What’s the Coolest Thing Made in Montana?

Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) - Could you possibly be the winner of ‘What’s the Coolest Thing Made in Montana?

I spoke with Todd O’Hair, President and CEO of the Montana Chamber of Commerce about a new competition to find ‘The Coolest Thing Made in Montana’.

“This is new for us at the Montana Chamber of Commerce,” began O’Hair. “On an annual basis, we recognize manufacturers in the state, and this year, we decided we wanted to open this up and highlight some of the unique and interesting and maybe lesser known sort of things or products or services that are made in Montana.”

The First Ever 'Coolest Thing Made in Montana' Contest is Underway

O’Hair said this will be an annual event, starting in 2024.

“For this first year, we want to give a lot of opportunity to lots of folks, and then we'll refine as we go through the years coming up, as far as how we want to refine it and improve it,” he said. “We encourage everyone to think about what's being made in their community and nominate those folks, and let's see if we can create some free publicity about some of the great things that are being made here in the state.”

O’Hair said the whole idea of the competition is to encourage small businesses and entrepreneurship.

The Competition is Meant to Encourage Entrepreneurship in Montana

“We like to support entrepreneurship in Montana because we recognize that entrepreneurship creates wealth in both rural and urban communities,” he said. “It’s true that Montana consistently places near the top nationally as one of the top entrepreneurial states in the country.”

O’Hair said those interested in the competition should visit the Montana Chamber of Commerce Website for all the details.

READ MORE: Missoula Chamber of Commerce Choses Mark Losh to be CEO

The Overall Winner will be Announced in October

“People can vote by coming to our website and clicking on those items that have been nominated, and we'll have multiple rounds,” he said. “The first round will end around the first of July, where we'll announce all of the folks that were nominated for the coolest thing made in Montana. Then, we'll open it up and have everyone vote. We'll narrow the list down in August and again in September, and in Billings at our annual meeting in October we will announce the winner of the coolest thing made in Montana.”

Get More details on 'The Coolest Thing Made in Montana' here.