A longtime Charlotte resident takes the reigns at the Asheville Chamber.

by Jess McCuan

Her name is Kathryn, but she’s always gone by Kit. In fact, Kit Cramer comes from a whole family of Kates and Kathryns, so Kit—in addition to sounding cool—helps her stand out from the crowd. The 49-year-old Jacksonville, Florida, native, will take over as Asheville Chamber of Commerce president & CEO on November 15, when longtime Chamber president Rick Lutovsky retires. Now president of the International Downtown Association in Washington, D.C., Cramer worked in various management roles at the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce for 17 years. Cramer says she’s not planning any drastic action for Asheville right away. Instead, after reading a management book by Michael Watkins called The First 90 Days, she’ll spend her first 90 days in Asheville doing nothing but listening and learning. And drinking beer, of course. She’s a beer fan and can’t move to Beer City, USA, without tipping back a few local brews, she says. Cramer spoke to us recently from her D.C. office.

Did you know that Asheville was Beer City, USA, before you applied for the job? I love it. I wasn’t aware of it until I came to interview. I went out to dinner with the search committee members, but being the good job candidate, I didn’t drink anything. I was watching their beer with envy.

How will you help Asheville get its message out to the world? The mere fact that Asheville has become a magnet for talented people gives it a huge advantage. Talented people start businesses. The fact that small business is strong in Asheville is really important. It’s entrepreneurial. Every big business started as a small one. I’m looking forward to learning more about entrepreneurs in the area and what we can do to support them and help them grow.

What else do you like about Asheville so far? One of the things I asked the search committee about was—do you have an arthouse movie theatre? We love going to movies. That was one thing that’s important to me.