NYC's Mercantile Mayhem: Human Touch, MENA certification, Parade Commerce, Startup Visas and... The Shelfies!
A newsletter about the survival of independent businesses in New York City with a focus on immigrant-owned, storefront retail and CPG enterprises.
THE HUMAN TOUCH
The now former New York Times dining critic Pete Wells wrote his last column on August 6 about restaurants changing over the last 12 years and not for the better (gift link). In the article he talks about loosing the human touch around dining and highlights a new app that basically allows diners pay for the entire bill including tip without waiting for the physical check to be brought to the table.
Wells writes that the human touch, the human voice is slowly being stripped away from the dining experience. Many diners make reservations on Resy, order off screens and now can leave a restaurant without waiting for the check. For some people, I’m sure the speed, convenience, efficiency and non-human contact is a delightful improvement on the dining experience, but for others, it leaves them cold.
Most consumers don’t need to become fast friends with a restaurant’s waitstaff or a shop’s sales people, but their recommendations or expertise is often a lovely and helpful experience.
I took this photo of Amy Sedaris waitressing at Marion’s in the late 1990s for the NY Observer, she was already established as an actress and writer, but kept her waitressing job. (I am still a maaaaaasive Strangers With Candy fan, especially Jerri Blank!) Imagine how much fun it would be to have Sedaris as your waitress and what people miss with screens and apps.
PS I hope everyone follows her Instagram, it’s hilarious.
SMALL BUSINESSES CAN NOW CERTIFY AS MENA-OWNED
I wrote a story for the Guardian that posted Sunday about a group of small business owners with MENA (Middle East North Africa) roots who have created a new certification with the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee called the ADC Business Council’s minority certification program. While there’s been certification for Black-, women- and veteran-owned businesses, among other groups, there has never been a MENA-owned business certification. Why? Read the story here.
For those unfamiliar with certifications, they can make small businesses eligible for grants, accelerators or government contracts. In the case of packaged foods, certifications can also help to waive or reduce shelving fees (when supermarkets charge food businesses to be carried on their shelves, a heavy financial burden for most independent CPG businesses). Read the story here.
EVERYONE LOVES A WEST INDIAN DAY PARADE
Who doesn’t love the West Indian Day Parade? The parade takes place every Labor Day on Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn, this year it’s on September 2. Not only are there truly mind-boggling outfits, music with such a deep base your organs vibrate, dancing and grinding in and around the parade, but also excellent West Indian food and beverages for sale. Independent restaurants and caterers set up official vendor booths selling jerk chicken, pelau, goat curry and gizzardas (coconut tarts) while other entrepreneurs might “unofficially” sell flags, t-shirts, fruit cups, fresh juice or colorful bottles of nutcracker out of a cooler.
If you want to learn more about the history of the West Indian diaspora in Brooklyn, you are in luck. On August 28, 2024 at 6:30pm, Tyesha Maddox of Fordham University, Joshua Guild of Princeton University and Dominique Jean-Louis, Chief Historian of the Center for Brooklyn History will talk about “From the West Indies to Eastern Parkway: Caribbean Migration and Diaspora in Brooklyn” at the Center for Brooklyn History, 128 Pierrepont Street, Brooklyn Heights.
THE SHELFIE AWARDS ARE BACK!
Startup CPG is a community for emerging CPGs (consumer packaged goods, basically, what sells on supermarket shelves). Each year Startup CPG holds the Shelfie Awards to celebrate a particular item, based on criteria like taste, innovation and branding. The 2024 Shelfie Awards have 28 categories of goods, 3 to 5 finalists for each category were announced a week ago. The judges initially received more than 1,500 products to review; the 107 finalists are listed here.
The Startup CPG Shelfie Awards winners will be announced on September 4, 2024, at 6pm EST. For the Shelfie Awards viewing details either follow Startup CPG on LinkedIn or join their Slack, links found on the Startup CPG website.
I know a handful of the finalist brands, products and/or founders. Congratulations to finalists Pi00a, Ciao Pappy, Doosra, S’noods, Hotpot Queen, Uncle Nick’s, Drybox, Seed & Shell, Olivo Amigo, Capitana and Dam Good English Muffins.
ARE YOU AN IMMIGRANT ENTREPRENEUR WHO WANTS TO LAUNCH IN THE US?
The US still has a labyrinthian, outdated immigration system on all fronts, from work-based immigration to family-based. Savvy entrepreneurs who want to launch startups and other businesses in the US face daunting challenges. Immigration lawyer Tahmina Watson (I’ve written about her before if her name sounds familiar) is the expert on entrepreneurs who want to start businesses in the US. This recent Grit Daily interview with Watson by Jordan French highlights what entrepreneurs are against, read it here.
“For entrepreneurs looking to start companies in the U.S., these challenges can be daunting. Navigating a system that wasn’t designed with them in mind, and that can change with every new administration, adds layers of uncertainty to an already difficult process,” says Watson.
Watson is Seattle-based and originally from the UK. She has championed immigrant startup founders for decades and wrote The Startup Visa as a guide for both startups and founders.
MERCANTILE MAYHEM NEWSLETTER SPONSORSHIP
Do you care if the city becomes full of Sweetgreens, Chipotles and bank ATM locations? If you care about independent businesses, I am still looking for two additional sponsors—individuals, businesses, organizations or foundations—who believe in the survival of independent businesses. Sponsors, like the extraordinary Accompany Capital get a footer, which is viewed by all sorts of brilliant people working in various sectors. If you would like to know the rates and newsletter stats, please email me: ninarobertsnyc@gmail.com and I’ll send you the details. Please forward this newsletter to others.
A million thanks to Mercantile Mayhem’s sponsor Accompany Capital, helping immigrants and refugees with loans and financial services.
OPPORTUNITIES
🇫🇮 VCs and LPs who want to explore investment opportunities in Finland and beyond can apply for the Venture Nordics Program in Helsinki, November 15 - 21, 2024. The program includes meet and greets with founders, VCs and LPs, and a free ticket to Slush. Participants pay for airfare, hotel and food; deadline is August 18, 2024. Read more about the program and apply here.
Applications are open for the prestigious Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans that pays for one to two years of graduate study. It’s open to immigrants or children of immigrants. Deadline: October 31, 2024.
Immigrant founders, find your people and network through the Unshackled Ventures community. Unshackled Ventures is VC fund based out of the Bay Area cofounded by Manan Mehta and Nitin Pachisia, apply here.
I'll miss Pete Wells. YAY for your photo of Amy, that's beautiful. MARION'S. And yay for us MENAs getting a certification. Thanks for the good news!
I really loved that Pete Wells column. Even if it feels like we're all just repeating ourselves all the time when we talk about how much is being sacrificed in this efficiency-first anti-human trend, I still think it's important to keep saying it. I keep hoping the young people will decide all this "disruptive" tech is SOOO OVER and rebel us all back to prioritizing relationships and community again.
A great newsletter, as always! Thanks, Nina!