editorial
Western Massachusetts has a strong tradition of entrepreneurship dating back more than three centuries.
And BusinessWest publisher John Gormally reflects that tradition in more ways than one. He has owned or currently owns everything from Costa Rican sign companies to television stations to boutique resort hotels. But his story began 40 years earlier, with a small monthly magazine he called the Western Massachusetts Business Journal (the first issue is pictured at right).
As he tells this story, he looks around New England and notices that other cities and other regions have publications that specialize in different aspects of business. He noticed that there was no such publication in the Greater Springfield area and decided there should be one. Because… there was a story to be told.
Forty years later, there is still a story to be told, and we remain committed to telling it. We are also expanding on his original vision of Gormally 40 years ago, holding a mirror up to the region’s business community and creating new and exciting stories to provide thought-provoking stories and commentary about what is reflected in that mirror. We remain committed to finding a better way.
So many changes have occurred in the region and its economic landscape over the past 40 years, and these are reflected in stories that focus on specific sectors, starting on page 6. These developments include everything from the consolidation of many industries to major changes in how work gets done, where, when, and by whom (or, in the emerging AI era, what).
These stories have many things in common, the biggest one being technology. Anyone who remembers what the workplace was like 40 years ago remembers the days when desks didn’t have computers, people who wanted to contact someone reached into a 3-inch-thick phone book, and fax machines You remember when it was great. A new way to deliver information. It was still a decade before the Internet went from government research labs to millions of homes and businesses, when cell phones were the size of bricks and all you could do with them was call someone. Around that time.
Nowadays, information is everywhere and instantaneously. Call or text your attorney at 3 a.m. and he or she will answer your call. Consumers can move money from one bank to another in minutes and get auto insurance quotes and loan approvals just as quickly. Manufacturing equipment can and does run unattended throughout the night. Business meetings are often held on Zoom, saving travel time and money, allowing people to work from virtually anywhere, and preserving the value of in-person collaboration.
There were many other developments as well. Our business community is different in many ways, but it is particularly diverse, with far more women (29 of whom were named to this year’s 40 Under 40) and traditionally underrepresented minorities. People are in leadership positions and owning their own businesses. This was a profound and refreshing change.
As for 40 Under Forty, BusinessWest introduced its recognition program and celebration in 2007, and it remains a highly coveted honor among young professionals in the region. Subsequently, she held other recognition programs and accompanying galas, including the 2009 Difference Maker Award, the 2015 She 40 Under For0 Alumni Achievement Award, the 2017 Healthcare Heroes, and the 2018 Women of Impact. . Why. Because so many success stories, both individuals and organizations, deserve to be celebrated and their stories told.
These articles, and the thousands of others published in the pages of our sister publications BusinessWest and Healthcare News, both published in 2000, and on our two websites, businesswest.com and healthcarenews.com, have changed over the years. It has proven the business environment. So is the use of daily e-newsletters, social media, and weekly podcasts, dynamic business tools that further reflect changes in the way people work, share, and interact in 2024.
Even the way this magazine is produced is very different today. Like other media companies with a long history, we went from using negatives and stick-on ads in the 80s and early 90s to quickly laying out and producing each issue digitally, quickly expanding to our website and daily Now share articles via email. news. And we’ve experienced all of that change while maintaining our culture as a small, independent, local business with deep roots and a commitment to the Western Mass community.
By the way, the downtowns of many of these communities have been dramatically reshaped by changes brought to retail and other sectors. Meanwhile, many of the huge manufacturing plants that once gave character to many communities (Holyoke, East Hampton, Chicopee, Greenfield, Palmer, Pittsfield, etc.) are now home to housing facilities, spaces for artists, It is a multi-purpose facility, shared office space, and a small facility. Business incubators, or cannabis cultivation operations, to name a few.
Yes, it’s cannabis cultivation. This is also a huge development, one of many that he probably couldn’t have imagined back in 1984.
In fact, when asked to look into the future and predict what will happen next, many of the people we spoke to said that given the pace of change to date, it is certainly difficult to predict the future. answered that it was very difficult.
As for BusinessWest…we’ll just keep doing what we’ve always done. It’s about holding up a mirror and shining a spotlight on a business community that is rich, diverse, evolving, and has an endless supply of good stories to tell.
We appreciate the support of our advertisers, readers, and the entire Western Massachusetts business community over the past 40 years and look forward to the next 40 years of progress, challenges, and unpredictability.