Two Months into Support Small-Love Local and the Impact is Measurable

 GRAND FORKS, North Dakota (May 4, 2021) – Evolve Grand Forks is leading Support Small-Love Local, a program for local and small businesses affected by the pandemic. A grant from the Knight Foundation Donor-Advised Fund at the Community Foundation of Grand Forks, East Grand Forks, and Region provided funding to create a solution. The City of Grand Forks matched the grant to increase the impact. The campaign has been running for two months and has been markedly successful.

The purpose of the campaign is twofold: consumer education and a call to action. The first part is to educate the community through various communication channels on how shopping and support local affects the community; how people can get involved; and highlights small, locally owned businesses around the community. The second part of the campaign is a gift card that can be used at participating merchants to encourage consumers to support Grand Forks’ locally owned businesses.

These gift cards are incentivized with free money that is awarded based on the amount purchased. The bonus bucks are made possible by the city of Grand Forks, who committed $40,000 to this effort. For every $25 gift card bought, get $10 for free; for every $50 gift card bought, get $20 for free, and for every $100 gift card bought, get $40 for free. There have been 356 gift cards have been purchased since March 1, 2021 and 256 of them being in the past 30 days. Forty-six small, locally owned businesses around the city already participating. There is $15,350 in circulation within the community, as well as $36,455 bonus bucks still up for grabs.

About Evolve Grand Forks & The 701: Established in 2017 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Evolve and The 701 Coworking space are set out to offer entrepreneur programs and affordable office space for start-ups and budding businesses in the region. The 701 Coworking space is home to many of the areas business owners and offers a convenient location to work remotely or as a team. Evolve Grand Forks currently offers many programs to assist entrepreneurs to successfully launch their business and is an integral piece of the Grand Forks Entrepreneurial Ecosystem.

Our Mission: Supporting a Culture of Entrepreneurship in the Greater Grand Forks Community. 

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