Small businesses are vital to the social, cultural, and economic health of neighborhoods, particularly low-income communities of color. They foster community connectedness, provide local employment opportunities, connect residents to local goods and services, and allow a community’s dollars to remain in and improve their neighborhood.
When established neighborhood small businesses are displaced, it affects residents who have relied on them for goods, services, employment, gathering spaces, cultural amenities, and social capital. Small businesses such as bodegas, restaurants, nail salons, and pharmacies also support community cohesion by participating in local charities, organizations, and schools through donations and sponsorships. They cultivate relationships among customers, employees, and neighborhood residents. In low-income neighborhoods, small businesses tend to be independent or family-owned and are more inclined to employ local residents. Small business owners are often strongly committed to the neighborhood, often helping to revitalize areas that have experienced significant disinvestment.
For more on neighborhood impacts, see our Research.