Our SFEDA and East Bay EDA partner Main Street Launch, a fellow nonprofit supporting Oakland small businesses, has launched Shop Oakland Now, an online directory of Oakland small businesses. Their goal is to create a customized profile for each small business operating in the City of Oakland.
Shop Oakland Now is free for small business owners. Their team will create content and take photos to help showcase how incredible your business is.
Each business profile includes important information that you might find on a small business’ website, including location, contact information, hours, links to any online presence (website, Facebook, Yelp, Instagram, etc), a description of the business and the types of products or services offered, and photos. By including important keywords and leveraging online best practices, having this additional listing can help your business be more “findable” in an online search. Click here for an example of a full profile with photos taken and a description written by Shop Oakland Now’s staff.
If you operate a business in Oakland, someone from their team may have already come to visit your store. You can see if your business is listed by visiting shopoaklandnow.org. To request an update of your business details or photos or to get your business listed, please email them at updates@mainstreetlaunch.org or call 510.830.3265.
If you’re a customer looking for small businesses to support, Shop Oakland Now makes it easy to discover the incredible businesses operating around the Town. You can browse by category, search for specific things you want to buy, and navigate on a map.
Shop Oakland Now is still a work in progress, and new content is added every week. If your favorite business is not listed, please contact them to share the businesses you love.
Follow along with their work and share your favorite small businesses at @shopoaklandnow on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram or follow the hashtag #FindItInOakland.