The Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce will recognize the entire Anderson Family with its 2013 Lifetime Achievement Award during the 16th Annual Small Business of the Year Awards on May 10.
“Our family is humbled and grateful to the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce to be selected for the Chamber’s Lifetime Achievement Award,” noted Bill Anderson, in a statement to the Chamber on behalf of the family. “Since 1877 our family has had the extraordinary opportunity to do business in our hometown of Naperville. Oswald’s Pharmacy, Anderson’s Bookshop and Two Doors East Gift Shop have endured through good times and bad, thanks to the wonderful support of this community and its citizens.”
This Chamber award is given to people who have made a significant, positive impact through their business, volunteerism and dedication.
Since the Chamber is celebrating its centennial anniversary in 2013, event organizers wanted to present the award to business leaders who have contributed to its successes over the years.
“The Anderson family came to the top of our list for their outstanding service and dedication to our business community,” said Mike Evans, president & CEO of the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce.
The Anderson family’s involvement in local organizations spans the gamut from coaching youth sports teams, to Rotary Clubs, the Downtown Naperville Alliance and IndieBound Naperville. Their commitment to helping the citizens and businesses of Naperville is unending.
In fact, a decade ago, Bill Anderson’s dream came true to have a Christmas parade when the downtown merchants first organized the Hometown Holidays Parade to kick off the holiday season while showcasing the needs of Little Friends,Inc.
“Being involved in Naperville is our way of giving back and thanking a community who has given so much. We thank the Chamber, its staff and most of all our customers who have supported our business for over 135 years,” added Anderson.
The Anderson family has been in Naperville since the 1870’s. The first business, W.W. Wickel Pharmacy, evolved into Oswald’s, and still operates a thriving business today, now located in Naperville Plaza. Anderson’s Bookshop, first known as Paperback Paradise, has been open since 1964. The latest business, Two Doors East, featuring many Naperville novelties and gifts, opened several years ago on the same block as Anderson’s Bookshop.
Tres, Bill, Becky and Peter Anderson are the current generation running each of the family’s independent businesses in Naperville and surrounding communities. Each generation has passed down the family tradition of entrepreneurship and ownership, with independence, dedication, success and expansion.
While Bill Anderson at Oswald’s and Becky Anderson Wilkins at Anderson’s Bookshop and Two Doors East have become the personalities associated with the businesses, Becky has noted many times that the support she receives at Anderson’s from her brothers, Tres and Peter, will never be matched.
“We wanted to honor the entire history of the Anderson family as well. It is a testament to the entrepreneurial spirit that a business that began over 130 years is still going strong. We cannot say enough about the generations, past, present and future, upholding the family tradition of great service and great commitment to the community,” said Evans.
The Small Business of the Year Awards features five categories of nominees from around the Naperville area. Winners in each category as well as an overall winner will be named at the awards ceremony from 6 to 10PM Fri., May 10, at the Wyndham Lisle.
Editor’s Note: Congratulations to the four children of Jean and Robert Anderson! Coincidentally, the “family and friends gifts” photo at Osward’s Pharmacy was taken the day the items were placed on the shelves on April 22. Other photos are from PN’s files.
PN is also mindful that Oswald’s Pharmacy and Anderson’s Bookshops are not strangers to winning awards. Both companies have been recognized in the past by the Chamber’s Small Business Awards. In addition, Anderson’s Bookshop has helped put downtown Naperville on the map by being recognized as Publisher’s Weekly Bookstore of the Year.
About the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce: The Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce is the largest suburban Chamber in Illinois with an active membership of 1,400 organizations of every size and from every sector, who participate in more than 400 briefings, committee gatherings, events, and programs annually. Through its programming, the Chamber provides leadership for the benefit of region’s business community by promoting economic growth and advocating the interests of business. For its efforts in promoting free enterprise and the business community, the Chamber has been recognized with 5-Star Accreditation from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, an honor bestowed on only 1 percent of Chambers, out of the nearly 7,000 in the nation.
