Mayor Bowser Celebrates Small Business Saturday and Will Designate Minnesota Avenue as Part of DC’s Main Street Program

(WASHINGTON, DC) – On Saturday, November 25, at 11 am, Mayor Muriel Bowser will kick-off a day-long celebration of Small Business Saturday by designating Minnesota Avenue as the newest corridor in the DC Main Streets program, an initiative that promotes the revitalization of traditional business districts – already generating more than 2,000 jobs in the last two years. The Mayor will also visit local businesses throughout Small Business Saturday and into the following week to emphasize how local consumer spending promotes shared prosperity across the District, a key component of the Bowser Administration’s effort to promote pathways to the middle-class for all DC residents.
 
Small Business Saturday is a part of the long-term effort to promote Shop Small DC, a Bowser Administration commitment to expand opportunities for more DC entrepreneurs and residents to exchange goods and services, expanding DC’s innovation economy and serving as a national model for inclusion and diversity. Earlier this week, Mayor Bowser attended the opening of Shaw’s newest neighborhood retailers connected to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. The newest tenants, Morris American Bar and Unconventional Diner, will help continue to transform of the Shaw neighborhood, expand the District’s workforce, and provide an enhanced experience for community members and visitors.
 
Small Business Saturday Kick-Off Details:
 
WHEN:
Saturday, November 25, at 11 am
 
WHO:
Mayor Muriel Bowser
Courtney Snowden, Deputy Mayor, Greater Economic Opportunity
Kristi Whitfield, Acting Director, Department of Small and Local Business Development
Harold Pettigrew, Executive Director, Washington Area Community Investment Fund
 
WHERE:
Eclectic Café
4058 Minnesota Avenue, NE
*Closest Metro: Minnesota Avenue Metro Station*
*Bus Lines: U8*
 

Additional Small Business Saturday Events and Upcoming Shop Small DC Events:

• Saturday, November 25, at 11:45 am, Mayor Bowser will visit MLK Deli as part of Small Business Saturday.

           Location: MLK Deli, 3113 Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, SE

• On Saturday, November 25, at 2:30 pm, Mayor Bowser will participate in a ribbon-cutting and dedication ceremony of a new mural commissioned through the DC Department of Public Works’ MuralsDC, a program that replaces graffiti-ridden walls with original works of art in each ward.

           Location: Lee’s Flower and Card Shop, 1026 U Street, NW

• On Saturday, November 25, at 6 pm, Mayor Bowser will kick off the holiday season at CityCenterDC’s Annual Holiday Tree Lighting. The program will feature holiday store window displays, live musical performances, balloon artists, face painters, jugglers, and more. Seasonal refreshments will also be available for residents to enjoy during shopping activities.

          Location: The Park at CityCenterDC, Palmer Alley, 11th & New York Ave, NW

• On Tuesday, November 28, at 11:30 am, Mayor Bowser will be joined by DowntownDC BID and the Catalogue for Philanthropy: Greater Washington to highlight Giving Tuesday at the kickoff of the BID’s Downtown Holiday Market.

           Location: National Portrait Gallery, 8th and F Streets, NW

• On Wednesday, November 29, at 5 pm, Mayor Bowser will be joined by Chairman Phil Mendelson to host Made in DC’s Holiday Bazaar, a pop-up holiday store stocked exclusively with DC-based brands. The Made in DC program is designed to capture, highlight, and promote the intellectual and creative genius of DC’s local maker community.

           Location: John A. Wilson Building (Atrium), 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
 
 
Press interested in attending the event are asked to RSVP to [email protected]. To view the event online, visit mayor.dc.gov/live or tune in on Channel 16.