For Immediate Release. April 12, 2021 - The COVID-19 pandemic has without a doubt shaken the small business community over the past year. The challenges and unexpected expenses associated with lockdowns and public health measures have been no easy feat. Downtown London recognizes the extremely challenging times that small businesses are facing, and as a result invested in the Endurance Grant program for members.
Over the past three months, 133 grants were awarded to downtown businesses totalling $228,852. The Endurance Grant was available to levy-paying members to help address costs incurred to improve business safety/security, beautification, cleanliness, health and safety requirements, COVID-19 related marketing costs, business signage costs, activations, restaurant take-out containers, and restaurant delivery costs. This investment was made on top of the $183,918.84 awarded in grants in 2020.
Executive Director of Downtown London, Barbara Maly, notes
“Being able to support our members through this grant program has been one of our top priorities. Times are tough for small businesses and we are here to support them in every way possible. Allocating funding to this program, means essentially that members are helping members - something we are proud to facilitate.”
David Korhonen, owner of Ichabod’s Escape located at 335 Richmond Street was one of the businesses to receive funding through this program.
“The Endurance Grant was a big help to my business during a difficult time. The restrictions in place during the pandemic led to a lot of unexpected costs and this grant helped to address them. The application process was easy and I am very thankful for the support from the team at Downtown London.” says Korhonen.
In addition to the grants provided to downtown businesses, staff at Downtown London remain committed to developing and implementing strategies to further recovery for members. A new storytelling campaign called Keep London Local is launching this morning, which aims to establish connections between business owners and consumers, educate Londoners on why supporting local matters, provide pandemic-safe activations across the downtown following the lift of the stay-at-home order, and incentivize local spending through contesting.
For all media inquiries, please contact:
Colleen Gyori
Downtown London, Marketing & Communications Coordinator
519-808-2372
colleen@downtownlondon.ca
