While chain stores and rising rents are usually what forces out mom-n-pop shops like bodegas, a new threat has suddenly emerged. Newly elected Councilmember Chris Marte joined with other elected officials invited to the rally on Sunday and said “darkened storefronts don’t build community, and don’t help small business grow.”The issue of saving small business hits home for Marte. The new councilman, along with the coalition of small business owners, also believe that darkened storefronts stifle competition and impede new small businesses from gaining a foothold in the local economy. This, largely because storefronts occupied by this new business model are often backed by venture capital and hedge fund imoney. Just around the corner from Gopuff, Fridge No More, another fifteen-minute delivery service has occupied the newly renovated storefront at 103 Norfolk.

Source: The Guardian January 10, 2022 22:05 UTC