Last week, the Oberlin Business Partnership put on Oberlin Restaurant Week, a series of promotions involving increased marketing and food and drinks specials to encourage community members to visit local restaurants. The event coincides with both ups and downs for the Oberlin small business community, as the return of warm weather encourages people to spend time out and about in the community, but economic uncertainty hangs overhead.
Abbie Fox, OBP’s executive director, organized the event to promote small businesses in the tense economic climate and advocate for the benefits of eating locally.
“[I was] trying to create a sense of urgency to support these local establishments during the hardships in the economy, hoping people will understand the importance of understanding their local businesses and eating local,” Fox said. “Things are fresher when you eat local, you’re supporting your local economy and town and community, rather than going outside [the town] or eating at a chain restaurant or a fast food restaurant.”
The event was timed to coincide with the beginning of All Roads Lead to Oberlin admitted student events, which Fox said can bring more than 600 visitors to Oberlin per weekend.
The event also nearly coincided with the April 20 opening of Haven Brewing, a new nano brewpub in Oberlin’s downtown. Despite disruptions including a broken ice maker and malfunctioning walk-in fridge in the first days of operation, owner Sam Foster reported that the business adapted and continued.
“Running a business has been an exercise in dealing with the unexpected, and adaptation and improvisation is critical,” Foster said in a written statement to the Review.
Jessa New, OC ’01, who owns Slow Train Cafe and The Local, agreed that resilience — in the face of hardships from day-to-day infrastructure challenges within the business to disruptions in the international economy — is key to being a small business owner in Oberlin.
“A lot of us [small business owners in Oberlin] are scared of the unknowns,” New said. “But I think there is this wonderful reliance we all have on each other for emotional support, … and we’ve all learned to lean on each other.”
Fox said that, based on interactions with the community, the first Oberlin Restaurant Week successfully drove current community members and visitors in from out of town for All Roads events to Oberlin restaurants. She hopes that OBP will hold a similar event next year that yields greater participation.
“I do believe that you have to start somewhere, and starting an event like this and putting time into the marketing and communication with restaurants is difficult, but it’s well worth it in the end,” Fox said. “The next year could be bigger and better, and the third year will be even better, so you have to have a starting point.”
Haven Brewing hopes to hold a grand opening in the next month or so and encourages everyone in the community to visit even before then. Additionally, Slow Train Cafe will celebrate its 15th birthday this May, also continuing to flourish in the community. New plans include re-expanding into evening hours and considering returning to the pre-COVID-19 tradition of staying open almost to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Despite national disquiet and a shared anxiety about the future of the economy, the main tactic of the Oberlin business community, it seems, is hope.
