What Hutch Connect Has Become

When Hutch Connect started, it was supposed to be simple. A clean, professional page for small businesses who didn’t need a full website but needed more than just Facebook. That was the whole idea. A digital business card. A place to send people. Something that looked good, worked well, and didn’t break the bank.

But it didn’t stay that small for long.

It didn’t take more than a few weeks before it was obvious this thing was becoming something much bigger. Businesses weren’t just signing up. They were talking to each other. Sharing ideas. Sending referrals. Recommending each other. Liking and sharing every new partner we added. It wasn’t just a list anymore. It was growing into a network.

We started meeting local owners face to face and hearing their stories. Seeing what they struggled with. Hearing what kept them going. Understanding what they needed to grow. And that changed everything. Hutch Connect stopped being a tool and started becoming a community.

Along the way we kept hearing the same thing from partners and from people in town. “Hutch needs this.” “This is exactly what we’ve been missing.” Too many great businesses were fading into the background because they just weren’t being seen. Not because they weren’t talented. Not because they lacked value. Just because there wasn’t a place built to lift them up.

Every time we added a new partner, a whole group of others would jump in to welcome them, share the post, and cheer them on. This wasn’t something we planned. It was happening on its own. We introduced partners to each other and they hit it off right away. Before we knew it, our weekends were spent meeting people, learning their stories, and hearing the heart behind their businesses. At first it was a little uncomfortable, especially for Abbie, but that faded fast. People were grateful. And we were helping.

Tech comes easy to me. Just like all the different things our partners do come easy to them. That’s the whole point. We fill in each other’s gaps. We support each other. And along the way we found so many people who wanted exactly what we wanted. To see Hutch grow. To see the small, local businesses survive and succeed.

So we kept building.

We launched the Trunk or Treats listing and it hit almost 500 views a day. We expanded Hutch Connect Cares so people could find help or find ways to offer help in one place. We added job listings. We added partner deals. We created the Resource Hub. We started spotlighting partners and their stories. And now we’re getting ready for our first official meetup.

One thing became very clear to us.

We weren’t just promoting our partners. We were becoming customers ourselves. We weren’t just talking about shopping local. We were actually doing it. Supporting the people we cared about. Showing up for them. And realizing they were showing up for us too.

This whole thing has turned into something bigger than we expected. Hutch Connect isn’t just a website anymore. It’s a growing, living community of business owners who care about each other and care about this town. People who want to help, want to connect, want to see Hutch succeed.

And we’re just getting started.