- With the support of American Express, local dinner awards grants to independent restaurants owned by individuals from underrepresented groups
- Beneficiaries sharing the £50,000 grant fund include small community businesses Papa’s Café, Lounge Brixton and Banh Banh Café
LONDON, UK – April 14, 2022 – Ten independent businesses in Brixton will each receive a £5,000 grant as part of the local dinner program, run by the International Center Association Foundation and Brixton IDB, and supported by American Express.
Grant funding will enable the 10 Brixton-based locations to make critical improvements that boost their business. Winners include Lounge Brixton, which is supporting local artists by expanding its space for live performances; Papa’s Café, a community café located in a park serving local residents; and the Banh Banh Café family restaurant, which plans to install new kitchen equipment for the summer. The complete list of local dinner recipients is below.
This support comes at a critical time for independent restaurants. According to research* commissioned by American Express, more than half of people (56%) think independent hospitality businesses in their local area are struggling with staffing shortages, while more than two-thirds (67%) believe that the owners of these businesses are worried about their future. . Encouragingly, 85% of those surveyed said they plan to support independent hospitality businesses this year by visiting more often or buying food and drink from them to go.
local dinner is part of American Express’ Backing International Small Restaurants global grant program, established to support culturally significant independent restaurants owned by individuals from underrepresented groups in major cities around the world. The initiative seeks to highlight the importance of these places to their local communities, providing valuable financial support as they recover from the impact of the pandemic.
David Downey, Executive Director of the IDA Foundation, said: “The IDA Foundation is pleased to support the recovery of these restaurants that contribute to the identity and vitality of their local community. We look forward to seeing these businesses thrive once again and are inspired by their resiliency in bringing people in the neighborhood together.”
Gianluca Rizzo, Director, Brixton IDB, said: “Brixton is all about small, independent businesses. With the hospitality industry being hit hard, local dinner it was the perfect program for Brixton, coming at a critical time for some of our restaurants. The response from our community was excellent as always, and I’d like to congratulate the winners and encourage all locals and new to Brixton to discover all of our amazing places and businesses.”
Dan Edelman, General Manager, UK Merchant Services at American Express, added: “After two turbulent years for the hospitality industry, it is more important than ever to support small, independent restaurants that contribute so much to their local communities. American Express has a long history of supporting small businesses and we’re proud to support these great places through the local dinner subsidies. I am looking forward to seeing these companies put their entrepreneurial ideas into practice and prosper in the future.”
local dinner reflects American Express’s broader support for local independent restaurants. Last month, the company announced the second installment of its Backing Historic Restaurants grant program, which awarded grants to 25 small historic restaurants across the U.S. Both programs are part of American Express’s broader Backing Small initiative to provide financially vulnerable small businesses with financial support and other resources to address their critical needs and challenges. They also complement American Express’s Shop Small campaign, a global movement to spotlight independent small businesses, along with their support for Small Business Saturday, which celebrates its 10th anniversary in the UK this year and of which American Express is a founder and sponsor. major.
The complete list of local dinner recipients of the grant is:
- bathroom bathroom coffee – A casual family restaurant serving Vietnamese food in honor of his grandmother, using the grant fund to install new kitchen equipment for dine-in and increase its takeout offerings.
- Brixton Beast – An LGBTQIA+ cafe and bar that plans to renovate its indoor and outdoor dining areas, as well as introduce a wheelchair ramp
- Black and White Coffee – A community staple for more than 20 years, it plans to use the grant funds to renovate its interior and purchase equipment before the summer business period.
- Etta’s Seafood Kitchen – Local restaurant whose owner has lived in the area for over 40 years, with plans to introduce a new click-and-collect service and electric scooter for delivery, as well as contributing to community health workshops.
- Jalisco- A family-run, Latin American-inspired restaurant and Brixton Village favorite that employs staff from the local Latin American community, who are looking to purchase equipment ahead of the summer business period.
- kamome- A casual Japanese restaurant planning to upgrade its ventilation system and purchase a new induction cooktop, as well as further support efforts to donate surplus food to local charities.
- Brixton Hall – A laid-back bar, cafe and restaurant that plans to expand its support of local talent by installing a new loudspeaker system, allowing local singers and spoken word artists to perform on-site.
- may food – Afro-Caribbean restaurant that sponsors several local support programs, with plans to remodel its storefront and reinvigorate staff training, among other improvements
- dad’s coffee – A community cafe serving a Brixton park and playground, which plans to buy tables and chairs to improve their dining area, which will enable them to host more events for local children.
- share a slice – Pop-up pizzeria and social enterprise with plans to restart their pandemic-tested ‘pizza at home’ delivery kits, as well as introduce a part-time community manager to support district-wide outreach work.
*Study conducted by Opinium with 2,000 respondents in January 2022.
CONTACTS
AMERICAN EXPRESS
mike berry
[email protected]
HOPE AND GLORY PR (on behalf of American Express)
[email protected]
BRIXTON OFFER
Jessica Dyer
[email protected]
IDA FOUNDATION
Allison Shashock
[email protected]
ABOUT THE IDA FOUNDATION
The IDA Foundation is the nonprofit arm of the International Downtown Association, a Washington, DC-based organization that empowers place management leaders with knowledge, research, and public policy to create thriving downtowns, business neighborhoods, and livable urban places for all. https://downtown.org/
ABOUT THE BRIXTON OFFER
Brixton BID is a non-profit organization established in January 2014 by local businesses. The IDB is overseen by a Board of local business leaders (volunteer time) and a small Executive Team that develops the IDB business plan. https://brixtonbid.co.uk/
ABOUT AMERICAN EXPRESS
American Express is a globally integrated payments company that provides customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. Learn more at americanexpress.com and connect with us at facebook.com/americanexpress, instagram.com/americanexpress, linkedin.com/company/american-express, twitter.com/americanexpressand youtube.com/americanexpress.
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