The creator of the Professional Women of Putnam in New York has created its Connecticut counterpart ”“ The Professional Women of Connecticut.
“In six months, I have retained more than 100 members in the Putnam chapter and I consistently yield 70 attendees-plus per event, and I hope to bring the same results if not better to Professional Women of Connecticut,” said Jamie Imperati, founder. “Our membership base is so diverse. It ranges from marketing agencies to kitchen cabinet companies to insurance agents. We have them all. PWC encourages women from all types of businesses to participate. Membership benefits include business-in-a-minute videos and spotlights.”
The group encourages noncompetitive networking and accepts members from all fields and industries; no one is excluded.
“To be honest, before I had my kids I used to work fulltime in sales and marketing and was always attending networking events in Manhattan,” Imperati said. “The alternative option in the county is to belong to a local Chamber of Commerce, which I also do. I am an active member in the Greater Mahopac Carmel Chamber of Commerce. But what I noticed is that women like to network with each other and give business to each other and they do this in a very special way.”
Imperati also saw demand for a localized business group like Professional Women of Putnam and Professional Women of Connecticut from a small business standpoint.
“Many of these businesses can”™t afford to run ad campaigns, or run a TV commercial, so going out and attending a low cost networking event is a great way for them to expose themselves and their talents to other local businesswomen who might have a need for their services or who can recommend them at a future time,” she said.
The PWC kickoff date will be from 6 to 9 p.m. Oct. 20, at Butterfield 8 in Stamford.
Andi Gray, president of Chappaqua, N.Y.-based Strategy Leaders and Fairfield County Business Journal columnist, will lead the first seminar.
Imperati said seminars for Professional Women of Putnam have included: balancing life and business, Twitter for business, the art of public speaking and starting a small business.
To register for the Oct. 20 event, visit www.professionalwomenofconnecticut.com.
