GET RESOURCES Business owners frustrated with difficulty finding resources during string of closures AdminFebruary 8, 20240111 views A recent string of businesses said goodbye to the communities they serve. The alarming rate of closures across Birmingham has customers and business owners concerned.Most recently, Post Offices Pies closed its Avondale location, but six others closed in January alone. Cornell Wesley, director of the city’s Office of Innovation and Economic Development, tells WVTM 13 there are three main reasons possibly contributing to the closures. Entrepreneurs signing agreements that don’t benefit them, the owner’s lack of business knowledge and changing conditions of the marketplace are all to blame.“Anytime you see a business closing in your community, it strikes at your emotions and your heartstrings,” Wesley said. “We never want to see a business close.”The city hopes to fix that with its RISE grants. The program’s goal is to retain and offer incentives to local businesses to expand and keep their doors open, but some business owners feel accessing those resources is difficult, and the recent business closings around the city won’t be the last.“I have a whole vision for what we’re doing, and it just didn’t involve a brick and mortar at this time,” Club Duquette co-owner Duquette Johnston said.Johnston co-owned Club Duquette with his wife Morgan, and he and his family made the difficult decision to close their doors right before the year.“We can be proactive,” Wesley said. “Don’t put us in a position to be reactive when you’re closing your doors, and we have 48 hours to respond.”But Johnston said he didn’t even know about the rise grants until nearly two months before he closed.“We made a decision, and then people started calling me and blowing me up,” Johnston said, “and I was like, ‘You’re kind of too late because I’m doing this now.’”Wesley said the city relies on communication from business owners to let them know if they’re having trouble making ends meet.“Our role as municipalities is to continue to be loud about what we can do to assist, which we’re going to continue to do through conversations like this and through our social media channels and through our strategic partners,” he said.>> FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube Some business owners said it’s hard to find resources available to them.“The website—it’s not very clear and obvious where grants are available, what grants are available, how to apply, what qualifies,” Johnston said. “I think little clear communication and outreach right now is huge.”The city has given out $100,000 to five small businesses, including Bridge and Root, Bodega on 5th and Robert Hill Custom Tailors. More grant money will be given out in the future. Club Duquette has moved from their storefront to an online store. BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A recent string of businesses said goodbye to the communities they serve. The alarming rate of closures across Birmingham has customers and business owners concerned. Most recently, Post Offices Pies closed its Avondale location, but six others closed in January alone. Cornell Wesley, director of the city’s Office of Innovation and Economic Development, tells WVTM 13 there are three main reasons possibly contributing to the closures. Entrepreneurs signing agreements that don’t benefit them, the owner’s lack of business knowledge and changing conditions of the marketplace are all to blame. “Anytime you see a business closing in your community, it strikes at your emotions and your heartstrings,” Wesley said. “We never want to see a business close.” The city hopes to fix that with its RISE grants. The program’s goal is to retain and offer incentives to local businesses to expand and keep their doors open, but some business owners feel accessing those resources is difficult, and the recent business closings around the city won’t be the last. “I have a whole vision for what we’re doing, and it just didn’t involve a brick and mortar at this time,” Club Duquette co-owner Duquette Johnston said. Johnston co-owned Club Duquette with his wife Morgan, and he and his family made the difficult decision to close their doors right before the year. “We can be proactive,” Wesley said. “Don’t put us in a position to be reactive when you’re closing your doors, and we have 48 hours to respond.” But Johnston said he didn’t even know about the rise grants until nearly two months before he closed. “We made a decision, and then people started calling me and blowing me up,” Johnston said, “and I was like, ‘You’re kind of too late because I’m doing this now.’” Wesley said the city relies on communication from business owners to let them know if they’re having trouble making ends meet. “Our role as municipalities is to continue to be loud about what we can do to assist, which we’re going to continue to do through conversations like this and through our social media channels and through our strategic partners,” he said. >> FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube Some business owners said it’s hard to find resources available to them. “The website—it’s not very clear and obvious where grants are available, what grants are available, how to apply, what qualifies,” Johnston said. “I think little clear communication and outreach right now is huge.” The city has given out $100,000 to five small businesses, including Bridge and Root, Bodega on 5th and Robert Hill Custom Tailors. More grant money will be given out in the future. Club Duquette has moved from their storefront to an online store. Source link