By Gail Lane | We know that what most business owners need more than anything is a little bit of support. It might be people eating in our restaurants, shopping in our stores, or just passing along a positive post on social media. Main Street Grayson wants to do more. We want to give our small business owners a little bump … a positive nudge … a BOOST that will help them rise to the next level of success and distinguish themselves from their competition.
The BOOST investment initiative originated in Milledgeville, Ga. as a grass roots effort to raise funds to award quarterly grants to businesses in their community. Last year, Stone Mountain also successfully launched a BOOST campaign. Now we in Grayson are bringing this concept to Gwinnett. In their January, 2016 meeting, the Main Street Grayson Board of Directors unanimously agreed to implement “Grayson BOOST,” an investment group and incentive program designed to provide funding assistance for small businesses and entrepreneurs in the Main Street Grayson service area.
Allison Grier, Small Business Liaison for Main Street Grayson, says: “This type of grass roots fundraising brings us together as a community to help ensure that our businesses continue to thrive. We believe this demonstrates our commitment to our economy in a way that will encourage new entrepreneurial efforts in our city.”
The concept is simple. We want to gather a group of investors –– both corporate and individuals — who have an interest in the success of Grayson’s businesses and can contribute a minimum of $100 twice each year with a two-year commitment as an investor. That’s $400 over two years that will directly impact small businesses in Grayson.
Investors will each have one vote in the grant awards process. While we appreciate anyone who might want to contribute more than $200 per year, they will still only have one vote when applications are considered. Several investors have already stepped forward to be part of this community effort.
Grayson BOOST plans to award two rounds of grants in 2016 with the hope of growing the investment pool to accommodate quarterly grant awards in 2017. Grant amounts can range from $100 to $1,000 and eligible uses for grants include signage, equipment, marketing and advertising needs, and interior or exterior renovations. Grants will NOT be awarded for payroll, operational expenses, insurance, or rent. At this time, we are accepting investors and applications for grants will be accepted from April 1 through May 13 with awards presented on June 1.
An informational meeting about Grayson BOOST is planned for Tuesday, February 16 at 6 p.m. in the Grayson Senior Center.
- Until then, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at communitydevelopment@cityofgrayson.org or call me at (770) 963-8017.
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