SMALL BUSINESS STOREFRONT ACTIVATIONS LAUNCH ACROSS CHICAGO CREATING UNIQUE SHOPPING EXPERIENCES

 SMALL BUSINESS STOREFRONT ACTIVATIONS LAUNCH ACROSS CHICAGO CREATING UNIQUE SHOPPING EXPERIENCES

CHICAGO — Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot and the Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection
(BACP) announced the opening of over 55 spaces as part of the City’s Small Business Storefront Activation Program. These storefront activations are the culmination of $2 million in grant funding the City awarded to seventeen local community and economic development organizations to support small
businesses by activating previously vacant storefronts across the city.

These grantees worked closely with small business owners, artists, and landlords to provide rapid relief to small businesses
by designing and implementing vacant storefront activations on commercial corridors just in time for the Holidays. Through
collaboration and dedication of these organizations, Chicagoans will have a chance to shop at 25 Pop-Up spaces filled with over 140 vendors and view art from over 50 artists in 30 previously vacant storefronts.

“The Small Business Storefront Activation Program is truly unique as it showcases Chicago’s entrepreneurial spirit
and abundance of artistic talent — all while enhancing our local economy and generating new foot-traffic,” said Chicago Mayor
Lori E. Lightfoot. “Given how essential small businesses are to the commercial corridors of our neighborhoods, I want to
encourage Chicagoans to take advantage of the holiday season and spend some time shopping at the exciting new spaces provided by this incredible program, which will ultimately help to make our communities that much more vibrant.”

“The small business storefront activations allow small businesses, entrepreneurs, and Chicago’s creative makers
the opportunity to explore the market of a physical retail space, test their concepts, and interact with customers — all in time
for the Holiday shopping season,” said BACP Commissioner Kenneth J. Meyer. “The art installations will highlight
the vacant storefronts as potential retail opportunities and provide new audiences for local artists, which is a win-win for the community at-large.”

Small Business Storefront Activation Program grantees:
18th Street Development Corp
Austin Chamber of Commerce
Chicago Loop Alliance
East Edgewater Chamber of Commerce
Far South Community Development Corporation
Greater Chatham Initiative
Greater Englewood Chamber Foundation
Greater Southwest Development Corp
Lakeview Roscoe Village Chamber of Commerce
Lincoln Park Chamber of Commerce
Magnificent Mile Association
North River Commission
Northwest Side CDC
Puerto Rican Cultural Center
Rogers Park Business Alliance
South Shore Chamber Community Development Corporation
Southeast Chicago Chamber

“We are pleased to partner with the City’s Small Business Storefront Activation Program to revitalize vacant storefronts in South Shore,” said Tonya Trice, Executive Director of the South
Shore Chamber of Commerce. “We want to create an experience unique to our community and increase small business revenue and local shopping during the holiday season. Our activations will include a Kid’s Corner, an Art Gallery, and a Vendors Market.”

The Small Business Storefront Activation Program is part of the Chicago Recovery Plan, the City’s plan to amplify once-in-a-generation federal funding to create an equity-based investment strategy to catalyze a sustainable economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Chicago Recovery Plan invests holistically in communities and industries hardest
hit by the pandemic to support equitable economic recovery across the city.

To learn more about this Program and BACP’s Recovery Plan efforts, please visit Chicago.gov/BACPRecoveryPlan.

Latest Stories

Latest Podcast

STARR Community Services International, Inc.