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Chillicothe’s newest economic development director Rachael Parker has more in common with business owners than residents may think.
Not only does she have a background with small businesses, she is beginning her own business in Peoria.
A 51-year-old native of Galesburg, Parker is taking a hobby into a full-fledged business, Sweet Cakes by Rachael.
Before she had children, she took cake decorating classes. She would make cakes for friends who needed one for a birthday or special occasion, but eventually decided to start charging for her hobby.
She is finishing up the details in the next 90 days for her storefront, which will be open by appointment or on the weekend when she and her daughter can man the business.
Just last week she had six orders for cakes, mostly for birthdays, but she does wedding cakes as well. Her personal favorite is white cake with white buttercream frosting.
Her journey through opening her own business gives her a greater understanding of what business owners experience.
“I see what people go through and their struggles (opening a business). You see those things you don’t know unless you actually do it yourself. It has helped my understanding,” said Parker.
She brought sweet treats to City Hall for her first day of work, and said she was thinking of bringing them to a council meeting as well.
In her interview, Parker said city officials stressed to her their goal of growing small businesses. With her contacts, Parker will attempt to attract more businesses to Chillicothe. One way she may be able to do that is through Peoria Metro, a group of economic development professionals who share information, ideas, conferences and areas of interest. Though it may seem like the professionals would try to keep businesses within their respective city limits, Parker said they help each other when it comes to finding the kind of area or building a business desires. Peoria is the initial draw, Parker said, but some businesses are looking for an adjacent location.
Or, she explained, sometimes officials need to “think outside the box” when it comes to attracting an additional location for a thriving business. She used FireHouse Pizza as an example of a business which opened in one location, and then has continued opening in adjacent communities.
She also said she thinks it may be a good idea to host meetings or even make up a packet of information about the basic things potential business owners should know about opening a business in Chillicothe.
Chillicothe’s newest economic development director Rachael Parker has more in common with business owners than residents may think.
Not only does she have a background with small businesses, she is beginning her own business in Peoria.
A 51-year-old native of Galesburg, Parker is taking a hobby into a full-fledged business, Sweet Cakes by Rachael.
Before she had children, she took cake decorating classes. She would make cakes for friends who needed one for a birthday or special occasion, but eventually decided to start charging for her hobby.
She is finishing up the details in the next 90 days for her storefront, which will be open by appointment or on the weekend when she and her daughter can man the business.
Just last week she had six orders for cakes, mostly for birthdays, but she does wedding cakes as well. Her personal favorite is white cake with white buttercream frosting.
Her journey through opening her own business gives her a greater understanding of what business owners experience.
“I see what people go through and their struggles (opening a business). You see those things you don’t know unless you actually do it yourself. It has helped my understanding,” said Parker.
She brought sweet treats to City Hall for her first day of work, and said she was thinking of bringing them to a council meeting as well.
In her interview, Parker said city officials stressed to her their goal of growing small businesses. With her contacts, Parker will attempt to attract more businesses to Chillicothe. One way she may be able to do that is through Peoria Metro, a group of economic development professionals who share information, ideas, conferences and areas of interest. Though it may seem like the professionals would try to keep businesses within their respective city limits, Parker said they help each other when it comes to finding the kind of area or building a business desires. Peoria is the initial draw, Parker said, but some businesses are looking for an adjacent location.
Or, she explained, sometimes officials need to “think outside the box” when it comes to attracting an additional location for a thriving business. She used FireHouse Pizza as an example of a business which opened in one location, and then has continued opening in adjacent communities.
She also said she thinks it may be a good idea to host meetings or even make up a packet of information about the basic things potential business owners should know about opening a business in Chillicothe.
Just how will she go about settling into the job?
Parker said she will be reading up on Chillicothe and mainly listening to both what city officials and business owners tell her.
“I’m here to help them try to grow their business. Call me and if I don’t know the answer I’ll try to get an answer,” said Parker.
Her schooling is in home economics, beginning at Western Illinois University and then transferring to Bradley University on a track scholarship. The sprinter and long jumper was inducted into Bradley’s Hall of Fame in 1992. Due to not meeting grade-point average requirements for graduating with a degree, Parker returned to Bradley and graduated two years ago with her degree.
She moved to Oklahoma City, Okla., in 1982 due to their booming economy. She had worked at a bank in high school, and with that experience began working at a credit union.
She worked for Susie’s Casual and said she thought about being a clothing buyer, but decided it was not for her and headed back to the banking world.
She ended up moving back to Peoria in 1987 and stayed in the banking world. After working for Illinois Business Financial Services, she joined on with the Economic Development Council. She mainly worked with the revolving loan fund for three counties and assisted the director as a project manager.
Parker then worked for the City of Peoria for the last five years with economic development. She again worked with loan funds, a little experience with enterprise zones and Tax Increment Financing districts, expansions and retention of businesses.
She is also a public servant, serving on Peoria District 150 School Board for three years, which she left to pursue a Peoria County Board seat. She just finished up her first year as a county board member, and sits next to Chillicothe’s representative Jim Fennell.
A family member encouraged her originally to seek the school board seat after starting out as president of the Parent Teacher Organization at Columbia Middle School.
“I like talking to people and I like helping them,” she said about how she got into representing residents, and once she could help them, then she said she felt an additional charge to spur her on to the next person needing assistance.
She has two children in their early 20s and two grandchildren, all of whom live in Peoria. She resides in Peoria as well. Chillicothe does not have a residency requirement for supervisors.
