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The Southern Highlands saw its first business organisations formed towards the end of the 19th century, these being:

• Bowral Chamber of Commerce & Industry
• Moss Vale Commerce & Progress Association
• Mittagong Chamber of Commerce
• Bundanoon Community Progress Association
• Berrima Business Houses Association
• Robertson Business Association
• Sutton Forest Business Association

By the end of the 20th century, local business people had recognised the importance of joining together to promote their interests-in-common. Associations of accommodation providers, manufacturers and industrialists developed and from time to time the executives of these various business organisations would come together to discuss matters of shared concern. These meetings transcended the boundaries of towns and vocations and were usually convened by the largest chamber, Bowral. Long-serving president, Tony Springett, was instrumental in calling and chairing these occasional meetings, which came to be known as ‘the combined chambers of commerce’. It was not until 1999 that a concerted effort was made to form a Southern Highlands Business Chamber. The inaugural meeting of local business leaders was held on 23 March 1999 with Garry Barnsley (Sutton Forest) elected as the first president.

A declaration stated that the primary objective of the new chamber was ‘to represent the business interests of members and present a united voice on major issues and initiatives'. In fulfilling this charter, the Southern Highlands Business Chamber has provided an invaluable forum to bring together the business leaders of the Southern Highlands community. The SHBC is an incorporated association under the Associations Incorporation Act 1984. Its members are the business organisations of the Southern Highlands. Each member organisation retains its own autonomy and is the functionary of its own members. The president, elected by the members, can hold office for one year but, by accepted convention, the president may be re-elected to hold office for not more than one more year in succession, unless the memebership decides to further extend the term of office.

During the first years of operation, the Southern Highlands Business Chamber Inc. has achieved some remarkable goals:-

• 'What's on in the Highlands?'
  This was an initiative of the 'combined chamber' that culminated in a monthly bulletin compiled and distributed by Tourism Southern Highlands listing coming events for the information of members.
• Australia's first BookTown
  This project was a joint initiative of the Chamber and Mr Paul McShane of Biblioquest International. It led to the formation of the Southern Highlands Booksellers' Association at a meeting hosted by the Chamber at the Bradman Museum on 7 August 2000, with the support of Wingecarribee Shire Council.
  - The publication of the BookTrail brochure;
  - The establishment of a biennial Australian Festival of the Book
• Australia's Centre of Excellence for Needlecraft
  Again, the Chamber took the initiative to identify the Southern Highlands nationally as the needlecraft capital of Australia. The Southern Highlands Needlecraft Association was formed at a meeting hosted by the Chamber at the Bradman Museum on 2 August 2000.
• Southern Highlands Harvest Festival
  The chamber hosted the inaugural festival in April 2000.
• International year of volunteers (2001) - the Australian Volunteer Flag
  The Chamber initiated a schools competition to design and make a new flag called the Australian Volunteer Flag. The flag has now been manufactured commercially, and serves to honour and recognise the invaluable service of volunteers in our Australian community. The Chamber was successful in obtaining a small federal government grant to install a flagpole in the grounds of the Sutton Forest village hall, where the Australian Volunteer Flag flies permanently.
• Moss Vale - opportunity in the heart of the Highlands
  The project sought to 'raise awareness of the many positive qualities of Moss Vale; to engender town pride and enhance the prospects of new investment in businesses and infrastructure in the town'.
  Tangible expressions of the success of the project include permanent signage and a poster speaking about the favourable attributes of Moss Vale.
• Restaurants of the Southern Highlands - Eat Street, Mittagong!
  This project focused upon the many fine restaurants and specialist eating houses in Mittagong.
• Illawarra Business Chamber - a strategic alliance
  To broaden the network of contacts beyond the boundaries of Wingecarribee Shire, the Chamber established an affiliation with the Illawarra Business Chamber, and through it Australian Business Limited.
• Membership of the Wingecarribee Shire Council Economics Development Committee.
• Extended it's membership base to include Bowral Rate Payers Associations, Southern Highlands Manufacturing Cluster, Telstra Country Wide and BDCU.

Most importantly, the Chamber provides a meeting place for all of the business people in the Southern Highlands, where representatives can debate and progress matters of importance to the Southern Highlands business community. It has also become a clearing house for information about 'what's happening' in every corner of the Southern Highlands. This information is vital to allow the business people in the Southern Highlands to think and act cohesively.

Throughout its formative years, the Chamber had the welcome support of mayors Sara Murray, Philip Yeo and Gordon Lewis, and their colleagues on Wingecarribee Shire Council, for projects initiated by the Chamber.

Successive presidents of the chamber have been:–

• Garry Barnsley OAM ( Sutton Forest)
• Irvine New (Moss Vale)
• Neil Wallis (Mittagong)
• Terry Oakes-Ash (Bowral) - current

The Southern Highlands Business Chamber Inc. is committed to promoting a vigorous, co-operative and imaginative approach to promoting business in the Southern Highlands.

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