Photo by Mr.TinDC

Homegrown businesses are about to have an official home: a store and cafe in Dupont Circle stocked entirely with items made in D.C.

The straightforwardly named “Shop Made in DC” is opening in October at 1333 19th Street NW. It is a collaboration between the D.C. Department of Small and Local Business Development, the Golden Triangle Business Improvement District, Boston Properties, People Make Place, and Neighborhood Restaurant Group.

People Make Place’s Stacey Price will curate the goods in the shop, while the Neighborhood Restaurant Group will manage the food and drinks and Vigilante Coffee Company (their roastery is actually now located in Hyattsville, though the brand originally launched in the District) will run the coffee program.

“This is the most local of local places,” Price says. “The store is as much as storytelling piece for the city as it is an economic engine for this class of people. I want people that are not from D.C. or are from D.C. but don’t know much about our maker culture, to walk in and see the people and faces behind these goods.”

Price says she’s been dreaming up just such a store for the past five years, but it only really kicked into gear in May when Boston Properties let her know that they had a space available for the next two years just south of Dupont Circle.

The store is a pilot program for the retail wing of the official Made in DC program, which the D.C. Council passed in 2016 as a way to promote and certify local businesses.

“We recognize the importance of supporting our creative economy. Small business are the cornerstone of our economic growth—when homegrown, independent businesses thrive, they generate tax revenue, hire residents and revitalize neighborhoods,” said DSLBD Interim Director Tene Dolphin in a release.

The city is supporting the Shop Made in D.C. with grant funding for the next six months, after which the store’s direction is up in the air.

“Is it in multiple locations? Does it still have the city government involvement? Is it still directly tied to the Made in DC program? All those things are questions,” Price says. “If this works—meaning it has economic impact and it can run sustainable as a business—I don’t see any reason we would be just in the one Dupont Space.”

While local grocers have stocked a wide variety of D.C.-made food products, Price says, the retail side of the store is fulfilling a niche that has fewer outlets. Each month, there will be offerings from between 20 and 25 makers, an eclectic mix of jewelry, furniture, art, clothing, and other goods.

For a company’s merchandise to be featured, they must be certified under the Made in DC program, any goods must be made inside the District, and more than half of the company’s owners must live in D.C. Mallory Shelter, Hollow Works Ceramics, Printed Wild, and District of Clothing are among the artisans set to be included in the shop.

The cafe, meanwhile, will focus on fast-casual local food producers, including offerings from Bullfrog Bagels, Prescription Chicken, and Ice Cream Jubilee, and NRG’s Greg Engert is planning to rotate draft beer from six D.C. breweries with at least one wine from the newly opened District Winery.

Even the store’s soundtrack will feature D.C. bands.

Calling herself a “cheerleader for local businesses,” Price previously served as the director for Think Local First and spent years trying to bring companies on board with featured D.C. makers. But times have changed dramatically, as locals and visitors alike have shown their curiosity and support for D.C.’s independent businesses.

“Sometimes I felt like I was speaking a language that other people didn’t quite understand,” she says. “Now, people and developers come to me, asking ‘how can we do something innovative and interesting and help the local economy?” Everybody is seeing the value.”

Previously:
D.C.’s New Crop Of Boutique Hotels Are Letting Tourists Live Like Locals
Council Unanimously Passes Made In DC Legislation
D.C. Artisans Support Potential ‘Made In D.C.’ Bill
From Coasters to Posters, 11 Brands Repping D.C. Pride
An Introduction on D.C.’s Burgeoning Prepared Foods Scene

This post has been updated with Price’s comments.