EASTON, MARYLAND — Talbot County will mark Economic Development Week with a public coffee gathering Thursday, Oct. 1, from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. at The Ivy Café in Easton.

Talbot County Economic Development and Tourism is hosting the Talbot Works Together gathering at 12 and 14 W. Dover St. with Easton Economic Development Corporation and the Talbot County Chamber of Commerce, as part of the statewide Economic Development Week, Sept. 28–Oct. 2, led by the Maryland Economic Development Association.

“In Talbot County, economic development begins with listening to the people who know our economy best, our business owners, employers, entrepreneurs, workers, and community partners,” said Stephanie Mervine, director of Talbot County Economic Development and Tourism.

Talbot Works reports the county is home to more than 6,000 businesses supporting over 17,000 jobs and generating nearly $1 billion in annual payroll, citing the latest U.S. Census Bureau data. The post lists a diverse economy spanning health care, tourism, agriculture, maritime trades, manufacturing, construction, retail, hospitality, and technology, and notes Maryland’s lowest real property tax rate and second-lowest local income tax rate. Mervine is advancing a business retention, expansion, and attraction initiative (BRE&A). The post also says the International Economic Development Council honored the Talbot Works Business Academy in 2026 and that fifty entrepreneurs have graduated from the eight-week program so far.

The Maryland Economic Development Association’s statewide page sets the same Sept. 28–Oct. 2, 2026, window for Economic Development Week in Maryland. More county business resources are at TalbotWorks.org.