As longtime SBN members, cofounders, and copresidents, Tracy and Mia Levesque are committed to building a more socially, environmentally, and financially sustainable local economy. YIKES, Inc. is a Pennsylvania Benefit Corporation and a certified B Corporation. As an LGBTQIA+ co-owned business, the company plays an active role in the Philadelphia community. Tracy cofounded #TechInColor, a networking group that brings together people from diverse backgrounds within the tech community, with other queer folx in tech. 

We caught up with Tracy and Mia to learn more about their business, how they incorporate the triple bottom line practice of people, planet, and profit into their work, and their experiences as SBN members. Check out the interview below!

What prompted you to start YIKES? What was your impetus in creating a web design and development company rooted in the triple bottom line framework of people, planet, and profit?  

We started the business [YIKES, Inc.] with another friend of ours who was also a lesbian in the mid-90s. We all had an interest in web technology and our skills complemented each other. After doing websites on a volunteer basis for several months we decided to start a business. It was that simple. The three of us came from non-profit backgrounds and wanted to run a “socially responsible” – the term at the time – business.

How long have you been an SBN member, and can you share more about the benefits of membership? In what ways does SBN assist your business?

We’ve been members of SBN since the early 2000s, though I can’t remember exactly when we joined. I think the main benefit of membership is having a like-minded business community. When we were starting out with business networking, many of the established organizations were very conservative. When we walked into our first SBN event we felt like we finally found our people. 

Just having a thriving sustainable business community in Philadelphia is a big asset. It shows there is a different way to having a successful business that doesn’t follow a traditional roadmap.

As LGBTQIA+ business owners who use your business as a force for good, do you have suggestions on how the business community can better support other LGBTQIA+-owned responsible businesses? 

We’re also members of the Independence Business Alliance, Philadelphia LGBTQIA+ chamber of commerce. The alliance is welcoming towards all allies and provides a great source of businesses to work with – plus their events are super fun! 

YIKES has accomplished many things over the years – especially becoming one of the first companies in PA to become a benefit corporation – can you share what’s been the most rewarding for you? 

We’re most proud of ourselves for committing to sustainability, being our authentic selves, and doing good when we founded our business and sticking to it for all these years. In our capitalist country, ethical decisions are put in corporations’ hands, and mixing that with the bottom line often doesn’t work. To achieve a certain level of success, the narrative says you have to compromise doing good for making money. We have not had to do that and have achieved success on our terms. We have always been out about being a women-owned, lesbian-owned, and sustainable business even when it wasn’t “cool.”

To up-and-coming local independent businesses, what is one piece of advice you would give them?

It is so important, especially as businesses owned by people from marginalized communities, to operate with a growth mindset and not from a place of fear. I have never regretted a risk we’ve taken (even if it didn’t work out) but I have wished we’d taken more risks over the years.

Discover more Women-owned and LGBTQIA+-owned businesses in the SBN network by clicking here. 

To learn more SBN membership, including how we provide businesses in Greater Philadelphia with relevant content, meaningful community, and effective advocacy, please click here. 

The post SBN Member Spotlight: Tracy and Mia Levesque of YIKES, Inc. appeared first on Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia.

Ellen Yin, Co-founder and Owner of HSHG, has been a trailblazer in the food and hospitality scene for over 25 years. She and her team operate some of the country’s most celebrated dining establishments, including a.kitchen + bar, Fork, High Street Philly, The Wonton Project, High Street Provisions in Philadelphia, and High Street on Hudson in Manhattan. She is a multi-year nominee for “Outstanding Restaurateur” by the James Beard Foundation Awards and is a graduate of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Ellen is involved in several community-centric organizations, including the Sisterly Love Collective and the Independent Restaurant Coalition, and sits on the Board of “The Philadelphia Award,” among others.

We caught up with Ellen to learn more about her hospitality and restaurant industry journey, what prompted her to start the Wonton Project and her experiences as an SBN member. Check out our interview below.

How did your journey in the restaurant/ hospitality industry begin?   

Like many others in the industry, I got my start working at a neighborhood restaurant in high school, which happened to be a French restaurant considered one of the best in New Jersey. While working there, I remember falling in love with the diversity, pace, and energy of the restaurant scene. After that moment, I wanted to focus on making a mark in the hospitality industry by creating innovative, equitable, and sustainable concepts that keep the industry moving forward. Fork, which we opened in 1997, was based on a business plan I had created while studying at UPenn.

What prompted you to start the Wonton Project, and as you celebrate its one-year anniversary, what can we expect? 

I was inspired to start The Wonton Project to help fight discrimination against Asian Americans following the violence in Atlanta last year. I knew I had to do something but I’m a restaurateur, no chef. One thing I feel confident in making is wontons, especially my mother’s recipes. So, with the help of Fork and High Street’s chefs, I was able to convert my mother’s beloved wonton recipe into one that can be executed in a restaurant.

Community has been at the heart of what I do for the past 25 years.

And while I haven’t always leaned into my Asian roots as a restaurateur, I am proud to have found a way to give back to the AAPI community. Going into the project’s one-year anniversary, I hope to expand our menu, continue to host powerful collaborations, perhaps consider a full-time ghost kitchen operation at High Street Provisions, and keep raising money for AAPI charities worldwide. 

As a SBN member, can you share more about the benefits of membership? In what ways does SBN assist your business?

The benefits of membership are being able to network with other like-minded entrepreneurs in the business community. Additionally, educational programming and discussion are great. The networking and educational opportunities are vast, and I always appreciate connecting with other local business owners. 

Can you share an experience that solidified your commitment to triple-bottom-line principles of people, planet, and profit?

There isn’t one experience that solidified my commitment to triple-bottom-line principles. However, from the time Fork opened, we always felt that the most valuable assets were our team members. At Fork we have always considered the environment and doing well by those standards would draw guests who have common values.

As an Asian American business owner who uses your business as a force for good, do you have suggestions on how the business community can better support other Asian-owned responsible businesses? 

The best way to support other businesses in your community is by frequenting them of course, but if you have a platform where you can give others a voice via partnerships and collaborations even better. 

You’ve accomplished many things over the years. Can you share what’s been the most rewarding for you? 

I love to see our team members grow. Fork has been open since 1997, so our family tree is quite large and so many former team members have gone on to such wonderful things from awards to opening their own concepts in Philadelphia and beyond.

To up-and-coming local independent businesses, what is one piece of advice you would give them?

My advice would be to go in with a solid knowledge of and passion for the industry in which you are starting your business. You’re going to be working long hours and a lot of roadblocks/hurdles will pop up over your tenure. It’s imperative that you love it, or I could foresee someone burning out quickly. 

Discover more Women-owned and Asian-owned businesses in the SBN network by clicking here. 

To learn more SBN membership, including how we provide businesses in Greater Philadelphia with relevant content, meaningful community, and effective advocacy, please click here. 

The post SBN Member Spotlight: Ellen Yin of High Street Hospitality Group appeared first on Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia.

For Silvia, owner of LUHV FOOD, the belief is very personal. An Argentinian immigrant who has been in the Philadelphia area restaurant industry for more than 20 years, she suffered a mild stroke and became sick in 2012. Daniel, her husband and chef, made “healing foods” to aid in her recovery after researching veganism’s health benefits. Today, Silvia credits those “healing foods” for her current good health and shares them through LUHV. 

By producing nutritious vegan foods that are good for our bodies and the environment, LUHV has two locations: One in Hatboro, Pa, and a deli in Philadelphia’s Reading Terminal Market. The business also offers online ordering for delivery and pickup and wholesale distribution at Mom’s Organic Market, Whole Foods, and countless markets and food co-ops throughout Greater Philadelphia. 

We caught up with Silvia to find out more about LUHV, how she’s managed operations during the pandemic, and her advocacy approaches to her business. Read below to hear more about her experiences as an SBN member and her vision for the future triple bottom line businesses in the region.

What made you want to launch LUHV FOOD, and what inspired you to do so?  

Some years ago, I had a mild stroke and became sick. My husband, Daniel, also had health issues, and, at that time, one of our two restaurants went into bankruptcy. We were suffering from both harsh physical and financial times as a family. 

A family friend had introduced Daniel to veganism, and he took hold of it using local farming whenever possible and concentrated on the nutritional value of foods. Our family became vegan, and I found in it the “healing powers” of a nutritious plant-based diet. We started to incorporate vegan dishes, like Daniel’s famous black bean burger, on our restaurant menus. Our restaurant customers really loved the vegan additions! They would always ask us about these foods and then buy the food in regular containers. 

I also realized a vast need for nutritional vegan foods that also taste good. Customers shouldn’t choose between taste and health, so I decided to package and share these beautiful, tasty foods. As I got better and the demand increased, I decided to open a factory to produce these nutritious meals.

How have you managed operations during the pandemic? Were you able to do any pivots, and if so, how?  

LUHV is the extreme pivot. We pivot pivots! At the beginning of the pandemic, we stopped indoor dining and immediately expanded our franchise. We also expanded our wholesale distribution to 50 Whole Foods Market stores, and we concentrated on offering curb pick up and delivery. We now do subscriptions and have a significant online market.

What’s one thing that you’ve learned from your business during this period of change, uprising, and COVID? 

On the other side, pivoting is harder than it sounds. You have to let go of all your previous projections, numbers, and dreams, manage your business without a framework, predict without context, and invest in a very unpredictable future. I learned a lot about ourselves and as a company.

At SBN’s Best Practice Forum last fall, you described how you worked with the City of Philadelphia to get a cap on fees charged by third-party delivery services. Can you share more about how that came along and what the outcome was? Also, how should businesses advocate for themselves to local government? 

I read an article online that made my blood boil. It stated that UberEats had saved Uber. My husband closed our restaurant for more than two months at the beginning of the pandemic, and we relied on these delivery platforms to stay in business. These platforms were gauging restaurants more than 30% of their sales, which is way bigger than our average profit. It was the the restaurant industry that gave them the billion-dollar growth, not the delivery apps! 

I was pretty upset, so I channeled my anger into a 5-page piece that included research and statistics. I needed to tell someone how unfair it was that nobody was protecting the restaurant industry, 25% of Philadelphia’s economy. It was very cathartic. 

I knew several people in Philadelphia’s Commerce department and started sending it to them to sound the alarm that if we did not jump ahead, this would have an even more significant impact than COVID. My information came when the awareness of this issue started, so I was asked to send it up the ladder. The department organized meetings with many restaurant owners in the Philadelphia area. The next thing I knew, I saw the article in the Philadelphia Inquirer about the City pushing for the cap on third-party delivery fees. It made me cry. My restaurant was not benefited by it because it is in Bucks County, but I knew it would help many Philadelphia restaurants. 

How long have you been an SBN member, and can you share the benefits of membership? How has SBN helped you in your business?

I’ve been a member for a couple of years, but it feels so much longer! SBN has been very influential to me and my business. As a member, you meet the right people, those that have the opportunity to make real changes or have vital information to share.

My voice and others are always heard and respected. The programs and the information that is shared is always enlightening. I never left one of SBN’s programs where I did not learn anything new. 

Can you share an experience that solidified your commitment to triple-bottom-line principles of people, planet, and profit? 

Being vegan is way more than not just eating meat; it’s a crucial action you can take to reverse the effects of global warming and your health. As I study the impact of veganism on my health, I found many facts that made sustainability undeniable to the world’s survival. The most significant gift I can give my children is a commitment to make the world better, and I can’t do this without veganism and sustainable practices. 

It became real for me how changes in our agriculture practices can make farming more profitable. In my experience, it costs so much less to eat vegetables once you learn to do it right. I truly believe we can change the world by how we eat.

What’s been one of your proudest achievements in owning your business?

I’ve had so many proud moments in my business. After I presented our products to MOM’s Organic Market and Whole Foods Market, we became their vendors. Or when I established the first vegan deli at The Reading Terminal. All of these milestones have been incredible for our business, but I am most proud to see our customers thoroughly enjoy eating a vegan diet through LUHV. I mean it! It is the best feeling after all the sacrifices that it took to make LUHV happen.

What’s your vision for local independent businesses in the Greater Philadelphia region?

Local independent businesses don’t have the time or extra money to comb through and find resources. They are so overwhelmed that they feel that spending time learning or participating will detract them from their business. At the same time, most government agencies and social organizations tend to cater to those that scream the loudest, and they are usually those that have the time and the funds to buy the big megaphone. Local independent businesses are a force to be reckoned with. My vision is for all of us to work together and use our voices to create the change we need to happen.

What inspires you to do the work that you do? 

I am old enough to have made plenty of mistakes and learn that what is essential in life is the legacy of our journey for our children, our community, and the world we all share. I want to dedicate the rest of my life to doing the best I can to honor that promise to myself.

Discover more Women-owned businesses in the SBN network by clicking here. 

To learn more SBN membership, including how we provide businesses in Greater Philadelphia with relevant content, meaningful community, and effective advocacy, please click here. 

The post Bringing LUHV to Greater Philadelphia: Silvia Lucci of LUHV FOOD appeared first on Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia.

Research shows that low-income residents in urban areas, especially those from marginalized backgrounds, have limited transportation options that can constrain them from getting to their jobs and succeeding in their careers. In a city like Philadelphia, with a persistent 26% poverty rate, now likely exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, inadequate transportation leaves a damning effect on our local economy. 

It’s a narrative that Tim Styer, founder and CEO of Ride to Work LLC (RTW), hopes to change.  Styer launched RTW in 2018 after retiring from ten years working for the Philadelphia Unemployment Project and prior to that his previous business, Urban Works, a Philadelphia-based employee-owned contract cleaning company. RTW’s mission is to provide transportation management services to companies and organizations that employ those who have difficulty getting to and holding jobs. He works on behalf of low-income and vulnerable workers, specifically returning citizens. 

A lifelong business and community leader committed to working for marginalized communities, he’s also a founding member of SBN, joining in 2001. 

We caught up with Styer to find out more about RTW, his company’s goals, how he’s managed operations during the pandemic, his experiences being an early member of SBN, and his vision for the future of triple-bottom-line business in the area. Read below!

What inspired you to start Ride to Work LLC?

I launched RTW to provide a solution to a long-standing problem: Getting people from marginalized communities that don’t have driver’s licenses to good-paying jobs in areas that are not accessible by public transportation.

Year after year, data shows that transportation is the number one barrier facing low-income people in attaining good jobs. It’s a more salient point considering that job growth is much higher in areas outside of Philadelphia and most urban areas in the country.

Can you share with us a little more about the services and resources that Ride to Work LLC provides?

We facilitate transportation services for workforce development agencies, employers, and employees through third-party transportation providers. We also support nonprofit organizations that require transportation services for their job development programs.

How has Ride to Work LLC maintained operations during the pandemic? Did you do any pivots?

We’ve maintained a skeleton of our operations, though we had to pivot to a more consultative company early on. Though the need for transportation had increased since the start of the pandemic, many nonprofit organizations couldn’t afford transportation services for their clients, and employers were unwilling to foot the bill. My team and I saw the critical need for folks, some of whom are frontline workers, to get safely to and from their jobs. At the same time, we heard that supply chain warehouse jobs such as Amazon were going unfilled. So, we convened thought leaders in the transportation industry and leaders from local nonprofit organizations to help us craft a solution that would be a win for everyone involved, including state and local governments. We launched the Ride To Work Initiative last June with the hope to secure $3 million to subsidize transportation for up to 1000 workers.

What have you learned in your business during this period of change, uprising, and COVID?

It’s something that I particularly learned in my earlier business: You can never predict what the market will bring you. Despite all of our planning and modeling, things happen and often out of nowhere. The real test of being an entrepreneur is the ability to keep standing and moving amid the storm. It would help if you also built partnerships. In times like these, you can’t go it alone.

As an early SBN member, can you share about the early days of SBN and what prompted you to join? Can you share the benefits of being a member and how has SBN helped you in your business?

Through the amazing Judy Wicks! She was one of my company’s first customers, Urban Works, through the White Dog Cafe. At the time, I operated an employee-owned contract cleaning company, and we had a contract with Judy and the White Dog Cafe. Since Urban Works was a double bottom line company, Judy asked if I would be part of the planning for SBN. It was a unique opportunity in the sense that I got to know and work with like-minded business owners who shared a common vision and cared about people and the planet before profit. 

There are many benefits to being an SBN member, but two stick out to me. First, networking with other companies with a shared culture. Second, being a member reflects my values, and that’s a statement I want to make to the business community. 

As a Black-owned triple-bottom-line business, do you have any suggestions on how the business community can better support other Black-owned triple bottom line businesses?

Overall, the general business community needs to understand how important triple-bottom-line companies are to our local economy. We care about our communities, our workers, and the environment equally. With that said, the general business community can better support us by partnering with us on contracts, etc., and getting more involved with us.

Can you share an experience that solidified your commitment to triple bottom line principles of people, planet and profit?

The idea of a triple-bottom-line enterprise fits well with my values and beliefs of how businesses should operate. My first company was a cooperative based on the Mondragon economic system, which operates under the values of participation, innovation, social responsibility, and cooperation. Many facets of triple bottom line practices are similar to the Mondragon system.

What’s your vision for local independent businesses in Greater Philadelphia?

I believe that businesses need to benefit their community, not just their owners or shareholders. They need to have a positive impact on the inequitable economic conditions in their communities.

What inspires you to do the work that you do?

I find it truly inspiring whenever I see the positive impact that my company has on folks, especially low-income Black and Brown people and returning citizens, who care about their jobs and getting to work in a safe and timely manner. 

To up-and-coming local independent businesses, what is one piece of advice you would give them?

First, you have to think through your plans. It’s always great to consult and network with others, especially with organizations like SBN, that will help you achieve your business goals. Second, it’s important to understand your finances. Figure out what your margins are and how you plan to achieve them. Lastly, make sure you have access to some capital. All companies need working capital at some point, and if things go smoothly, that point will come sooner than later.

Discover more Black-owned businesses in the SBN network, including Grant Blvd and others by clicking here. 

To learn more SBN membership, including how we provide businesses in Greater Philadelphia with relevant content, meaningful community, and effective advocacy, please click here. 

The post Helping Vulnerable Communities Get to Work: Tim Styer of Ride to Work LLC appeared first on Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia.

McGlonn launched her company in 2017. Grant Blvd’s mission is to challenge systemic issues like climate change and mass incarceration in bold and undeniably stylish garments. The brand uses reclaimed fabrics for t-shirts and accessories that read “End Cash Bail,” and “Sustainable AF,” in addition to eco-friendly womenswear pieces like slip dresses and jumpsuits. Still, it’s McGlonn’s commitment to building community, fostering safe and inclusive spaces, creating employment opportunities for women, and supporting incarcerated and returning citizens that propels her vision to fight for justice and reform. 

During our year of pandemic and immediate calls for social and climate action, McGlonn has doubled down on her business, opening a storefront location at 36th and Lancaster Ave. in West Philadelphia. McGlonn is also a recent recipient of Beyonce’s (yes, that Beyonce) BeyGOOD grant, a $10,000 grant to Black-owned small business owners to help deal with the economic impact of the pandemic.

We caught up with SBN’s newly elected Board member to discuss her experiences owning and operating a Black-owned sustainable apparel business in Greater Philadelphia, and her vision for the future of triple-bottom-line business in the area. Read below! 

What prompted you to start Grant Blvd, and can you share more on the brand’s name and its meaning?

I first conceptualized Grant Blvd in 2016. I was really engaged in my work as a classroom teacher, but came to more fully realize the injustices built into the fabric of the American criminal justice system. Specifically, my perspective changed through my time in volunteer service at Books Through Bars. On my first day in training there, I read through letters written by incarcerated people who had very limited access to books. I felt called (hard to describe it any other way) to do more to resist a system that has always been so unjust. As an English teacher, lover of books and fashion, I wanted to find a way to bring the things that brought me the most profound sense of joy and inspiration together. But I also wanted to do it in a way that addressed the realities of climate catastrophe. These are ultimately the problems we aspire to use fashion to address.

But even that’s all because of 2677 Grant Blvd.  

That’s the address where I grew up in Milwaukee, where my dad wanted to make sure that people living on the predominantly Black north side of the city had access to fresh food, and where my mom spent time going to Taycheedah, a women’s correctional institution, to council incarcerated women. But in fuller truth and transparency, living there also gave me a good deal of personal experience with parental abandonment, adult depression, and ultimately, poverty. These are only a portion of the things Grant Blvd aims to be an antidote to.

How has your understanding of the U.S. criminal justice system inspired Grant Blvd’s aesthetics?

It inspires Grant Blvd’s very DNA, and what I mean by that is the mission for Grant Blvd is bigger than just fashion. That’s not to detract from the power, originality, or beauty of our garments; those, I hope, are undeniable.

Thoughtful fashion design is what we lead with, but our driving mission is to do what’s good for people and spark conversations to inspire resistance through fashion. That’s why we invite our customers to wear their positions on their chest with tees that read “End Mass Incarceration” and “End Cash Bail.”

One of the most amazing things about Grant Blvd is that you and your team use sustainable materials to make garments. Can you share the reason to do so?  How important is ethics in fashion design and apparel making?

We work intending to design from a place of love: Love of fabrics, of our bodies, of other people, and the Earth, but also from a place of logic. Clothes constructed with a sense of environmental and social consciousness are the best kind of style for us. 

To make this happen, we reimagine menswear in each collection and reimagine other household items like drapes and tablecloths. This is married to our effort to guide folks into broader notions of reuse through remixing and lengthen garment life cycles. Beyond that, we play with sustainably sourced fabrics, including deadstock, organic cottons, and Tencel. We can’t leave ethics out of the conversation. This is why we’re committed to producing our garments in Philadelphia and why we pay everyone on our team a living wage.

2020 was a challenging year for many local businesses in Greater Philadelphia. How have you maintained operations during the pandemic, and what have you learned in your business? What has sustained you during this period of change, uprising, and COVID?

It’s been challenging indeed, and yet we’ve persevered. We’ve maintained our operations by reducing occupancy in our studio and by pretty immediately switching our production last spring to include face masks and partnering with the Greater Philadelphia non-profit community to better stand in solidarity with the larger work that they’re doing and that we believe in. 

We also learned that we have to keep moving, which is why Grant Blvd launched its storefront last summer despite our apprehensions. That would never have been possible without everyone’s resolve and determination, both team members and customers, rooting for our survival. 

What are some sought-after pieces from the brand?

People are really feeling our remixed loungewear, especially pieces that feature our logo on reclaimed fabrics. We can’t seem to keep those in the store! Folks also love our take on joggers, which come in deep olive and sand, and are constructed from organic cotton twill.

How long have you been an SBN member, and when did you first hear about SBN and its mission? Can you share the benefits of being a member and how has SBN helped you in your business?

I’ve been a member of SBN for nearly three years now, almost immediately after I founded Grant Blvd. I heard about it as I began my journey to discover businesses that valued sustainability in the area.

I think the two most important benefits of SBN membership are becoming part of a community with other business leaders who share your values. In a culture so dominated by a disregard for sustainability, it’s affirming to align with folks who aspire to move forward in the direction you do. This has been a definite help to my business. Another benefit is working in unison with those folks to promote legislative needs at a local and state level that acknowledges the work that lies ahead to address sustainable change.

Can you share an experience that solidified your commitment to triple bottom line principles of people, planet and profit?

There are so many! But one that often replays is whenever a new customer comes into the store and inquires about our brand, the material, and fabrics we use. In these moments, we share more about the value we as a company find in taking the approach we do. They are often excited and enthusiastic about learning more and discovering that we’re truly thinking not just about profit but people and our planet.

What’s your vision for local independent businesses in the Greater Philadelphia region?

My vision for them, for us all, to continue to grow in their/our commitment to the triple-bottom-line philosophy.

What inspires you to do the work that you do?

More than anything? My 12-year-old daughter, Hana. She’s such a compassionate, creative girl, one who has so much respect for science and justice. Thinking about my legacy and the example I aspire to craft for her inspires me every day.

To up and coming local independent businesses, what is one piece of advice you would give them?

Discover a sense of purpose in what you’re building because the way is long and without many firm directions, and sometimes without guides. However, your values will sustain you when the hills feel high. I’ve learned that if you keep your “why” out in front of you, you’ll never lose sight of the direction you want to go.

Discover more Black-owned businesses in the SBN network, including Grant Blvd and others by clicking here. 

To learn more SBN membership, including how we provide businesses in Greater Philadelphia with relevant content, meaningful community, and effective advocacy, please click here. 

The post Combating Systemic Issues through Sustainable Fashion: Kimberly McGlonn of Grant Blvd appeared first on Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia.

“The park was really outdated. The play area was falling apart, and there were giant holes in the rubber surfacing due to years of use,” says SBN member Sara Pevaroff Schuh, founding principal of SALT Design Studio, a landscape architecture practice based in Philadelphia. “It needed renovation.”

In early 2019, Philadelphia’s Parks and Recreation office tapped SALT Design Studio to lead the project’s design. The site then became tracked for Rebuild, the City’s investment in improving neighborhood parks, recreation centers, and libraries made possible by the beverage tax.

With the resources that Rebuild offered, SALT created a three-part renovation strategy that included forging connections with old and new residents and younger and older populations of the Olde Kensington neighborhood, embracing the neighborhood’s evolution and its diversity, and celebrating the industrial legacy of the area.

“We want to make places with people, not just for them.”

Schuh’s team then engaged with various community groups and neighborhood residents to include in the playground’s update. Community members and residents often remarked that they wanted a “softer, greener’ space where everyone could feel comfortable and families could freely play. “The neighborhood is very multigenerational. So their feedback was paramount to the construction of the project,” says Schuh. “Whenever we do a project, we always engage the community as it’s part of our DNA. We want to make places with people, not just for them.”

Based on community members and residents’ feedback to “green” the playground, SALT enlisted fellow SBN member, Rodriguez Consulting, LLC, to help spearhead civil engineering. “We love working with Rodriguez Consulting, and we jump at the chance to work with them whenever there is an opportunity,” Schuh says of the collaboration. Both SALT Design Studio and Rodriguez Consulting came up with a technique to use green stormwater infrastructure, the practice to use natural systems (or engineered systems that mimic or use natural processes) to capture, clean, and infiltrate stormwater to beautify the space.

They chose rain gardens to wrap around the play area, a porous safety surface, and replaced pavements with ample lawn spaces with picnic tables that residents could bring food and relax. ” Since it was a former manufacturing site, the property is built up above the street. We capitalized on this soil depth to infiltrate stormwater throughout the park, nourishing the plants and trees. We thought it would be a great opportunity for residents to have a stake in keeping the park green by caring for the plants and soil, and a way for neighborhood kids to play around and learn about green stormwater infrastructure,” Schuh remarks.

Construction, led by Seravalli, began in 2020, though briefly stalled due to the pandemic, and resumed once stay at home orders lifted in the summer. For its design, SALT wanted to create a compelling moment that was also not overly complicated. The team found inspiration from a mural painted on a wall by the park’s entrance. It’s swirling hues of yellow inspired the team to think outside of the box when it came to play equipment. “We used two primary colors, yellow and blue, for bigger play pieces like the large dome climbing structure, so that residents could see the park from blocks away.”

In total, the park’s improvements include a welcoming entrance with canopy trees, a toddler play area, fitness zone, in addition to the shaded lawn with picnic tables and space for programming and recreational activities. “There’s also a double-wide slide that is perfect for social distanced play, which both parents and kids will love to slide down on,” says Schuh.

Hancock Playground opened to the public in November with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Area residents had the chance to check out the new playground, play with the new play equipment, and see up close the use of green stormwater in its landscape design.

In the spring, SALT plans to work with neighbors who have stepped up to take care of the play area’s maintenance. “That’s a huge benefit, not only to the upkeep of the park but to the community. Neighbors will have a hand in making sure they can keep their park green and clean while also serving the environment,” says Schuh.

Hancock Playground is open to the public and is located at 1401 N Hancock Street in the Olde Kensington section of Philadelphia.

The post Building a Green Playground for All appeared first on Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia.

It’s hard to think anything could ever beat our mother’s baking, however, local Motzi Bakery is certainly giving Philadelphia mothers a run for their money. Bakery President, Alan Mathason is by far no stranger to the baking industry. As a fourth-generation baker, he has been ingrained with a “make it from scratch” mindset and his dedication to quality is evident in every one of his hand-developed creations. While the bakery industry has been changing rapidly throughout the years, Motzi is not interested in trading quality and natural ingredients in exchange for high turnovers.

“I strive to spend money efficiently and save where I can, but won’t touch the quality of the product. I’m happy to say my ingredients only improve over time.”

In remaining dedicated to using only freshly milled flour, small batch from-scratch baking, and choosing quality natural ingredients over chemical additives, the bakery is creating a quality difference made clear in the first bite. Alan shares how he maintains his dedication to quality and community while discussing how to navigate the challenges of starting a new business.

What gets you out of bed in the morning?

Making Motzi Bakery’s products for people who really enjoy them is what inspires me to grow the business. So much of today’s baked goods are ‘hollow’ with cheap as possible ingredients. We strive to make baked goods that are balanced, support the local economy, and delight everyone who tries it.

What is a recent challenge that you have overcome, and how did you do it?

Since the bakery is so new, just being able to open a food business and try out ideas commercially felt like a huge accomplishment. There is a lot of process to navigate with the city, the health department, incorporation, sourcing, branding, accounting, creating a sales platform, selling, marketing, logistics, and…oh yeah, developing the product. I’ve had a lot of guesses of what would work in all these areas. Some were right, some were wrong. The win here is to learn how to test these guesses quickly and try new approaches when things don’t play out as you hoped.

How can the process be simplified to help more food businesses start, grow, and thrive?

I feel fortunate in that I was able to find a number of resources throughout Philadelphia to guide my first steps into a food business. There are certainly a lot of steps involved and different local and federal agencies to contact, but with a healthy amount of reading and a lot of perseverance, it’s possible to break out on your own.

Of particular help — the Office of Food Protection. Once I realized where they were and wandered in one day, they were extremely helpful and available for questions. They also publish a guide, here.

I also took some classes at the Restaurant School — some for technique, but one exceptionally eye-opening class with Harris Eckstut details here gave me a reality check of how the food business operates and helped me form my own strategy of how I would start out and manage my risk.

As for what could have been easier if I was starting it again, I’d say to find a mentor that can help guide, make recommendations, etc. Thinking about what the city could do, I feel like the biggest challenge is coordinating all the rules from the different agencies, when to go to which agency, and in what order. There are certainly benefits in place to make it easier for a business in Philadelphia to get off the ground, but navigating them can be a challenge. I think having someone available for those information session or VERY detailed examples of step by step instructions across different agencies for a few kinds of businesses would help.

What’s your personal networking strategy and what role does your community play in the success of your business?

For me, the key is to look for ways to help the people you work with. You can hope for help back, but never demand it.

When a good relationship develops, things just start ‘clicking.’

Can you walk us through one of your triple bottom line practices and the impact it has had on your business?

I’m trained as a systems engineer — and it helps me think holistically. As I develop my baked goods and conduct my business, I keep the triple bottom line in mind. It’s an exciting challenge to make a premium small-batch product profitable. I strive to spend money efficiently and save where I can, but won’t touch the quality of the product. I’m happy to say my ingredients only improve over time. Socially, I work to develop as many local vendors and sales outlets as possible. These relationships, helping each other out, are gratifying and make the business so much more than just a transaction. Motzi’s story is about quality and tradition — and I won’t treat them like commodities. I also scrutinize my process and its impact on the environment. There are a lot of tradeoffs in every step of the process — from ingredients, packaging, baking times, water use, you name it. It’s all a balance, and I strive to find a certain ‘elegant’ answer to these challenges.

Can you tell us about your ideal day off in Philadelphia, and where you would spend it?

My wife and I have lived in the Fairmount area for the past 8 years. Although we’ve explored a lot of the city and outlying suburbs, we really love walking around Fairmount and visiting the museums. Though I wouldn’t have guessed it, being able to see the Barnes Foundation gallery over and over again just doesn’t get old.

What is one thing that most people do not know about your business that you would like them to know?

I’m the fourth generation in my family to have something to do with baking, but it’s really my uncle that got me started. I didn’t get to spend a lot of time with him growing up, but he’d often show me how to make sweet breads or talk about how to listen to the dough for cues to make changes. For me, baking is a mix of art, science, and tradition. I’m always striving to improve my techniques, style, and honor the tradition of baking.

Motzi Bakery’s offering is currently online (motzibakery.com) and in select Philadelphia markets and cafes including Riverwards Produce, Philly Foodworks, Kayuh Bicycles & Cafe, and Front Street Cafe. The bakery uses Greensgrow’s shared commercial kitchen, but is already starting to outgrow the space. Alan is looking for partnership opportunities to help increase the offering and serve more customers. Please reach at alan@motzibakery.com if you would like to discuss ways your business could work with Motzi Bakery.

To explore SBN’s Member Directory, click here.

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By Guest Contributer, Cynthia Estremera

When Melissa Lee started her company 8 years ago, she ran it on intuition alone. She had never taken a business course and her decisions were her own. While she has experienced tremendous growth, she says that coaching and mentorship are most important to her. Her company is slated to grow and she is interested in diversifying her employee base, offering benefits that increase employee well-being, and growing a scholarship fund for disadvantaged and underserved students.

Melissa took the Best for PHL challenge in May 2017 and her initial Impact Improvement Goal was to increase the level of healthcare offered to employees. She worked with a broker and was comfortable with paying for 50% of the benefits for her full-time and part-time employees. However, once she took the challenge, she began to wrestle with the idea that she could do better.

“I asked which benefits plan was standard, and then offered my team the level above it. But when I took the Best for PHL assessment, it mentioned that we should strive for 80% coverage so I knew that I needed to do better!”

As a young company, The GREEN Program employees, including Melissa herself, did not need to enroll in their own health insurance plan until recently, so this was a new practice. This shows that each company has different goals and their pathways to get to those goals will look different. Melissa realized that 80% of the insurance coverage is something that TGP can grow towards, but in the meantime, she decided to go with another goal of providing a 401K program for her 7 employees. “Setting a strong baseline to improve my team’s well-being was the first step. Increasing coverage and implementing 401k matching is something I look forward to putting in place.” She’s constantly a step ahead by accomplishing a goal and immediately setting her next one.

In addition to providing her employees with a 401K, TGP’s Director of Business Development & Strategy, Brady Halligan, has recently launched a scholarship program that provides opportunities for low-income and underrepresented students to embark on The GREEN Program. The program has such a high reputation with alumni being hired by some of the best companies in the world and they believe this is a prime opportunity to increase the diverse representation of students in STEM education and workforce development. For every TGP alum hired, one disadvantaged or underserved student is given the opportunity to study abroad with TGP and become a part of their alumni community. The GREEN Program also provides workforce development for their alumni to be matched with employers through this program and is currently seeking new partnerships with progressive companies who want globally educated, technically trained, and sustainably-minded talent.

Melissa and her team are also providing mental health first aid training, an 8-hour certification course for higher ed professionals and students to become properly trained as mental health first responders. The free training that she opened to the Greater Philadelphia community sold out within a day and has a waiting list of 100 people. The demand for resources around the issue of mental health became so prominent that The GREEN Program has decided to host more trainings for the community. She has pushed industry HR professionals to think critically about how companies are supporting employees in this capacity. She says that businesses need to address mental health, and all her employees and global team will be certified in Mental Health First Aid by April 2018. She’s hoping they her team and students can learn mindfulness practices, increase the prioritization of mental health, and encourage healthier work environments and campuses. “They are the leaders who will change the world, so we have to take care of them,” Melissa says of her students.
Lastly, as The GREEN Program is growing this year, Melissa is hiring and strives is to increase employee representation from diverse communities.
The GREEN Program is Best for PHL.

The Best for PHL Challenge encourages, supports, and recognizes companies in the Philadelphia region that commit themselves to creating positive impact. Best for PHL assists these businesses as they identify how they may be able to help address regional, social, and/or environmental problems. Best for PHL is an ImpactPHL initiative; SBN is a lead partner.

Take the challenge today!

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For the past six years, Habitat for Humanity has invited designers to take part in their Upcycle Challenge. To promote sustainable design practices, the possibilities in reusing second-hand materials, and Habitat’s work to support communities in need, the Upcycle Challenge welcomes designers to imagine how to transform something old into something new and useful.

Each participant is limited to a $50 budget to be used at Restore, Habitat’s second-hand retail store that supports the organization’s work of building, weatherizing, and repairing homes.

Sean Lewis, Owner of Airy Kitchen, a “design driven firm that helps home owners create spaces that they will love,” and his team selected a used window and revamped it into an outdoor grill cart that would be the envy of any sunny day cookout.

Because the window was aluminum, Lewis knew that it could withstand higher temperatures and as fate had it he found a discarded charcoal grill on the curb one day when he was driving home.

This challenge does not just call attention to Habitat’s work but also the potential for designers to consider the possibilities of upcycling in building and design.

For Lewis, not only does upcycling pose the opportunity for him to be more sustainable, but he has also found that second-hand materials and vintage finds can create the kind of character that a lot of homeowners are looking for.

But upcycling has its challenges. Lewis said that it is possible to find a lot of materials second-hand, but to increase the amount of upcycled materials in a project, the homeowner needs to remain flexible — regarding the project’s concept, timeline, and budget.

When the opportunity presents itself, Lewis and his team enjoy the challenge of incorporating upcycling into their designs. He also welcomes DIY-ers to see upcycling, and the wealth of resources at stores like Restore, as a challenge to finish those home projects that haven’t moved from the do-it list.

To learn more about SBN Member Airy Kitchens, click here.

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Interview with Rebecca Goldschmidt, Owner

Written by Lexus Woznicki

It’s about 32 degrees on an early January morning, and you and a friend hustle into a local tea shop for some much-needed hot sips. It turns out you are not the only ones with this wise idea, and you discover there is hardly any more seating space available. A table for 4 opens up and you jump to grab a seat alongside another patron and guest and sit down together.

While this may seem unheard of, it is just what may happen on busy days at The Random Tea Room in Philadelphia. Not only does the business draw in an array of customers as eclectic as their tea varieties, but they maintain a unique ability to create a space of inclusion and a feeling of community once thought to be solely reserved for small towns.

The business has been successful through this culture of inclusion, beginning with their staff and continuing on to their diverse product offerings of teas, jewelry, and art, to their incorporation of several other local businesses from vegan and gluten free bakeries to massage therapists. They also promote an inclusive space for local and international artists and musicians to share their work by hosting concerts, poetry performances, and book readings.

It’s hard to sum up all that The Random Tea Room (RTR) has become throughout their decade of being in business, simply because they seem to do it all. It is no surprise that people are willing to squeeze in to any seat available. We sat down with owner Rebecca Goldschmidt to learn how this conglomeration of art, massage, food, people, music, and of course, tea, came to fruition and how they manage to facilitate their unique culture of connection and community.

What gets you out of bed in the morning?

For the first ten years of business I’ve been driven by my community, providing them with a healthy boost to get through their day and also giving them a chance to pause. More often than not, they shared back some bit of knowledge, offered some form of help to keep me going, or just had the perfect blend of appreciation for what the Tea Room provides. As a new Mom, I now wake up (several times a night) knowing that I can share the Tea Room with my daughter. The effect she has had on my life has helped to transform RTR into a new kind of butterfly.

Please share a victory story — what is a recent challenge that you have overcome, and how did you do it?

Having a baby and dividing my attention away from RTR was a major challenge. I’ve never had a manager before and had previously taken care of most duties myself. Delegating was a real challenge for me, it is something that I have been slowly improving on over the years, because well, I can’t do everything all the time! Luck was on my side because I had a long-time customer, Corinne, who had shared her stories of life, work and joy with me. I had the feeling that we could help each other out in more ways than one and I was right. I couldn’t have asked for a better collaborator and am grateful that I had been challenged enough to trust someone else to take care of my first baby, the Tea Room.

What’s your personal networking strategy and what role does your community play in the success of your business?

When I had more time, I would volunteer or participate in different organizations like the Philadelphia Ship Preservation Guild or Philly Socialists. Coming from a background in art has been very helpful with networking as well. I personally believe there is an art to most things that we do in life and am in awe of those that refine and master their skills. I have organized art festivals on the Tall Ship Gazela, helped sow the community garden with the Philly Socialists and promoted the art and heart of others in our rotating Tea Room art gallery, which in turn brings the love back many fold. The members of these communities continue to interact with RTR and are like family.

An excellent example of this is my friendship with Koofreh Umoren. We met on the Tall Ship Gazela on a sail to Red Hook, Brooklyn. I was volunteering and he was playing trumpet with the cabaret that was performing on deck. It wasn’t until a sailing trip one year later that our friendship solidified during an exploration of the Brooklyn botanical garden while we were docked in TriBeCa. In addition to his musical talents, he is also a talented photographer and videographer, which meant that he brought his camera and lots of pictures were had. Since then, he has been a roommate, collaborator, and creative director of The Random Tea Sessions, music video sessions taped in the tea room when we are closed.

Can you walk us through one of your triple bottom line practices and the impact it has had on your business?

Sometimes even the smallest of decisions create an energy for change. I try to instill the idea of low waste and minimal excess at as many levels of my business as possible. I try to do as much work in house as I can; printing menus, business cards and hand drawn signs encourage my staff to be creative and keeps our footprint as small as possible. Reuse is also very important, we recycle many of our containers for useful storage instead of buying new bottles and boxes. We’re also promoting a new bottle deposit initiative for our bulk chai gallon— when customers return the bottle they receive a free chai on the house. We also offer a tin reuse discount for our loose teas, providing our customers a bonus for being conscious.

At RTR, reuse and recycling is a multi-layered practice and we are happy to communicate its importance to our customers so they can then bring it into their homes and community.

Can you tell us about your ideal day off in Greater Philadelphia, and where you would spend it?

Pre-baby I always had Monday off, and it was the perfect day to buzz around the city on my bike. I loved hitting up the Reading Terminal Market. I had a rule of only getting as much as I could fit in my pack, which made purchases very thoughtful. Later in the day I would ride to Emerald Street Urban Farm where a community of locals lovingly grow produce with the help of their neighbors and share with volunteers. I would usually have a plume of greens overflowing out of my pack. I would then ride home with my bounty and make a massive amount of food, to eat for the week or just share with friends.

We know that it’s not always easy to brag about yourself — what is one thing that most people do not know about your business that you would like them to know?

The Random Tea Room is a tea room like no other. This is not a lace doily, white glove, pinkies out, cucumber sandwich with the crust cut off tea room!

RTR is an eclectic one-of-a-kind space that features an international spectrum of tea and herbs. Our unique style and diverse menu combine to create a cozy home for delectable tea and community.

In addition to tasty beverages, we also offer live entertainment in the form of concerts, poetry, puppet shows and book readings. We do pretty low key, experimental sets and have had some truly amazing performances. We also offer healing beyond the cup with a wellness space behind the store — we have a variety of practitioners with talents that range from acupuncture to Lomi Lomi Hawaiian massage.

RTR does not actively pursue mainstream marketing and relies on word-of-mouth promotion from our community of customers. We are grateful for our customers that find us and that they pass the word on. We were recently “found” by FYI on channel 6ABC Philadelphia and the Tea Room was featured in a short news story about the health benefits of Kava Kava. Also, earlier this year CNN listed the Random Tea Room as one of the 11 best teahouses in the world!

Fostering community and conversation is also important to us and we encourage people to talk to us and to each other when they are enjoying their time at the Tea Room. I can remember a Sunday evening that four strangers were “forced” to sit with each other due to how busy we were and they started a game of cards and spoke with each other for hours. They exchanged information and met again on another evening. I enjoy that new friendships are formed and good energies are shared here. I believe our inclusive energy brings the most amazing people to us to share and grow. Many thanks to them for coming and being a part of this space and for taking a small piece of it to share with others when they leave.

Visit http://therandomtearoom.com/ to learn more about the Random Tea Room.

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