Local businesses are the backbone of strong communities, yet rising costs, high card processing fees, and limited access to capital make it harder than ever for them to thrive. BuildUp is a fintech-powered community commerce platform built to support local businesses, strengthen the local economy, and keep money local.
BuildUp provides a modern payment processing alternative that helps small and local businesses lower card processing fees by up to 50% while rewarding customers for shopping local. By reducing swipe fees and keeping more dollars circulating locally, BuildUp enables sustainable growth for neighborhood businesses and long-term community resilience.
Traditional merchant services and credit card networks extract billions of dollars from local economies each year. BuildUp offers an alternative approach to small business payment processing, one that prioritizes merchants, transparency,and community impact.
WithBuildUp, local businesses benefit from:
Instead of competing in isolation, merchants on BuildUp participate in community commerce, where customer spending supports multiple neighborhood businesses and strengthens the local economy.
BuildUp makes it easy for consumers to support local businesses every day. Shoppers can tap to pay using any card, earn shop local rewards, and track how their spending supports the community.
Optional roundups on everyday purchases allow users to turn spare change into meaningful local impact. These funds stay within the community, spent at participating businesses or used to support community-powered micro-lending for small businesses. Every transaction helps keep money local and circulating in the local economy.
Morethan a payments platform, BuildUp is a community commerce engine.Chambers of commerce, cities, and community organizations can use BuildUp’s real-time dashboards to see how money flows through local businesses and measure economic impact clearly and transparently.
BuildUp helps communities:
BuildUp is committed to partnering with chambers of commerce and local business organizations to create stronger, more resilient local economies. Each transaction on BuildUp is a vote for local businesses, community commerce, and shared prosperity.
It feels like Venmo. It works like Stripe. But it builds like a movement.
BuildUp is empowering communities, one transaction at a time.
Growing a business locally takes more than great products or services - it takes connection. For small business owners asking how to promote your business locally or looking for proven small business growth strategies, collaboration and networking are often the missing link.
At The Osceola Chamber, we bring businesses together to grow smarter, stronger, and more connected. Through intentional networking, advocacy, and local partnerships, we help business owners turn relationships into results and build long-term success across Osceola County.
Small business growth rarely happens in isolation. One of the most effective small business growth strategies is collaboration—building relationships with other business owners, community leaders, and local advocates who understand the value of working together. For businesses with limited resources or new to the local arena, collaboration creates meaningful momentum.
Some benefits of networking include:
It also ensures business owners have a small business advocate, a network that supports growth, problem-solving, and long-term success.
At The Osceola Chamber, collaboration is intentional. By connecting businesses through networking events, Leads Groups, Councils, and Coalitions, the Chamber helps members build relationships that translate into real growth. This approach reflects the Chamber’s mission of building a thriving and connected business community in Osceola County while providing practical help for small business owners.
When businesses collaborate, growth becomes shared and the entire local economy benefits.
With The Osceola Chamber, there are ample opportunities to collaborate with your fellow local business owners across a variety of industries to promote your business. From traditional networking events to leadership groups to gatherings designed to nurture budding relationships, there’s no shortage of ways to find your next business partner.
Local networking events are one of the most effective ways to build relationships and promote your business. The Osceola Chamber hosts several kinds of networking events, designed to connect business owners with peers, community leaders, and decision-makers who are actively invested in Osceola County’s growth.
One such example is Business After Hours, a monthly networking event hosted by different businesses across Osceola County connecting individuals from a variety of industries. We also host First Friday Luncheons, where you can connect with a network of mentors, peers, and advisors capable of helping you achieve your goals. For small businesses looking for practical, relationship-driven growth, Chamber networking turns connections into opportunities.
For businesses focused on consistent, relationship-driven growth, joining a Chamber Leads Group offers a proven path forward. These structured, referral-based groups bring together non-competing professionals who are committed to helping one another grow. Through weekly meetings, members share qualified leads, build trust, and develop a deeper understanding of each other’s businesses. With millions in closed business and thousands of leads passed, The Osceola Chamber’s Leads Groups turn networking into measurable results. It’s an intentional way to promote your business locally while gaining a team of advocates invested in your success.
Councils and Coalitions provide a powerful way for businesses to collaborate around shared priorities while strengthening their local presence. For those looking for a deeper commitment to their community, businesses can apply to join an area-based Council (such as Poinciana, Downtown Kissimmee, and Celebration). Joining the board for these councils helps businesses connect with peers, civic leaders, and stakeholders focused on local economic vitality.
Coalitions bring together diverse voices across industries and communities to address workforce needs, advocacy, and inclusion. Participating allows business owners to contribute to solutions, stay informed on local issues, and build trusted relationships beyond traditional networking. It’s a strategic way to promote your business locally while helping shape a stronger Osceola County business environment.
Sustainable growth is easier when small businesses have the right advocates and resources behind them. The Osceola Chamber serves as a dedicated small business advocate, connecting members to tools, expertise, and programs that support long-term success.
Through partnerships with the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and other regional resource providers, businesses gain access to professional consulting, business planning support, and growth-focused education. These resources help owners make informed decisions, refine strategies, and implement practical small business growth strategies.
Growing a business locally is easier and more impactful when it’s done together. If you’re exploring how to promote your business locally or seeking meaningful help for small business owners, collaboration is the advantage that drives lasting results. The Osceola Chamber connects businesses to the people, programs, and partnerships that fuel real growth.
From networking and Leads Groups to Councils, Coalitions, and advocacy, we serve as a trusted small business advocate for Osceola County. When businesses collaborate, opportunity multiplies.
Join the movement and grow your business as part of a thriving, connected local community!
Our community thrives on the foundations of civics, and The Osceola Chamber is excited to once again bring the National Civics Bee® to Central Florida. This initiative encourages middle schoolers to learn about American democracy, engage constructively in their communities, and build trust in their fellow citizens and institutions. In partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Rosen Hotels and Resorts, The Osceola Chamber hosted a regional final of the National Civics Bee on Friday,April 17.
Last November, The Osceola Chamber worked with the Osceola County School District and other local districts to invite middle schoolers in 6th, 7th, and 8th grades from public, private, charter, and home schools to submit essays as part of the first round of competition. Community leaders from across the country reviewed the essays and the top 20 highest-scoring students from the area were then invited to participate in a regional, live round.
The regional competition, hosted at Rosen Centre Hotel Orlando, featured two rounds of multiple-choice civics quiz questions emceed by Chamber President/CEO John Newstreet, providing a platform for students to showcase their civics knowledge. The five top-scoring students from the first two rounds then moved on to a Q & A round of questions posed by a panel of judges. Judges for the local competition were Tameara Crespo, City Clerk, City of Kissimmee; Sandie Martinez, Director,Community Engagement Osceola Region, Valencia College; and Judge Christine Arendas, Florida’s Ninth Judicial Circuit.
At the end of the Q & A round, the winners were Georgia Whittemore of Julia Landon College Preparatory School in Jacksonville in first place, Avi Jutla of Abraham Lincoln Middle School in Gainesville in second place, and Ara Afolabi of Voyager K-8 School in St. Cloud in third place.
All participants took home the tablet they used in competition, as well as a National Civics Bee t-shirt, and a goody bag. The first-place winner received $500 cash, with $250 for second place, and $100 for first place. These top three will now go on to compete in the National Civics Bee® Florida State Finals at Florida State University in Tallahassee on June 30. At the state competition they will have the opportunity to win additional cash prizes, and the first-place winner of the State Finals will earn a trip to Washington, D.C. to compete in the National Championship in the Fall of 2026. Prizes at the National Championship include a grand prize of$100,000 for first place, $25,000 for second place, and $15,000 for third place. All participating students and their families enjoyed a post-event party catered by Rosen Centre.
Said Newstreet, “Our great country and every community within the United States is built on the foundation of civics. Middle schoolers are at the perfect age to become better informed about American democracy as well as learn to respectfully and constructively engage in our community. The National Civics Bee provides a great platform for our young Americans to build greater trust in others and in our institutions. Kissimmee, St. Cloud, and Osceola County will benefit in the short term and long term when citizens are knowledgeable about how government works, lessons learned from our past, and constructive ways to engage in the process – a process which affects each and every one of us each and every day.”
The regional round of the National Civics Bee is brought to Central Florida by grants from The Civic Trust and the Duke Energy Foundation, and support from Rosen Hotels and Resorts.
Said Rosen Hotels & Resorts President & CEO Frank Santos, “It was an honor to host middle school students from all over Florida in the regional round of this year’s National Civics Bee, held at Rosen Centre. With this year being our nation’s 250th anniversary, their commitment to understanding our civic foundations is special. These students certainly reflect the very best of our community andwe are proud to support their dreams.”
