NYC's Mercantile Mayhem: Bigger Big Night, Founders Who Like to Test, Locavore's New Web Shop and AAPI Pop-Up at Mumu.
A newsletter about the survival of independent businesses in New York City with a focus on immigrant-owned, storefront retail and CPG enterprises.
This edition of Mercantile Mayhem is a hodgepodge of events, past and future, bite-sized bits and bobs centered on NYC’s independent businesses. Plus several opportunity listings at the end.
BIG NIGHT GOT BIGGER
There was some mercantile mayhem, in the best way, at Big Night’s reopening of the expanded shop in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. I was delighted to attend the reopening party, which featured an incredible spread by Lighthouse BK.
In general, I love perusing olive oils, sauces, pasta, various condiments and garnishes, etc, in gorgeous packaging, so sue me, and Big Night has plenty. The owner Katherine Lewin has two Big Night locations, the other is on Bleecker Street in Manhattan. She also wrote a cookbook Big Night, published last year, with a focus on dishes for entertaining.
In a world dominated by corporations and monopolies (I’m not anti-corporation, but many—not all—seem to be lead by savagely greedy CEOs) I love experiencing a store like Big Night, which has a robust small business ecosystem.
There was one guy at the party who looked familiar, I realized it was Ben Van Leeuwen, of ice cream fame. I photographed and interviewed him many moons ago when he was scooping ice cream out of a Van Leeuwen ice cream truck in Soho.
MADE IN NEW YORK CITY WEEK, MAY 1 - MAY 9
This is a neat and tidy link to all the Made in New York City events, May 1 - May 9, 2025. It includes factory tours, pop up markets and other experiences. This week-long celebration focuses on NYC stores, goods and manufacturing.
In case you were wondering, Made in New York City is a nonprofit initiative that supports NYC manufacturers and makers, part of Pratt Center for Community Development.
FOUNDERS WHO LIKE TO TEST
After the pandemic’s harsher days I was delighted to see in-person tastings back in stores, I’m always curious about new products, flavors, trends and such. I had assumed that founders of small CPG (consumer packaged goods) businesses would hire people to do their in-store tastings, having more important things to do. But I was wrong.
It turns out that most food founders love to conduct their own in-store tastings, it’s priceless market research. They are listening to the commentary, noting the repeated questions and crowd favorites. They watch faces as shoppers taste a product or scrutinize the packaging. If a product is imported, or based on a foreign recipe, they are often tabulating how many people are familiar with the product, the taste or how to use it.
Founders seem to have a passion about their products not always found in people hired to do tastings. (With the exception of two gentlemen giving out Nguyen Coffee Supply samples I ran into a while back, who were very enthusiastic.) I’ve found that the people hired for in-store tastings often give out incorrect information on the product or don’t have answers and are about as excited as a slug. (Free business idea: a “mystery” sample taster who reports back to the CPG founder!)
I ran into Marian Cheng of Mimi Cheng’s Dumplings at Whole Foods on the Bowery several weeks ago—and sampled the dumplings, of course. Since Mimi Cheng’s Dumplings has been a well-known East Village establishment for years, now expanding into grocery stores, her tasting was akin to a celebrity sighting for many local shoppers.
LIBRARY CHAT: FUTURE OF FOOD
I’m always amazed at the number of free events in New York City that feature wildly talented people—esteemed writers, chefs, cookbook authors, editors, in this case—and are open to the public. As part of the NYPL’s World Literature and Arts Festival, I attended a conversation with chefs, cookbook authors, recipe writers, teachers, at the Mulberry Street Library.
Alicia Kennedy moderated, panelists included Lesley Enston, Joe Yonan, Hetty Lui McKinnon and Lukas Volger, who I consider to be running micro food-centric businesses along with their artistic culinary talents (Yonan is a staff editor at the Washington Post, but he is involved with all sorts of independent projects too).
They talked about vegan vs “plant based” in terms of verbal/marketing baggage, veggie burgers, Frito salads (iceberg lettuce, Fritos, beans, French dressing) and how they came to cooking. They also talked about preparing for tough economic times ahead, some suggestions were: Costco, figuring out food waste in a realistic manner—no, we can’t all pickle watermelon rinds as much as we’d like to. Yonan noted that in DC, many small independent restaurants are already closing. And regarding the new trend of badmouthing seed oils, Yonan stated it’s “100% B.S.”
I am only recapping .00001% of the conversation, which was lively. McKinnon said that said she no longer reads the New York Times comments, where she writes recipes. Because of course there is always someone who says something is “disgusting.” McKinnon said the tasting and writing process is so rigorous, it’s not possible for something to be disgusting, it might just not be to someone’s taste.
MANHATTAN’S CHINATOWN, WILL TARIFFS BE THE FINAL BLOW?
This article by Haidee Chu in The City illuminates how Chinatown is still recovering from the pandemic, impacted by congestion pricing and now the punitive, high tariffs, which might be the death knell for many businesses with already razor thin margins. International tourism is down and the huge gaping hole where the high rise jail is scheduled to be built and its surrounding construction doesn’t help either.
As of today, there are plenty Chinatown restaurants, stores and cafes to visit as well as upcoming events. On May 8, Welcome to Chinatown will have a Test Thursday event with Favor Coffee at The Hub. Later on the same day will be a first in a series of Founder Talks featuring Hope King, now the founder of Macro Talk, a business focused video platform, details here.
There is also a restaurant week and AAPI Vendor Market slated for May, I will post about them closer to the dates.
THE LOCAVORE NOW HAS A WEB SHOP AND IT’S LIVE
I have followed The Locavore Variety Store’s trajectory, in person and through social media, the owner Caroline Weaver is extremely transparent about the costs of owning an independent retail shop in New York City. The physical Locavore shop opened (there is also an online guide and physical book component to Locavore) about a year ago.
Weaver, a seasoned business owner, came to the conclusion that Locavore needs an online store to be competitive. The result is a beautiful online shop that is very Locavore in feel and style, and still carries goods made within 100 miles of New York City, just like the physical store. Right now there are 68 items to purchase online, but there will likely be more.
AAPI POP-UP AT MUMU BATH
I am not a soap person (meaning, I use soap but nothing fancy, in fact soaps that are too fragrant give me a headache) but Mumu soaps are made with natural ingredients and have soothing subtle scents. It all started with a soap sample and now I’m hooked.
Mumu Bath, located at 72 Jay Street in Dumbo, Brooklyn, will have an AAPI pop-up at the store through May 31, 2025. Besides Mumu products there will be prints by Mogutable, jewelry Doty Chou Objects, ceramics by Pin Hsin Art, colorful pet accessories by What A Cutie and natural products including deodorant by Oliver Flynn.
THE WORLD AT YOUR FINGERTIPS HAS OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED
I have been working with Accompany Capital (yes, one of my amazing newsletter sponsors) on a new social media campaign that spotlights some of the city’s dazzling small businesses, called “The World at Your Fingertips”. The first post featured four Brooklyn Ice cream shops, Brown Butter Creamery, Island Pops, Dolce Brooklyn and Malai.
This post is from Accompany Capital’s Instagram, it’s also posted on their Facebook and LinkedIn pages as well. For those who do not know, Accompany Capital is a CDFI, providing loans and free financial services. (One of my goals is to make CDFIs known to the mainstream.)
A sneak peek at an upcoming World at Your Fingertips post… Maura Cheeks, owner of Liz’s Book Bar in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, is also an author. She wrote Acts of Forgiveness, which was published right when she signed the lease to her space, so she became a small business owner and published novelist at the same time. When I visited Liz’s Book Bar to take photos, there happened to be two customers buying her book. “They are not plants!” she told me.
MY JANE’S WALK, MAY 5, 11AM, LITTLE ITALY/SOHO/CHINATOWN
It’s that time of year again, time for Jane’s Walk! From May 2 to 4, 2025, volunteer New Yorkers (like meeeeee) are leading free walks all around the city. My walk is centered on, you guessed it, independent businesses. On Saturday May 3 at 11:00, I will be leading a walk called “Rebel Indy Storefront Businesses Amid Chain Stores in Soho/Little Italy”. We’ll visit independent storefront retail shops, both old school like Piemonte Ravioli and newer shops like GEM Home.
How do these businesses stay afloat when rents for a 350 – 500 square foot space can cost $6,500 to $11,000 per month? (And no, not every independent shop is owned by a trust fund kid or has a benevolent wealthy relative paying the bills.) We’ll talk with some of the owners about the survival of independent businesses in New York City. And if small business is not your jammy, there are scores of other walks over the three days centered on NYC’s history, art, architecture, nature, social movements, politics, etc, take a look here.
Thank you to Mercantile Mayhem’s sponsor Accompany Capital. Based in New York City, Accompany Capital, a CDFI, helps immigrants and refugees with loans and financial services. Please read about it here.
Thank you to Small Business Majority, Mercantile Mayhem’s sponsor. SBM supports and empowers small businesses across the US with a focus on public policy. Please read about SBM here.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO SPONSOR MERCANTILE MAYHEM?
Yes, I am still looking for one additional sponsor, three in total, the individuals, businesses, organizations or foundations that believe independent businesses in New York City need to survive. Do you want a city full of just Chipotles, Starbucks and bank ATMs? Do you value the character that independent businesses bring to New York City?
If you would like to know sponsorship rates and newsletter stats (open rates and such) please email me: ninarobertsnyc@gmail.com and I’ll send you the details. Please forward this newsletter to others.
OPPORTUNITIES
Brooklyn’s PowerUp Business Plan Competition is back. Each year the Brooklyn Public Library holds a business plan competition for those living in Brooklyn or planning to launch a business in the fine borough, look here for details. First orientation class is May 5.
Settle and Pop Up Grocer have created a giveaway for emerging CPG brands to win three months of free shelf space at Pop Up Grocer in the West Village. I haven’t read all the gory details of this giveaway, make sure you do. Entry due May 15.
WomensNet offers a number of grants to women-owned businesses on a rolling basis, peruse grant information here.
Small businesses in New York City could win a micro grant up to $5,000 through CitizensNYC. A new grant cycle opens on May 5, 2025, deadline is July 25, 2025.
NYC Boss Up Veterans, planning ahead… pitch competition applications for entrepreneurs who are veterans of the US military will be open July 1, 2025. Children, siblings, spouses or parents of a Gold Star Family, or military spouses, are also eligible. Winners will receive a grant of $20,000. Applications close September 15, 2025, click here for more information.