Deluxe’s Small Business Revolution airs bonus episode ‘Back to Bristol’
By Samantha Bambino
The Times
It seems like that beautiful, sunny afternoon was only yesterday. The day when the entire Bristol community flocked to the waterfront to bid farewell to its honorary neighbor, Amanda Brinkman. After spending spring and summer 2017 with Deluxe Corporation’s chief brand and communications officer, it was bittersweet to see Brinkman and her team of Small Business Revolution experts leave. But as the smiling locals clambered to snag one last photo with her, they knew this wasn’t the end. The rejuvenation of Bristol Borough was only getting started.
For those who are unfamiliar, Bristol received the majority of 1 million votes cast nationwide and was featured on season two of Small Business Revolution — Main Street, which can be streamed on Hulu and Deluxe’s website. Each week, the series featured one of six businesses selected to be part of a $500,000 SBR revamp. The country followed along as the owners worked with Brinkman and her team to construct new websites and build stronger marketing strategies, all while exposing their trials and triumphs, hopes and fears to the world.
It’s been one year since Bristol Borough was tossed into the spotlight and today, Small Business Revolution viewers have one question — how is the town doing? To answer, Brinkman filmed a special bonus episode called Back to Bristol, which went live on Tuesday, Sept. 18. Despite being a quick 18 minutes, the show provides an in-depth, heartfelt look at how Bristol took SBR’s guidance and sprinted with it.
“All of Bucks County, the country, is looking to Bristol Borough. If you have a strong small business core, then the whole town can benefit,” Brinkman told The Times ahead of the episode’s release. “They already had this great momentum and they were prepared to use something like this as a catalyst.”
Back to Bristol begins with a conversation between Brinkman and Raising the Bar president Bill Pezza, who says Bristol is not just sustaining, it’s thriving. Four years ago, 26 empty storefronts haunted Mill Street. Today, there are only four.
“There’s competition. There wasn’t any competition before. There weren’t any businesses,” he says. “I think we feel a tremendous sense of responsibility to keep it going. We’re constantly thinking about, what can we do that is eye-catching.”
Next, Brinkman checks in with the businesses she and her team spent months working with, overhauling websites and redesigning logos, all with the hope that their success would ripple outward into the community. First up is Roland and Megan Hems, owners of Hems Truck and Auto. The husband-wife duo has been in business for a decade, but was close to closing up shop because of long hours, financial issues and a workspace in desperate need of repair. Back to Bristol shows the Hems exuding confidence and empowerment, something they lacked when viewers were introduced to them last year.
“We’re seeing new faces every day, we’re seeing new cars every day,” says Megan, adding that they hired a third mechanic. “It really has relit my fire. This was better than winning the lottery.”
Marcelous and Ramona Jones, the mother and son who own the early learning center Discover, Learn & Grow, are also reaping the SBR benefits. When Brinkman arrived in 2017, they had only filled six out of the center’s 20 available spots, and the pricing was so low that even a full house wouldn’t have provided a livable wage. Today, not only have they reached maximum capacity, they’re expanding to a second location.
Even Keystone Boxing & MMA Gym owner Jose Tilapa, who was resistant at first to constructive criticism, is doing well. To Brinkman’s relief, Tilapa is all smiles as he talks about his post-SBR success, which came easily after narrowing his focus to youth programming and boxing. Though taking the team’s advice was a challenge, Tilapa admits it paid off.
As for Miguel Velez III, the owner of Miguel’s Riverside Barbershop has arguably defied the most odds. While filming last year, his landlord locked him out of the shop his late father helped him build.
“We never had anything like it happen, and in the space of a few hours, Miguel had to make the decision to move his lifelong dream to a new home,” Brinkman explains.
Still, Velez says his father, who was always open to change, would be proud. The shop currently boasts four full-time barbers and competitive pricing.
Paulette Kirk Kasmer, whose formerly cluttered Polka Dot Parlor received a total redesign to make it more appealing to the eye, admits the “struggle is real” to not fall back on old habits and keep collecting items. But in the past year, business has picked up by 33 percent, and she’s been able to share all she’s learned with neighboring shops.
Last but certainly not least, Brinkman stops by Annabella’s Italian Restaurant, where she sits down with Robert and Alison Angelaccio. When Brinkman first met the couple, Annabella’s dining room and kitchen were in need of renovations, but the lack of customers and funding made this impossible. After a complete website overhaul and months of guidance from the SBR team, business has doubled and the Angelaccios appear to be closer than ever.
“She’s just amazing,” Robert says of his wife, tearing up. “I follow her lead and things work out.”
Brinkman then gathers the tight-knit group of owners for a toast and one final task — they must select a local business to receive $2,500. Nominations were split between Bristol Antiques Market, owned by Karla Sloan, and Penelope Fox Art Studio, owned by Jina Dierolf. In the end, both were given the monetary boost.
“This work is hard. For everyone involved, it means long hours and nights away from home and family. But even more than that, it means rethinking the way things have always been done,” Brinkman says. “When we all get to look back and realize that because of what we did together, we’re leaving this town just a little better than when we found it.” ••
Back to Bristol can be viewed at deluxe.com/small-business-revolution.
Samantha Bambino can be reached at [email protected]
