Rose Wilson

Rose specializes in marketing, business planning, and business development for farms, non-profits and small businesses. Rose’s mission is to make a difference on a local level. She is focused on building community relationships; fostering a strong, sustainable, local economy; encouraging environmental stewardship; supporting local agriculture and family farms.

Rose has worked with an expansive array of farms and organizations in Vermont and New Hampshire. She is equally at home when helping a traditional dairy farm, a certified organic vegetable farm, an independent clothing retailer, or a non-profit fine arts institution. Rose served as the consultant for development for the AVA Gallery and Art Center’s capital campaign, and is the Director for the Windsor Downtown Program for the Town of Windsor, VT, a Designated Downtown within the state of Vermont and part of the National Main Street program.

Key Assets

• Relationship building
• Team approach
• Optimism and enthusiasm
• Listening skills
• Long-lasting results
• An appreciation for community, nature, animals and farms
• A genuine concern for client success and satisfaction

Professional Engagements

Rose was invited to participate in “Moving Vermont Agriculture Forward,” an effort created by the Vermont Agency of Agriculture and the John Merck Fund to provide a succinct process of identifying key leverage points to advance the Business Development for Vermont agricultural products, 2008

Rose represented the town of Windsor, accepting a Preserve America grant for the Welcome to Windsor project from First Lady Mrs. Laura Bush and U.S. Secretary of the Interior, the honorable Dirk Kempthorne in the Cannon House Capitol Building, Capitol Hill on July 12, 2007

Rose is the Secretary on the Board of Directors for the Upper Valley Community Credit Union in Lebanon, NH

Rose is a member of the loan fund committee for NOFA VT

Public Speaking

Rose is an accomplished professional speaker, a listing of appearances is as follows:

Guest Speaker at her high school alma mater Stanstead College, Baccalaureate, Stanstead, Quebec, 2008

Presenter, “Identifying New Markets and Expanding Existing Markets through Market Research,” Vermont Housing and Conservation Board,” Vermont Housing and Conservation Board Business Planning for Farm Success: A Gathering of Farm Viability Professionals, Middlebury, VT, 2008

Invited lecturer, “Taking Stock- For Experienced Business Owners,” University of Vermont Extension, Berlin, VT, 2008

Presenter, “Developing a Marketing Plan for Your Farm,” NOFA-VT Direct Marketing Conference, South Royalton, VT, 2008

Moderator, “Farm Viability Panel,” Vermont Housing And Conservation Board Anniversary Conference, Montpelier, VT, 2007

Speaker, Vermont Council on Rural Development annual symposium, Marketing Vermont’s Creative Economy, Statehouse, Montpelier, VT, 2007

Trainer, Vermont Housing and Conservation Board Farm Viability Program, Value Added Marketing, 2007

Presenter, “Effective Advertising for Agri-Business,” MicroCredit-NH, Keene, NH, 2007

Speaker, Tilling The Soil of Opportunity, VT Small Business Development Center, Randolph, VT, 2007

Ranked as the “Top Workshop of the Conference” for presenting, “Leveraging the Vermont Brand,” at Senator Leahy’s 10 Annual Women’s Economic Opportunity Conference, Randolph, VT, 2006

Published Works

“Vermont Ground Beef Marketing Study Report” Vermont Housing & Conservation Board, Montpelier, VT, 2006

“Vermont Milk Company Marketing Study.” Northeastern Vermont Development Association, St. Johnsbury, VT, 2006

“Viability of a Commercial Landbase.” White Paper, 2000

Background

Rose is a graduate of Dartmouth College and a joint US-Canadian citizen. She is a member of NOFA Vermont, Rural Vermont, the Vermont Fresh Network, and the Dartmouth Environmental Network.