Women in Business Summit a success: Sold-out inaugural event empowers, inspires local leaders

The Women in Business Summit held Sept. 27 at the Lake Granbury Conference Center was a success, with more than 200 in attendance for the sold-out networking event.

“It has grown way bigger than what we thought it was going to be,” said Kara Watson, chair of the Granbury Chamber of Commerce’s Women in Business committee. “We sold out of this event and we didn't realize how many people in our community were hungry for this type of information.”

Hosted by the Granbury Chamber of Commerce, the Women in Business Summit — with the theme, “Inspiring the Champion in You,” — featured seven speakers, who all gave presentations to inspire women in the community to create their own successes.

Kaycie Spindor, marketing manager with the Good2CU texting app, Vicki Nivens, owner of Hard Eight BBQ, The Pearl Boutique and Hotel Lucy and Eliza Knapp, founder of Oz Realty and owner of Oz Coffee Bar, gave a collaborative presentation on “Making Your Mark.”

“First, we had a branding panel talking about making your mark and how important it is to create your own individual brand and make that part of who you are personally — how to create who you are and express that, and how that helps you become successful,” Watson said.

Michelle Lucero, marketing manager with First National Bank, gave a presentation on “The Perfectly Imperfect Work/Life Imbalance.”

“She was talking about how you cannot balance your triangle, that you're always trying to cope with one thing or another. Stop reaching for balance and start reaching for harmony,” Watson said.

Stacie Brown, director of curriculum and instruction for Granbury ISD, spoke on the topic of “Relationships, Results & Resignations.”

“The resignations, it was not necessarily about people leaving, but the resignations we have within ourselves, the results that we want and how we expect that to be at the end and how to give up the thought of perfection and trying to not live with that in our world,” Watson said.

Tracie Harper, sales manager at Daffan Cooling & Heating, gave a presentation on “Company Culture is a Religion, Not a Sermon.”

“In other words, you can't preach to your people, but you can actually have them come and learn how to create a good culture of people together and lift them up,” Watson said.

Lunch was provided by Baked Bread & Pastry Co., followed by keynote speaker Kristin Dickerson, who talked about her book, “My Journey Back to God,” which was published in 2021.

Dickerson left her 15-year-career as a television news anchor for NBC5 to travel across the Camino de Santiago.

“The keynote speaker that they were wanting to have at the time was unable to be here, so I reached out to Kristin Dickerson and she agreed to come,” said Karen Cooper, director of events and membership at the Granbury Chamber of Commerce. “I had been following her on her journey along the Camino de Santiago that she took with her husband, and it was just an absolute inspiration — that's what this event is, just an inspiration. It is to me, and I hope it is to the rest of the women in the community.”

The summit closed with a networking and book signing cocktail hour, allowing women to mingle and form relationships with other attendees at the event.

“I just love opportunities that allow women to come together to lift one another up, because with women, so often, we don't give ourselves the credit that we should and we don't always believe in how truly amazing we are,” said Holly Martin, general manager of the Granbury Chamber of Commerce. “It’s important, both professionally and personally, to take that time when we can stop and we can come together to encourage one another and remember that every single one of us is beautiful and we all have the fire within us. Sometimes it's just knowing when you are ready to be that champion — that's when you can step up and you can ignite that spark that you need sometimes, that extra motivation. We have to realize that being perfect isn't what we want to strive for, and it's not who we need to be. It's about finding our true potential in who we really are, giving ourselves and others grace and loving who we are.”

With the first Women in Business Summit such a success, the Granbury Chamber of Commerce is excited to make this an annual event.

“From the time I started with the chamber, I suspected that the Women in Business committee had the energy and enthusiasm to put together an event to remember. Seeing their hard work and dedication paying off with a sold-out inaugural event is something that the chamber and, for that matter, the entire Granbury and Hood County community can be proud of,” said Brian Bondy, chamber president/CEO, in an email.

Watson added, “We are just blessed with everything that's happened. It's been an amazing success, and I think it's going to continue to keep growing. I can't wait to see what happens next year.”