The majority of people who live and work in Oakland and San Francisco work for small companies and organizations. It’s important as we get closer to a big shopping season to make active choices about where you put your dollars. Small businesses are the backbone of our local economies, but they also invest heavily…
Main Street Launch is proud to partner with the City of Oakland, Oakland Grown, the Oakland Chamber, and Visit Oakland to celebrate small businesses and shopping locally this holiday season. The deadline for small businesses to sign up for free marketing by Oakland Grown is October 31, 2018. Oakland Grown’s holiday campaign kicks off…
As the end of the year gets closer, we are reflecting about the innovation that our clients, staff, and partners bring to their work. From business owners like Mandy Harper, owner of Wholesome Bakery, who wanted delicious food for people with restrictive food allergies and created a business to support her community, to our partners…
This post was written by Steve Nicastro and originally appeared on Nerdwallet on August 22, 2017. It is reposted here with permission. Holiday weekends are a prime opportunity for small businesses, especially those in the restaurant, retail and hospitality industries, to boost sales. Labor Day weekend, in particular, spurred more air travel in 2016 than…
This post was written by Steve Nicastro and originally appeared on NerdWallet on November 13, 2017. It is shared here with permission. Small Business Saturday has become a boon for local shops: Last year, 112 million consumers spent $15.4 million at such businesses, according to American Express, the company behind the shopping holiday founded in…
This post was originally posted on our blog on November 23, 2016. We hope you’ll join us in #shoppingsmall this holiday season, too! This holiday season, we’re thrilled to be celebrating with our loved ones, and we hope you are too. While you think about your holiday shopping, consider #shoppingsmall to support your neighbors…
This article originally appeared on Nerdwallet on August 2017, 2017 and was written by Steve Nicastro. It is shared here with permission. Holiday weekends are a prime opportunity for small businesses, especially those in the restaurant, retail and hospitality industries, to boost sales. Labor Day weekend, in particular, spurred more air travel in…
As you shop for holiday gifts, consider choosing to #shoplocal for some of your gifts. Buying local has a big impact on our neighborhoods and communities: More tax revenue, for community services like education, road repair, and more, stays in our communities when you shop local Local nonprofits receive 250% more support from local businesses…
We’re proud to support a lot of different kinds of local businesses in our work. If you’re looking for holiday gift ideas, check out our Borrower Map for the closest shopping to your neighborhood.
By now we’ve celebrated Thanksgiving, participated in Plaid Friday, shopped on Small Business Saturday, and hit up online retailers on Cyber Monday. For all your shopping needs for the remainder of the holiday season, consider shopping small. In Oakland and San Francisco, there are some useful maps and guides to figure out where to shop.
