"What's Needed to Bolster NYC's Mom-and-Pop Small Businesses"
A Center for an Urban Future Policy Symposium

Replay of event link
Event materials

Speakers included:

• Delia A. Awusi, Mom and Pop Czar, Office of the Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice
• Council Member Gale Brewer
• Council Member Selvena Brooks-Powers
• Council Member Elsie Encarnacion
• Council Member Shanel Thomas-Henry, Chair, Committee on Small Business
• Vic Lee, Co-Founder & CEO, Welcome to Chinatown 
• Randy Peers, President & CEO, Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce
• Justin Rodgers, President & CEO, Greater Jamaica Development Corporation
• Pedro Suarez, Executive Director, Third Avenue Business Improvement District
• Jessica Walker, President & CEO, Manhattan Chamber of Commerce

For much of the past decade, New York City has experienced a remarkable boom in new business creation, with small businesses sparking job growth and bolstering communities from the northeast Bronx and Harlem to Flushing and Bed-Stuy. But today, a growing number of the city’s neighborhood-based small businesses are struggling. Business closures across the city have outpaced openings in three of the last five quarters, with mom-and-pops squeezed by surging insurance and utility bills, higher prices for materials and supplies, persistent rent pressures, and the mounting burden of navigating permits, regulations, and fees.

This in-person policy forum examined what’s needed to strengthen New York City’s mom-and-pop businesses at a pivotal moment for the city’s local entrepreneurs. It discussed the most pressing challenges facing neighborhood businesses, identified what’s driving them, and advanced specific ideas for how city leaders can reduce burdens, strengthen the city’s small business support ecosystem, and bolster this vital part of New York's economy.

This event was made possible thanks to generous support from Wells Fargo. General operating support for the Center for an Urban Future is provided by The Clark Foundation and The Altman Foundation. CUF also receives ongoing support from several other philanthropic funders.