Earlier this month, Gary Blackmon was named Montgomery County’s tourism coordinator. He was kind enough to answer the following questions for inclusion in the Speckled Paw Times.
Where are you from? Where’d you go to school?
I was born in Troy and currently reside in Troy. I’ve lived in Troy since 2002, but I grew up in Star from 1979-2002. I graduated from East Montgomery High School in 1993.
What did you do before becoming tourism coordinator for Montgomery County?
I worked in the hosiery mill, Claysons, from 1993-98. I left the mill and went to college and graduated with a degree in marketing and graphic design. After graduation, I got a job at the Montgomery Herald as their layout and graphic designer. I created and designed publications like LakeLife Magazine for the Herald which was one of the first publications to feature places and events around our lakes and the Uwharrie Mountains/Uwharrie National Forest. Around this time, I was also running a mobile rock-climbing wall business that we set up at local events, as well as festivals and events across North Carolina. I left the Montgomery Herald to start my own publication and was managing that business until the recession of 2008 which, unfortunately, put me out of business. I then moved on to working for Able Customs Signs of Asheboro creating billboards, vehicle wraps, and a ton of business signage. One sign I had a big part in creating was George’s Carry Out Subs located on Fayetteville Street in Asheboro. I still love seeing that sign when I ride by today. Unfortunately, the recession took hold of Able Customs and they eventually sold out to what is now Stone Tree Signs. From there, I bounced around construction jobs, cabinet building, and freelance logo designing – which I did for several companies such as DWA Construction and Albemarle Alarm Systems, to name a couple. Again, the recession took a toll on these businesses. I eventually came across a job at Toshiba Business Solutions, formerly McRae Graphics of Mt. Gilead. It was a great company to work for and they have been my “steady” for the past 13 years.
Why were you interested in the job as tourism coordinator?
I alone started a Facebook page around 2009 called “Uwharrie Mountains.” I was very involved in the various events we’ve held over the years in the Uwharries, so I knew when and where the events occurred. I noticed that there was a need to feed information to the citizens and visitors of Montgomery County. Thus, the creation of the Uwharrie Mountains Facebook page. I scoured every outdoor event, small business, and live music opportunities in the Uwharrie’s and would advocate and share information to reach a wider audience. With this newfound passion of sharing the excitement of the Uwharries, I began creating promotional materials for the Uwharries. I created and designed license plates, decals, shirts, the first URE sticker (like the OBX, CB, OIB stickers you see across the Southeast). This became something I did as a hobby for many years.
When the Discover Uwharrie Welcome Center was created and word got out about the amazing things the Tourism Development Authority was doing for the county, I was impressed from day one and wanted to be a part of it somehow. When the tourism coordinator position was posted, I took a leap of faith and applied. I did my research, I worked to put the puzzle pieces together and I went after it. I knew that in this role, I would not only have the opportunity to create a place for my children to come back to after college, but also work with great leaders in the community to help create a vibrant, sustainable tourism economy and a strong outdoor ecosystem for Montgomery County.
What are your duties as tourism coordinator?
I am to create and manage a comprehensive program of tourism development and promotion for Montgomery County. My primary responsibility is to grow tourism-related revenues in Montgomery County (Occupancy Tax) through the effective use of strategic planning, leadership skills, community assets, industry knowledge and relationships, and evolving tourism practices. Some of this includes Discover Uwharrie social media management and creation, media publications, marketing and advertising for Discover Uwharrie/Tourism Development Authority, to grow website traffic, etc. I’ll be working and creating partnerships with a lot of local, state, and federal organizations that can help provide resources, funds, and guidance in rural areas like ours. The job is ever-growing and will morph as we grow.
What are the biggest challenges in attracting tourists to Montgomery County?
We don’t really have a problem attracting people. The people are here, we have just lost our visitor spending to our surrounding counties. The Uwharrie area alone has more than 2 million visitors each year and is ever increasing. The challenge is we need places to stay; short-term lodging. We have a few places like Uwharrie Cabins that were ahead of the curve, knew the potential of the area, and capitalized on it. We also have many Airbnb’s, VRBO’s, and other private rentals that remain at full occupancy. Our plan is to continue to educate the locals and help them realize the opportunities of short-term rentals in the county. We are also going to advocate and work with our towns to push for a hotel.
What are the biggest selling points in attracting tourists to Montgomery County?
The outdoor recreation assets, the towns, our strong and deep history, and our way of life. We are in the geographic center of the state. We have the mountains. We have the history. We have the lakes. We have the rural, small towns that are unique and growing.
Is it possible to segment tourism efforts by town (Mt. Gilead, Troy, Candor, Biscoe, Star) or is your focus going to be on Montgomery County as a whole?
Our focus as a Tourism Development Authority is to market the county as a whole. Each town helps make our county unique. Each town has its own personality and character that will be marketed as a destination, as a great, small-town experience.
What can be done to attract Lake Tillery residents/visitors to Mt. Gilead/Montgomery County?
I believe the key to attracting the Lake Tillery residents to the Town of Mt. Gilead is to directly market to each individual resident. A huge focus has been on Facebook and social media marketing. In reality, a vast majority of residents will never see that social media marketing due to the Facebook algorithm. Until you’re dumping funds into geolocation and social media sponsored ads, direct mail advertising, presentations at River Wild and Tillery Tradition (for example), after-hours events sponsored by the town, there will be a disconnect. We’ve got to put everything about Mt. Gilead and Montgomery County in front of them at all times. In the coming years, the Discover Uwharrie team will be working to develop a new resident welcome package for the county and marketing materials to share in our lodging for visitors (Airbnb’s, VRBO’s, and other short-term rentals in the area) to help our towns retain that resident/visitor spending. We will also be working with the Small Business Center at Montgomery Community College to help small businesses directly market to residents and visitors as well. It will need to be a concentrated effort from all of our towns to help market the amazing things they do, have, and can offer.
What are a few of your most immediate goals?
First and foremost, it is to grow Occupancy Tax collections, thus places to stay. Without places to stay, we will not be able to capitalize on our visitors. The Occupancy Tax collections allow us to do our job with Discover Uwharrie and that is to market the county. We want to see some small business growth in the area as well. In addition, we will be working toward countywide signage.
How will you know you’ve been successful in your job?
When Occupancy Tax collections continue to grow and remain steady throughout the year. That is a direct indicator of tourism growth in our county. In addition, we want to keep an eye on sales tax and small business growth.
How much does the Occupancy Tax generate per year in Montgomery County and what is it used for?
The county is currently averaging around $160,000 a year – almost double what we saw prior to COVID. Currently, local ordinance establishes the local Occupancy Tax rate at 6 percent, which was effective July 1, 2020.
The Occupancy Tax is essentially a “visitor tax”. Guests pay a small additional amount as a percentage of their lodging rate, and that tax is then paid by the business owner to local government on a monthly basis. The revenue generated by the tax is administered in N.C. by a Tourism Development Authority consisting of appointed individuals. Unlike sales tax, no Occupancy Tax revenue is directed to state government in N.C. – 100 percent remains at the local level. Where does the money go? 1. Promote travel and tourism to Montgomery County (social media, website, print marketing, etc.). 2. Tourism-related expenditures, which includes uses varying from festival creation or sponsorship, events, projects, and much more. 3. Funding for tourism-related capital projects such as visitor centers (Discover Uwharrie Welcome Center operations). 4. Administrative support for tourism-related activities. 5. Contribute to the economic development and quality of life in Montgomery County.