Several local small businesses, faced with plummeting sales entering this holiday season due to unforeseen circumstances, have turned to a new method of keeping the doors open – pleas for help from the public.
A growing number of small business owners have recently posted heartfelt pleas on social media about not being able to pay their staff or utility bills, and have asked for support through GoFundMe campaigns or Facebook postings. More and more owners are also pivoting as small businesses must often do, changing what they offer, modifying hours of operation and trying anything they can think of to stay open.
The plight of many small businesses in downtown Springfield can be directly linked to the devastating Adams Street fire on June 19 that closed Cafe Moxo and damaged or displaced several other businesses. The structural stabilization, repair, cleanup and demolition work since then caused the seasonal, twice-weekly Old Capitol Farmers Market to move farther west along Adams Street, greatly reducing foot traffic past businesses that had previously benefited from the market’s proximity. Another blow came when the owner of Café Moxo recently announced his plans to reopen in the Three Twigs & Co. location at Chatham Road and Iles Avenue, rather than in the downtown area.
But the plight is not limited to downtown Springfield. New challenges arise daily, no matter where central Illinois small businesses are located, and it often comes down to grit, pluck, resourcefulness, determination and optimism to survive. And if that means swallowing your pride and asking for help, that’s what some owners are doing.
That’s especially important during this time of year, when holiday season sales can make or break a small business.
“I could sink, or I could build a life raft.”
“Support The Wakery staff during fire closure” was the heading of a GoFundMe campaign initiated by the late-night, non-alcoholic bar and coffeehouse at 5 W. Old Capitol Plaza in downtown Springfield. Shortly thereafter came another GoFundMe effort, “Support The Wakery after break-in.”
“The community support through the GoFundMe campaigns honestly kept us in business, which shows me two things,” said Elizabeth Wake, owner and operator of The Wakery. “One, people do want us in Springfield and they want us to survive. And two, even though we are going through some really hard times, we have been able to make decisions that will keep us going.”
The Wakery opened on April 1, 2023, and had a great first year, Wake said. Then by mid-2024, sales started to trend downward. People weren’t coming in as much and if they bought a drink, they weren’t buying a second one, even though the business kept things fresh and inviting.
Then the Adams Street fire hit. The rear of building in which The Wakery is located abuts the building that was on fire and suffered smoke and water damage. Power was shut off to the whole city block for several days and The Wakery lost most of its refrigerated products, which caused the business to be closed for 10 days.
Wake knew it would take a while for the insurance payout to come, and the Adams Street Fire Fund formed to assist those affected by the fire would also take several weeks before disbursements were made. Meanwhile, Wake had to make payroll immediately and had other bills to pay as well.
Then there was a break-in. The buildings affected by the fire had connected points of entry, so thieves were able to get into the next door building and access The Wakery’s back door. Wake ended up losing about $4,000 in cash. On top of that, reduced foot traffic due to the fire and other factors had caused a 67% decrease in sales at The Wakery.
“If we kept going at that pace with my payroll expenses and the expenses of having the lights on, we would be closed by the end of October if things didn’t turn around and pick up,” Wake said. “I could not live on a prayer and just hope that things would turn around. I knew that in order to stay in business, I needed to take action. So I could sink, or I could build a life raft.”
The public response to the two GoFundMe campaigns, combined with some major adjustments, have kept The Wakery open, albeit on a reduced schedule. The Wakery is now open to the public only during downtown events with foot traffic. The business is also hosting many rental events such as baby and bridal showers and private parties.
“I know those are guaranteed income, and I’ll be able to pay my staff and my other bills,” Wake said. “So I opted that, for the time being, until things start to turn around in all of downtown, that’s the way we will be able to survive. That’s how I will keep my doors open.”
Wake hopes that by next spring or early summer The Wakery may be able to return to its original hours of operation.
“It is a struggle, but I am very hopeful for our future and our survival,” Wake said. “If I could just make a plea to people, especially around the holiday season – if you are planning to spend money, spend it at a local small business because we are struggling really, really hard right now.”
“You don’t get help unless you ask for it, right?”
“Help keep Springfield’s first refill shop open” is the GoFundMe page created for The Keep Store at 312 E. Adams in downtown Springfield, which saw a 50-60% decrease in sales following the Adams Street fire and the farmers market move.
With the funding page’s admonition that “We do not want to close. We do not want to leave downtown,” The Keep Store’s post noted that “we have never crowdfunded or asked for donations, fronting this business using 25 years’ worth of our hard-earned money and savings. However, those funds are now depleted.”
The Keep Store owner-operator Ami Shelton said the GoFundMe effort has helped her to keep the sustainable, eco-friendly refillery business open.
“We had a tremendous response; our goal was met in just a matter of days,” Shelton said. “It’s reassuring that people want our business to be successful and they value the service we provide.”
Shelton said the primary challenge for The Keep Store was having the cash flow available to keep inventory on hand. Without a steady stream of customers, there were fewer products on the shelves for them to purchase when they did come in. After the GoFundMe post, loyal customers responded and also shared the plea with others, which brought new customers into the store.
“I decided to reach out to the community to see if they felt like they wanted to help, because you don’t get help unless you ask for it, right?” Shelton said. “We have a very solid, loyal customer base. It was very heartwarming to know that they wanted us here.”
The Keep Store has reduced its hours of operation slightly but is keeping its Wednesday through Sunday schedule. That allows Shelton, who has been a primary presence at the business, to take an outside job to “have an influx of income to make sure we have funds available to cover business expenses and to purchase new inventory, especially for our best-selling items.”
Shelton remains optimistic that The Keep Store and her fellow downtown Springfield merchants will weather this latest fiscal storm.
“I’m really optimistic. We love our downtown holiday walks; it’s the best time of the year, and we will be open late those evenings,” Shelton said. “Hopefully this will be a season of reinvigorating our downtown and then we will bounce back even stronger. We have amazing business owners downtown who are doing fantastic things.”
“It can be a hard thing to post, to be that vulnerable.”
Ashley Striplin made a Facebook post of herself standing along Sangamon Avenue, holding a sign enticing people to check out her make-it-yourself craft business, Dabble.
“For a couple of months, we had all-time low traffic as far as the last year and a half goes,” Striplin said. “I held a sign on the side of the road and we made a post about what a hard time we were having, and the traffic picked up a bit.”
Dabble moved to its new location at 1704 E. Sangamon Ave. in Springfield almost a year ago as a cost-saving measure and to allow more parking for customers than its previous North Grand Avenue location.
“While we had the public’s attention, we put on a bunch of new events and classes to try to get people in the door to see what we do, not just for classes, but as a walk-in venue,” Striplin said. “That seems to have helped a lot. We’ve also rolled out some specials, and that has helped to bring people through the door.”
Striplin said the public’s response to her Facebook post makes her feel good but it also causes her to feel a little down that she had to get to that low point of putting something like that out on Facebook.
“As a small business owner, you want to put it out there that you’re successful, that people enjoy your business as much as you do, and putting something out there like the Facebook post (I made) negates the message that you’d like to send,” Striplin said.
“It can be a hard thing to post, to be that vulnerable with not just the people who have been inside your establishment and gotten to know you, but also people who are complete strangers.”
Striplin said she encourages people of all ages to check out her business and produce one-of-a-kind, handmade items for holiday gift giving. She is also imploring shoppers to patronize all of the unique, locally owned and operated small businesses in the Springfield area, many of which are struggling right now.
“Shopping small, keeping things local, makes such a huge difference in the lives of the people in your community who have put themselves out there to start a business and to bring new services to your community,” Striplin said. “I definitely encourage people to think locally, think about experiences that they can gift people, as opposed to just materialistic gifts. Think outside of the box when it comes to what you are giving to the people you love the most.”
“This is sort of my call to arms.”
“Making a post like this as a business owner, and even a proud woman who always finds a way, is devastating, embarrassing and one of the hardest things I have ever had to do,” read an Oct. 21 Facebook post made by Jessica Lance, the owner-operator of Bewitching Botanicals in Auburn.
The business is a sustainable boutique with metaphysical and natural self-care products made in-house by Lance, according to its website.
The social media post said that 2024 had been a record low year for Bewitching Botanicals and the pace was unsustainable. The message said that Lance loved being a part of the Auburn community but that “we’re not weathering the storm well.”
“I’m sure there will be haters out there that say mean things about me and this post but at this point, there’s really nothing left to lose,” the post said. “This is sort of my call to arms. This is my plea for help. Support your favorite local businesses. We are all silently and not so silently going through the same struggles.”
Lance was not available for an interview, but an Oct. 23 Facebook post indicated that her earlier plea had reached people who wanted to help.
“Do you ever sit back and think? Damn. I’m really glad I asked for help,” the post read. “The lesson learned here is no one is going to know you need help if you hide the fact that you’re struggling.”
After the initial post asking for support, “I have done more in sales the past two days than we did in all of May, June, July, August and September individually,” the Oct. 23 post read. “I’m sure I sound like a broken record but I cannot begin to thank the 99 of you who have made a purchase this week…99 of you made purchases big and small…99 of you pulled me out of the ‘hole’ this week. What makes me feel good about it is, it was money earned with goods made by our hands.”
Like Shelton, The Keep Store owner, Lance also has another job in order to supplement the income from her business. In February 2024, Bewitching Botanicals became an Amazon Business Hub, providing last-mile transportation for Amazon. In an Oct. 31 social media post, Lance explained that on any given day, 40-125 packages are dropped off at her store, and she provides delivery seven days a week to addresses within a 10-mile radius.
“As much as I never wanted to work for ‘the man,’ this program came to us at a time that was pivotal (as we were) limping along to stay in business. Without it, Bewitching Botanicals would have shut its doors months ago. It allows us, as a small business, to generate income and stay relevant in the community by delivering to our customers and friends,” she said in the post.
“We’re going to do everything we can to stick around”
Using social media to generate business is not a new strategy, but pleading for public help online in times of fiscal struggles is a more recent phenomenon.
“I have heard of it, but have no way of knowing how common it is,” said Rob Karr, president and CEO of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association. “Retailing is very hard under normal circumstances, but these are not normal circumstances. There was the pandemic, followed immediately by inflation, which impacts retailers’ costs as well as sales as their customers trim spending.”
Karr, who is based in Springfield, is well aware of the unique challenges facing local small businesses.
“As it relates to downtown Springfield, the loss of Cafe Moxo is devastating, and the fire was clearly a huge blow to the Adams Street corridor,” Karr said. “The farmers market is not what it was. The downtown is hurting for steady foot traffic. But there are a core of stores, such as Whimsy Tea and others, who are doing all they can to attract shoppers.”
Whimsy Tea owner Gordon Davis has been vocal about the decline in business that’s been seen following the fire. He recently started offering a lunch menu to adapt to the gap left by Café Moxo and to attract more business.
“We were working on adding food, and then the fire happened, and Mark Forinash from Cafe Moxo said, ‘You need to launch food now,'” Davis said. “I talked to my wife and told her what Mark had to say, and she was like OK, we’ll do it Saturday. So the fire was Wednesday and by Saturday we had a full food menu.”
The lunch menu has helped Whimsy Tea, 316 E. Adams, to stay open during an exceptionally challenging year.
“We’ve gotten an incredible amount of positive feedback on the food options,” Davis said. “I think our community has really stepped up to try to support us, and I think it goes across the board for all of our downtown business friends.”
Davis said that the issue for Springfield is that many area residents simply do not know about the unique small businesses that operate downtown.
“We have been here for five and a half years, and we still hear people say they had no idea that Springfield had a tea shop and that they never even cross Veterans Parkway,” Davis said. “There seem to be hurdles that I don’t think would be hurdles in another location.”
Still, despite the fire, the decreased foot traffic and the necessity to constantly pivot in order to stay open, Davis remains cautiously optimistic about the small business climate in Springfield.
“I really feel like we have a community that supports locally owned, independent small businesses,” Davis said. “We’re not going anywhere; we’re going to do everything we can to stick around.”
This article appears in Book Of Lists 2025.