alliance—was created in 2012 to continue the work of growing the local business community. We became a separate entity under the same board of directors, with one of the “Find It All Roswell” leaders hired as our executive director.
The same year, the City of Roswell was finishing its first Strategic Economic Development Plan (SEDP). One of the plan’s recommendations was to pursue economic development through a public-private partnership with an outside nonprofit. In alignment with that recommendation, city leaders approached our organization about taking the lead on economic development for Roswell and becoming responsible for the initiatives outlined in the SEDP.
Of course, we eagerly agreed. Having worked that same year with the State Department of Economic Development to help recruit the GM Innovation Center to Roswell, our team was excited to continue leading economic development efforts for the city.
In 2014, to reflect our new mission and scope of work, we rebranded to Roswell Inc. Since that time, we have continued developing our signature networking events and professional development programs while also expanding our economic development and business advocacy efforts.
Over the years, we’ve identified four main areas of work that we now undertake to build business in Roswell. These include business attraction and recruitment, business retention and expansion, industry support programs, and business development. We believe that working in all four of these areas is essential to building a strong, vibrant, and sustainable economy—and this holistic view of economic development is at the heart of our organization.
