Featured Speaker: Gary R. McLaren, Executive Director, Henrico County Economic Development Authority

Topic: Henrico County Economic Development Report Card

Gary McLaren became Executive Director of the Henrico County Economic Development Authority in April of 2009. He had previously served as Deputy Director of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP), Virginia’s primary state-wide economic development agency. He joined the VEDP in 1999 as Director of Business Development where for four years he led Virginia’s domestic and international marketing program to attract additional jobs and investment.

McLaren, a native of Colorado, grew up in Milledgeville, Georgia. He graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1975 with a B.S. degree in business administration with a major in marketing. He is a 1981 graduate of the Economic Development Institute at the University of Oklahoma.

Prior to joining the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, Gary served as the Director of Economic Development for Chesterfield County for eleven years. Previously he held positions as Director of Economic Development for Chesapeake, Virginia; Director of the Florence County, South Carolina Industrial Development Commission and an industrial representative for the South Carolina State Development Board.

He is a past President and member of the Virginia Economic Developers Association, and previously served on the Board of the Southern Economic Development Council; he also serves on the Board of the Japan Virginia Society as Chair of the Nominating Committee. McLaren is also a member of the International Economic Development Council and the Greater Richmond Real Estate Group among other civic organizations.

McLaren is married to the former Catherine Watson of Virginia Beach; they have two adult children, Matthew McLaren and Caitlin Figura.

We would like to personally invite you to be a part of the Henrico Business Leaders Group! We are working to keep Henrico County a great place to work, live, and play and your help will be greatly appreciated. Henrico Business Leaders meets each 2nd Monday at 7:00a.m. at Richmond Marriott West, 4240 Dominion Blvd., Glen Allen, Virginia 23060

The Mission of the Henrico Business Leaders is to provide access to business, government and civic leaders in Henrico County while promoting active participation for people interested in attracting and retaining business, improving their community and interacting directly with government representatives.