Greater Grays Harbor, Inc. Business Forum Lunch focuses on tourism

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, May 27, 2026

The latest Greater Grays Harbor, Inc. [GGHI] Business Forum Lunch, held at the Rotary Log Pavilion in Aberdeen, focused on tourism in Grays Harbor.

GGHI Board Chairman Kyle Pauley served as master of ceremonies and moderator for a panel discussion featuring District 1 County Commissioner Georgia Miller, Ocean Shores City Administrator Scott Andersen, John Shaw of the Westport South Beach Historical Society, Oyhut Bay Seaside Resort CEO Jason Meersman and Vice President of Seabrook Hospitality Nadine Huck.

Andersen led off the round of presentations centered around destination marketing. He played two segments that aired on KING 5 and KOMO Seattle Refined demonstrating the allure of Ocean Shores. Andersen also discussed the desire to identify the holes in the city’s marketing strategy and touched on recent efforts to combine efforts with the city of Westport and Grays Harbor County.

“We know that we have holes in our vision and strategy, we just don’t really know what they are,” Andersen said. “We just need some experts to tell us the best way to go about countering that and the best way to move forward. … Ocean Shores was out there operating on our own. We were playing in our sandbox and they were playing in theirs.”

Huck gave a comprehensive presentation detailing Seabrook’s growth and near future plans. She talked about Seabrook’s walkability, amenities, event programming, and activities. Huck also discussed the near completion of several projects and developments and what tourists and visitors are looking for at their destinations. She stressed the importance of developing year-round programming.

“Seabrook 1.0 is finishing up this year. Over the next year we’ll be finally finishing up the downtown area. Placemaking. For us it’s all about placemaking. Not just having a place for people to go, but also that connection between our homeowners, their guests, the people who work in the town and also our neighbors around us,” Huck said. “Big push this year on events programming and year-round activation. We’re focusing our events around non-traditional weekends. … We’re currently discussing with some people in Aberdeen how we can partner more closely so that our guests will stop along the way and visit shops in Aberdeen or Hoquiam.”

Meersman talked about how marketing attracts visitors, yet it’s the experience that creates recurring customers. He also described how important it is to support the surrounding community and increase the size of the collective revenue pie.

“We feel like the new kids on the block to be honest. … We’ve been working hard to keep up with what people are looking for when they travel, what customers as they’re coming out to the coast are really looking for. What is the next step, what does somebody want to do when they’re on site, what are the key components of their stay that are going to make them turn from a first-time guest to a returning guest? That’s the number one key. Marketing does all of the work to bring people out for the first time but it’s their experience when they’re here on site that gives them a reason to come back,” Meersman said. “First and foremost it’s driving local spending and our employees that we employ on a day-to-day basis, supporting those local jobs, strengthening all the small businesses in Ocean Shores and the surrounding communities, encouraging additional investment into the region, not just on our property but in the surrounding areas. And most importantly, it’s building community.”

Shaw gave an overview of Westport’s destination marketing efforts, talked about how the city has embraced digital and social media and showed some examples. He mentioned the importance of creating activities and experiences, branding and digging into what’s different about a particular locale. Shaw added the importance of learning how to embrace the modern tourist.

“If you want long-term success, start moving toward activities and experiences. Events are important but don’t focus on events over experiences. We started shifting, we were still putting advertising on buses and benches and rack cards,” Shaw said. “We saw the need for digital/social media. We started moving into that. We became branded, we developed a brand under Experience Westport. It is the core of all branding that we do. Everybody thinks they got a great beach, everybody thinks they have the best trail, but dig in incrementally on what it is you have that’s a little bit different.”

Miller discussed ongoing efforts to increase the number of events hosted by the Grays Harbor County Fairgrounds, the importance of Lodging Tax Advisory Committee funds for destination marketing, the popularity and reputation of Olympic National Park and what’s happening at Straddleline Park in McCleary.

“The Olympic National Park is the number eight rated National Park in the United States, it sees approximately 3 million visitors, it brings in approximately $300 million to $350 million dollars, and it provides approximately 3,000 jobs. We have a treasure trove right here in Grays Harbor County. We don’t need to create demand, we just need to figure out more ways to capture it. I do agree that experiences are certainly where it’s at,” Miller said. “Washington coast, it is a primary tourism driver … one of the most visited tourism regions in Washington state. … There’s approximately 25 million to 30 million visits annually statewide to the coastal region, that is approximately $1 billion annually … if you don’t think there’s potential there, there is, we just want to capture more of that. … The Grays Harbor County Fairgrounds, we’ve been changing things a lot out there. … 20 percent increase over last year of events booked out there, we’re trying to make and will make the Grays Harbor County Fairgrounds a year-round destination for events. … Tourism is really good for our economy. … I’m really proud of the work that has been done partnering together. Our advertising dollars go a lot further when we partner them together.”

The event wrapped up with a brief question and answer session. The next GGHI Business Forum Lunch is set for Tuesday, June 23 and will cover the State of Grays Harbor.