A stretch of small businesses along the Route 1 corridor in downtown Hyattsville was highlighted by DCist this week for its strategies to survive the coronavirus pandemic.
The three-block stretch from Farragut to Jefferson streets is home to a dozen locally owned retailers, including Franklins, Arrow Bicycle, Chez Dior, Sangfroid Distilling, Vigilante Coffee, Love Yoga, Tanglewood Works, Three Little Birds, Suffragette City and Wills Decorating.
All of the businesses faced different challenges when the pandemic hit, but loans from the city of Hyattsville and the federal Paycheck Protection Program helped. The businesses also worked together as they tried new strategies.
“Maybe the secret sauce is that there is a social network,” Hyattsville Community Development Corp director Stuart Eisenberg told DCist. “And the intelligence that we are sharing together. We’re all strategizing together.”
At Vigilante, that meant online sales and coffee-to-go and installing a thick plastic sheeting around its counter separating customers from its staff for extra safety precautions. Franklins switched to curbside pickup and delivery, set up picnic tables in its parking lots and opened an outdoor tiki bar. Tanglewood Works owner Sue Mondeel began making online videos while Lova Yoga studio held classes online.
The nonprofit SoHy Co-Op also helped strategize putting together events like socially distant sidewalk sales to help support local businesses while following CDC safety protocols and guidelines.
Their next event, the SoHy Spring Scavenger, takes place on Saturday, March 20, where residents can come out and support a number of small businesses. The event will include a scavenger hunt, a socially distanced outdoor gathering space and live music.
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