EBALDC’s Small Businesses Need You
Fun fact: EBALDC is the largest nonprofit commercial landlord in the East Bay: Over 300,000 square feet of space supporting over 110 nonprofits and small businesses.
Not so fun fact: The pandemic devastated small businesses across the country, including here in Oakland.
As a community development corporation, EBALDC plays a unique role in building healthy, vibrant neighborhoods. We prioritize women and BIPOC-owned businesses to lease our commercial spaces. We want them to succeed and be a part of the neighborhoods in which they operate.
Within a few months of the start of the pandemic and thanks to the JPMorgan Chase Foundation, EBALDC launched our COVID Commercial Tenant Resiliency Program (CCTRP), which offered support for “back of house” activities so business owners, organizations, and entrepreneurs could concentrate on their respective craft and/or mission.
To date, 95% of EBALDC’s commercial tenants are still in operation and building healthy neighborhoods.
One of those businesses is Plenty Oakland at 1825 San Pablo Avenue near Uptown Oakland.
Owner: Jack Lin
Years in business: 6 Years
What happened when the pandemic hit?
Business declined over 95% overnight. All our regular customers stopped coming to work near downtown Oakland, and because we never tracked our customers through email newsletters or collected anybody’s information, it was basically starting a completely new business. We had to completely pivot our business to an online platform, which took a few months. During this process, we had to let go of our employees and cut down on our menu and available options.
In what way did you participate in CCTRP?
Working together with EBALDC through this pandemic has been a positive impact for my small business. I relied on my pre-COVID staff to help me with many tasks and when I, unfortunately, had to let them go, the overwhelming responsibilities as a single owner, caught up with me quickly. They helped direct me towards getting small grants and professional consultation — from business consultants to help pivot my business into online sales, to photographers to help capture images that drove my social media outlets.
It truly was only possible through the help I acquired through EBALDC and their partners.
How are you doing now?
Business has gradually grown since the vaccine was introduced, but we are still about 35% down compared to pre-Covid. Compared to when the pandemic first hit, and after pivoting the business model to accommodate for online orders and curbside pick-ups, we now have 3 part-time employees. Hopefully, workers will return to their offices sooner than later. For now, we’re looking for different avenues to get people interested, like chess tournaments, movie nights, and sports showings.
Any big plans as we head into the holiday season?
Plenty is doing holiday specials. Introduced last year during the height of the pandemic, we’re again offering vacuum sealed, pre-cooked meals. It only takes minutes to heat-up and people can have a completely hot, home-prepared meal without any of the clean-up or preparation. From soup to prime-rib, there are options for everybody. Here is a link to order.
On Giving Tuesday (November 30th), we will officially launch our End-of-Year Campaign. Funds raised will help us dig deeper into our work to realize our vision of a healthy and vibrant Oakland and East Bay, including helping small businesses like Plenty. Of course, you don’t have to wait until November 30th or the end of the year. At EBALDC, our work doesn’t stop because of funding cycles. It will only stop when the need stops.
In community,
Your EBALDC Family