Former Bandera County Chamber of Commerce Executive Director James Hernandez is leading the newly formed Cowboy Capital Association, a nonprofit organization focused on promoting tourism and strengthening businesses throughout Bandera County.
Texas Salt Co. owners Andrew and Daniel Almand serve on the association's board, with Andrew Almand as president and Daniel Almand as vice president. Nicole Lee serves as secretary, while Hernandez oversees day-to-day operations as executive director.
According to the association's mission statement, 'The Cowboy Capital Association exists to keep Bandera working – promoting the businesses of Bandera County, carrying the Cowboy Capital of the World to the traveling public, and returning the growth that creates to the community through commerce, jobs, and public revenue. Commerce. Community. Advocacy.'
The organization was created with a dual mission: increasing tourism to Bandera while helping local businesses grow and gain visibility.
'Our goal is twofold,' Daniel Almand said. 'One side of it is to help promote Bandera and bring more people and business to come to Bandera to help spend money with the local businesses. Then the other half is locals promoting locals and helping the small businesses here in town be more prevalent and help them grow and succeed.'
As part of that effort, the CCA plans to create an online business directory and expand marketing efforts to showcase local businesses and community events.
Andrew Almand said the association is focused on business advocacy rather than event management.
'We are not an event-based organization in any capacity,' he said. 'We will support other agencies or associations' events, but our main mission with the CCA is tourism, new money in town, heads and beds, and helping businesses understand where they can be better, more visible, doing some small-business consulting.'
He added that improving business success ultimately benefits the entire community through increased tax revenue, stronger employment opportunities and economic growth.
'I think that by us not being an event-based organization, it gives us more opportunity and more runway to work with local businesses to improve revenue, tax receipts and hotel occupancy taxes for the city and the county,' Andrew Almand said. 'When one company wins through our efforts, every single person in this town wins. All boats rise together.'
One of the association's early initiatives involves continuing to support First Friday activities downtown. While Texas Salt Co. currently operates the monthly event, businesses that join the CCA will receive additional promotional opportunities through First Friday.
'What we're being able to do now is small businesses or any business that signs up to be part of this CCA automatically gets a boost for the First Friday,' Daniel Almand said. 'We're really helping the small businesses that can't advertise too much, giving them a space in the middle of town once a month so that they can advertise their small business.'
At Tuesday's Bandera City Council meeting, council members requested that First Friday activities be relocated to 11th Street to reduce the need for road closures along Cypress Street.
Beyond business promotion, Hernandez said the organization is working to improve the visitor experience throughout the week. While Bandera attracts large crowds on Saturdays, he said the association wants tourists visiting Monday through Friday to enjoy the same level of activity and engagement.
'Bandera is so Saturday-centric,' Hernandez said. 'We want to make sure that when tourists come here during the week, they can also have a really good, full Cowboy Capital experience.'
The CCA is also exploring beautification projects and working with local historians to better showcase Bandera's heritage.
'We want to work on bringing some of Bandera's rich history out of the filing cabinets and bring them more out into the streets and into the businesses, so people can come out here and learn about the history of Bandera while they're here,' Hernandez said.
Community involvement will play a key role in the organization's efforts. Hernandez said the CCA is establishing a volunteer corps known as the 'CCA Ropers,' which will assist with community projects and association initiatives.
'We will have a body of volunteers that are committed to helping us with everything we're working on in the community,' Hernandez said. Volunteers will be able to register through the association's website.
The organization is also creating a donor and membership program known as the 'Compadres.' Lee said the initiative will allow residents and supporters to contribute financially or through professional expertise to help strengthen the local economy.
'Our main goal is to make sure that we're highlighting not only small businesses but the experience that Bandera has to offer, and then creating repeat visitors, not throughout the year but yearly as well,' Lee said.
The association's leadership believes its efforts will help preserve Bandera's identity as the Cowboy Capital of the World while creating opportunities for businesses across the county.
'Let's do business the cowboy way, Bandera's Marketplace,' Andrew Almand said.
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