Take a look at the storefronts in Park Slope. For a while, as the national economic downturn hit our neighborhood, for rent and for lease signs seemed to be replacing many favorite spots — both old and new — every week. Now, slowly but surely, many of those signs are coming down, and new stores and restaurants are becoming part of our local economy.
Next, peek into almost any coffee bar along those same streets. Many are packed with people busy at their laptops, working on freelance projects, their own websites and blogs, or other endeavors.
Every person behind those store windows and computer screens is working hard to be a success. But what’s the best way to reach that goal?
This year, the Park Slope Civic Council’s annual community forum hopes to help answer that question. “Growing a Business in Park Slope: Connecting, Supporting, and Inspiring Our Local Entrepreneurs” will take place Thursday, March 3, 7 p.m. sharp, at the Montauk Club, 25 Eighth Ave. at Lincoln Place.
“I hope that this event is first and foremost educational,” said Melinda Morris, Civic Council trustee, a chief organizer of the forum, and owner of Lion in the Sun on Seventh Avenue. “Small-business owners are so often isolated in the intensity of our own business world. I believe we can always learn from each other’s experiences in a positive way.”
More than 15 presenters from in and around Park Slope are scheduled to appear at the forum, which is being co¬sponsored by the Park Slope Chamber of Commerce, the Park Slope Fifth Avenue Business Improvement District, and Warren Lewis Realty.
Randy Peers, host of Sector B: The Business of Brooklyn on Brooklyn Independent Television, will moderate the forum. He is also executive director of the nonprofit group Opportunities for a Better Tomorrow.
“Now is an important time to talk about small businesses and how we can come together and support them,” Peers said. For example, since the downturn began, “small businesses have been having a hard time getting access to working capital. We’re fortunate, in New York City, that we can find alternate sources for that capital.”
Nancy Carin, executive director of the Business Outreach Center Network, agreed. “It takes a lot more effort to identify potential sources when many banks have disinvested in small business. That’s changing all the time, however, and sources are available.” Carin will be one of the discussion leaders on “The Nuts and Bolts of Business.”
Her organization helps small businesses at all stages of development — including access to incentive programs, information, and legal services — and has an affiliate microloan fund. “Financing goes hand in hand with understanding what aspects of a business are generating operating profits,” she added. “You have to use that information to make good decisions and then become sustainable and profitable.”
Another important issue for local business is engagement with the community. “Here in Brooklyn,” said Peers, “we are seeing many small businesses become more responsive to the local marketplace, particularly as lots of people seek to shop locally more often.”
“Small businesses must bridge the gap between you and the customers,” said Mark Caserta, president of M2C Consulting, which works with nonprofits, and Main Street Complete, which develops web-design solutions. Caserta trains businesses how to best use social media, whether that means Twitter, Facebook, and other options he’ll discuss at the forum. Such tools should be used not just to broadcast information to the consumer but also to have conversations back and forth and to build a following for a store or service.
That type of engagement, said Dylan Goelz of Roadify, may seem formidable at first, but it’s necessary to succeed. As manager of public outreach for the 14-month-old parking and transit information system, he’s used various forms of social media to publicize the company and to offer fast customer service. He’s also employed “community tactics” — getting the Roadify name in the public eye by actively participating in neighborhood events. “It’s good to get our name out there,” he told Civic News in October, “but the way I like to think about it is it’s what we stand for.”
“Our motto has become ‘never pass up a meeting,'” Goelz added. “You’ll never regret going, and you’ll find something useful to offer your business.”
Owners of bricks-and-mortar stores sometimes find it difficult to figure out what social media’s two-way communication means and how much time may be needed to get it right, Caserta noted. “Freelancers may have it easier, since they can have multiple Twitter accounts open, for instance, as they do other work on their computers.”
Freelancing has become a better option for many people in Park Slope and elsewhere. “There’s a greater acknowledgement of the freelance movement in New York City,” said Peers. “Organizations like the Freelancers Union have done a tremendous job providing benefits and ancillary support.”
Goelz, who will be focusing on “Turning Passion Into Profit” at the forum, said that freelancing by definition should be something you’re interested in: “You’re not working for a company that has 100 employees. That flexibility is both invigorating and scary at the same time.”
“I see people finding and using inexpensive tools on the Internet to start their own companies in their Park Slope apartments,” Caserta added. “You don’t need that big Manhattan office space to be a success.”
Physical space is certainly an issue for bricks-and-mortar stores, though, as the cost of real estate in New York can be “a major hurdle,” said Peers. “That makes the ability of a commercial strip to come together and support one another, whether through a merchants’ association or business improvement district, so important.”
Naomi Hersson-Ringskog of the nonprofit No Longer Empty has another view of real estate. Her organization transforms empty storefronts into thoughtful temporary art exhibitions and programming. “Our exhibitions are site-specific — we look at the site’s former uses and the surrounding neighborhood, and that informs our curatorial process.” One recent exhibition took place in the former Tower Records on West Fourth Street in Manhattan, where more than 20 artists created a fantasy version of the once-popular, now-defunct store.
“We want to bring people into the space,” said Hersson-Ringskog, who will be discussing “Thinking Outside the Real Estate Box.” The organization reaches out to the community — merchants associations, community groups, neighboring stores — and looks for collaborations on performances, panel discussions, and related events. The exhibit also increases traffic flow in the community, getting more people interested in the vacant space and in the neighborhood as a whole.
“This is something interesting for business and property owners,” she added. “We see it as a social good. It gives you more investors, but the fact that you’ve worked to create new programming can really help the community.”
Vacant storefronts can also serve as incubators for new businesses, even as temporary spaces, and can be a great asset in building a lively streetscape.
Many other speakers are scheduled to appear at the forum, including Neil F. Carlson, cofounder, Brooklyn Creative League; Catalina Castaño, director, Brooklyn Small Business Development Center; Louise Crawford, founder, Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn; Nicole Davis, publisher, Brooklyn Based; Susan Fox, founder, Park Slope Parents; Ezra Goldstein, owner, The Community Bookstore; Denis Hurley, founder and president, Mobile Meteor; Brent Langerman, web designer, mimoYmima; Alan Siege, founder/owner, Small Business Management Consulting; R.J. Wafer, owner, Mybeegle.com; and Amy Yang, founder and teacher, Brooklyn Design Lab. In addition, Irene LoRe, executive director of the Park Slope Fifth Avenue Business Improvement District and owner-operator of Aunt Suzie’s Restaurant on Fifth Avenue, will focus on “The Past and Future of Park Slope Business.”
“I’m looking forward to meeting the businesses and entrepreneurs that are coming out to the forum,” Carin said, “learning what they’re trying to do and sharing our resources.”
“Park Slope is such a vibrant, connected community,” added Morris, who opened her store in 2002. “I hope we can draw on that strength as a group to help support local businesses.” She would also like to build a network of support beyond this forum, “forging connections and opportunities for the local business owners, entrepreneurs, and independent contractors.”
— David Herman; additional reporting by Rebeccah Welch
from the Winter 2011 Civic News