REV Birmingham

Get ready to meet your match! Small Biz Speed Dating is happening next week at SocialVenture, and we’re putting you in the room with Birmingham’s most eligible financiers. Take advantage of this one-on-one time to ask questions and discover best practices as you fall in love with your business finances. There are only a few spots left, so RSVP today! Link below! https://lnkd.in/e9kBWVUz

After receiving more than $6K in funding through the Birmingham Open for Business program, Ready Stage awardee Maria Dominique Villanueva, co-founder of Fountain Heights Farms, has seen her business evolve in major ways! We continue to be inspired by the passion and progress of Birmingham’s dedicated entrepreneurs. Thank you to our partners at the PNC Foundation for making success stories like Maria’s possible. Visit the link below to learn more about Birmingham Open for Business. Applications for the Open Stage go live this Friday, August 30! https://lnkd.in/eCAgeEJS

Fall in love with your business finances at our upcoming event, Small Biz Speed Dating. Ask questions one-on-one with experienced professionals in federal tax law enforcement, banking, small business growth, and more to better understand ways to maintain and manage your business finances. Attendees will also have the opportunity to network and connect with fellow small business owners. Light food and beverages will be provided. RSVP is required, so claim your spot to get a wealth of knowledge!

Last week, a few members of the REV team took a quick trip to Monroeville, AL, to attend the Main Street Alabama 2024 LAB! While we were there, we even had the pleasure of accepting two Main Street Awards — Excellence in Placemaking for our Live on 20th program and Excellence in Reinvestment for our ongoing efforts in Downtown BHM and Woodlawn.

August is National Black Business Month. Whether as a consumer or entrepreneur, this month serves as an opportunity to support and celebrate Black-owned businesses in the Magic City. Swipe through to discover five easy ways to observe the month!

Meet Sydney, REV's graphic designer👋! While Sydney is a new full-time team member, she has been working with REV for the past 11 years, supporting our vision to make Birmingham the most vibrant city in the southeast through fun, engaging and creative design. When Sydney isn't behind her computer, she enjoys trying out new recipes and snuggling up to one of her cats. Sydney is also often found shuttling her children from home to school to extracurriculars and back again — and invites all of you to join her in counting down to her daughter's sweet 16 in October!

Congratulations to the 2024 Birmingham Open for Business Grow Stage awardees! These 12 businesses are setting the standard for small businesses in the Magic City, and we look forward to seeing how they continue to grow. Are you a small business owner looking for access to capital or support? Applications for the Ready Stage of Birmingham Open for Business are open now through Monday, August 26. Visit www.revbirmingham.org to learn more, apply and connect with our biz growth team!

Celebrate the grand opening of The Avondale Sugar Shack this Saturday, August 3! From 12-5 p.m., attendees will enjoy music, food trucks, games, giveaways — and of course, plenty of tasty treats. We’re beyond excited for the sweet moments that lie ahead for this saccharine shack, but let’s take a moment to talk about how it came to be. 👇 🍬 Abra Barnes, owner of The Avondale Gallery and Loft Center, was looking to bring something new to the heart of Avondale. Situated on the Jones Valley Trail, the Sugar Shack will be easily accessible to motorists, pedestrians and cyclists — activating what has been underutilized outdoor space! 🍧 Even sweeter? Barnes has three partners for this project: her three girls! This new addition to their business is specifically designed to teach them about entrepreneurship by creating a hands-on learning environment where they can gain practical experience in running a business while exploring their creativity. 🍭 Earlier this year, Barnes was awarded a $5,000 Magic City Match Grow Stage grant to help bring this vision to life, and we’re so proud to have been a small part of her and her girls’ entrepreneurial journey. This colorful shack is certainly hard to miss, but we’ll share the address regardless: 4330 3rd Ave. S. We hope to see you there this Saturday!

Applications for the Birmingham Open for Business Ready Stage are live. 🙌 If you are and entrepreneur who: ⭐️ Owns a for-profit business that is not yet located in a brick-and-mortar space; ⭐️ Has been in business for at least one year; Has generated verifiable business revenue within the last twelve months; and ⭐️ Desires to open in a brick-and-mortar location within Birmingham city limits in the next 6-24 months This is the opportunity for you! Click the 🔗 below to learn more and apply. Applications are open now through 11:59 p.m. on Monday, August 26. https://lnkd.in/eaZe83C3 P.S. Don't forget to contact our business growth team for extra assistance! 💪

We can't believe 2024 is already halfway through (crazy, right?). That said, we're thrilled to share with you a compilation of last year's most incredible moments captured in our 2023 Annual Report. From a revamped season of Magic City Match to exciting projects in downtown's city center to a successful tenth season of the Woodlawn Street Market, this report is full of reasons to say, "Yay Bham!" Ready to dig in? Click the 🔗below to read the full report. https://lnkd.in/g38EF-rD