Jordan Alwood
Mark your calendars!
Thursday, May 5 is Sacramento’s Big Day of Giving! This is your chance to support local businesses, help mom-and-pop shops and entrepreneurs and show some love to our Calling All Dreamers Program.
What is Big Day of Giving?
This special day is an annual celebration of giving to local non-profits and causes that matter to you and your loved ones, an initiative started by the Sacramento Region Community Foundation. We’re fundraising for the Downtown Sacramento Foundation, which oversees the Calling All Dreamers program.
What is Calling All Dreamers?
More than just a retail competition, Calling All Dreamers has driven economic growth in downtown Sacramento since 2013, helping to open more than 30 businesses, create nearly 100 jobs, and to help make dreams come true. The first year is usually the most difficult for small businesses with many startups struggling with capital, overhead expenses, permitting processes, and the details of actually managing a business. To make it easier, the Downtown Sacramento Foundation launched the Calling All Dreamers competition to support an entrepreneur to bring their dream of opening a downtown storefront to reality. In simple terms, this program is perfect for any entrepreneur start a business with support from the Downtown Partnership.
Show some love to our Sacramento entrepreneurs
As mentioned above, starting a business can be really hard. This is why we show so much love to Sacramento entrepreneurs! We love Sacramento and want this community to be the best it can be. Calling All Dreamers allows anyone and everyone to shed some light on their business and goals, and make those dreams come true. With the goal of helping entrepreneurs to take their first step toward opening a business in the city they love, DSF provides guidance and resources to small businesses and entrepreneurs opening downtown. Much of the activity has been centered around the annual Calling All Dreamers competition that helps to cultivate the next generation of small businesses. The competition’s 7 winners – Andy’s Candy Apothecary, Ana Apple, The Allspicery, Oblivion Comics & Coffee, Milk House Shakes, NEO Escape Rooms, and Nash & Proper – and dozens of finalists and semi-finalists have opened 20 new businesses filling nearly 20,000 SF of space and almost 100 full and part-time jobs.
Recognize any of these places?
The pictures above are actually previous winners from the Calling All Dreamers act! Neo Escape Rooms, Nash and Proper, and The Allspicery are three businesses that started with a dream. These winners have not only been able to keep their businesses successful during Covid but have also brought so much love and community back to #DowntownSac.
Learn more about our Dreamers Nash and Proper, NEO Escape Rooms, and Allspicery here.
How can I help?
The Downtown Sacramento Foundation needs YOU to help support these programs!
To show some love and support, just click here and you’ll be directed to our donation website. Learn about previous contestants, and previous winners, and get excited about this year’s competition!