Margarita Barry is a Detroit area entrepreneur who is using Fiverr to help make a difference in underserved communities across America during this time of crisis. Detroit is one of the hardest hit U.S. cities during the COVID-19 pandemic, and with bills in the red, small businesses across the city and beyond are in danger of going under.
After being laid off from her day job, Margarita decided to pivot and seize the opportunity to help small business owners in her community and beyond through her impact-driven startup, I Am Mainstreet America.
Her idea, Mainstreet Mondays, is a new platform for discovering, supporting, and rewarding small businesses. The platform partners with brands to create challenges for small businesses and rewards them for sharing their stories and making their communities brighter.
Each winning story is tied to a digital cash mob event, powered by Mainstreet Mob, the startup’s crowd-powered shopping app that rewards people for shopping locally — a useful tool for helping to keep small businesses afloat during this time of self isolation.
To kick off Mainstreet Mondays, Margarita’s partnering with Fiverr on its very first challenge, “Color Your City,” as described below:
Are you a black or brown identifying small business owner? We want to hear how your impacted business has supported your community during the pandemic. How are you coloring your city with kindness?
- First Prize: 24 small businesses owned by black or brown identifying founders will be chosen among submissions to have their stories featured on MainstreetMondays.com and awarded a Mainstreet Mob digital cash mob event.
- With the help of Fiverr, Mainstreet Mondays will use colorful illustrations created by Fiverr Artists to tell their stories and create a visual story map for MainstreetMondays.com.
- Beginning Monday, May 4th visitors can discover a new small business every Monday and support them by participating in a digital Mainstreet Mob!
- Grand Prize: Of those 24, 12 Grand Prize Winners will receive $5000 in additional small business services and tools from I Am Mainstreet America, including their choice of a logo or social media refresh courtesy of Fiverr.
“As all businesses navigate this challenging way of existing, minority-owned small businesses face some of the hardest challenges of all. I Am Mainstreet America is invested in helping these small businesses grow and prosper through this difficult time,” said Margarita Barry, Founder of I Am Mainstreet America.
“We are proud to help small businesses get some much deserved shine and provide new opportunities for reaching their customers during this time of self isolation.”
The Color Your City Challenge is open to U.S.-based for-profit small businesses that have 1-20 employees and had been operating in a brick-and-mortar storefront for six months or more at the time of entry.
To enter, participants must visit www.mainstreetmondays.com/coloryourcity, complete the application and social media prompts, and upload up to five photos of themselves and their businesses. The contest entry period is open now through October 9, 2020. Official rules can be found at www.mainstreetmondays.com/rules
Mainstreet Mondays is actively seeking main street “Champions” to help support their cause: brands, organizations, and municipalities who are interested in championing a challenge. Please visit www.mainstreetmondays.com/champion for more info.
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