Thursday is Thanksgiving or, as die-hard shopper’s know it, a prelude to Black Friday. But Saturday is the day dedicated to shopping local – Small Business Saturday. There are 220,000 businesses in New York City, 98% of them, small. These small shops and restaurants help, not only the owners, but the neighborhoods where they operate, providing convenience and jobs. But the city’s small business owners feel like they’re under siege, with soaring rents and regulations like the $15 minimum wage, paid family and sick leave and soon, paid vacation time for businesses with more than five employees. Princess Jenkins has owned the legendary Brownstone Lifestyle Boutique since 1998. She bills it as the first African-American owned department store in the city. She joins In Focus to talk about how the landscape has changed for small business owners in the last 20 years, and how much more difficult it would be to open her shop now. Quenia Abreu is the President of the NY Women’s Chamber of Commerce, which helps women start and maintain their own business, connecting them with vital city services. She’ll talk about those services, how they help, and what more needs to be done to help budding entrepreneurs and existing businesses.
The Battle to Keep Small Business Going
PUBLISHED November 24, 2019 @4:37 PM