Blog
The Homegrown Initiative
Emporia Main Street (EMS) is an economic and community development philosophy that operates within the City of Emporia and Lyon County. Using an effective four point approach, adopted from the...
4th Quarter Checkup
It's that magical time of year! Weather starts cooling down, people start thinking about holidays and businesses start promoting themselves to seasonal shoppers. As you enter the 4th Quarter (October,...
Holiday Security Tips for Small Business Owners
The prime holiday push is upon us, and all the extra traffic is great for business. Busy stores produce great sales opportunities, but they are also prime targets for those...
Holiday Security
The prime holiday push is upon us, and all the extra traffic is great for business. Busy stores produce great sales opportunities, but they are also prime targets for those...
The Next Step
Several people ask "when are you moving" on a weekly basis. Rather than a simple "Did you know" question at the bottom of the newsletter, we thought we would take...
Solvency & the Lorax
Occasionally, I'll throw pictures of a little blonde three year old (going on four- going on twenty-six) into the e-newsletter. That little spit-fire is my daughter, Brynn. She is at...
Form Over Function
Economies change quickly, and some of our purpose built structures (gas stations, banks, video stores) have a difficult time withstanding adaptations in consumer fads. Housing is changing, and entire blocks...
Spruce up Tuesday
1. Walk around the envelope of your building. The whole building... Front, back, (if you are on a corner or adjacent to a breezeway) side and look at your building from...
Honoring Our Veterans – Beyond the Banners
Emporia is the Founding City of Veterans Day. Our community holds many activities throughout the year to help support and honor those who have served. In 2014, Emporia Main Street...
Brand Based Businesses
Discussions with new entrepreneurs reflect the overwhelming number of decisions they must make as their business grows. Businesses that have been open a few years have staff that often talk...
Thank you to our Members and Volunteers
Emporia Main Street celebrates the passing of each membership year with our Annual Meeting. The meeting highlights the accomplishments of the past year, sets goals for the following year and...
Summer is Here! What can this mean for your business?
For many of us Summer time brings a sense of a time to relax, kids at home, endless tubes of sunscreen, road trips, crunchy hair from too much pool time,...
Why Your Support Matters
The concept of "joining" means vastly different things to different generations. The Baby Boomer generation had committee upon committee, and social organization upon social organization that created a fairly hierarchical...
Back to School!
The end of summer vacation is in sight, and people are preparing for the start of another school year. Teachers and administrators are working hard preparing facilities and lesson plans....
A New Development Downtown
Emporia Downtown Redevelopment Group, LLC announced a major new addition to downtown Emporia. The Roosevelt Plaza & Lofts & Legacy Lofts, a new mixed use development containing forty-seven residential units...
Summer is Here!
For many of us Summer time brings a sense of a time to relax, kids at home, endless tubes of sunscreen, road trips, crunchy hair from too much pool time,...
The Meaning of Membership
The concept of "joining" means vastly different things to different generations. The Baby Boomer generation had committee upon committee, and social organization upon social organization that created a fairly hierarchical...
Your answer to an important question
Last week, we asked you a question: "what type of city would you like to live in?" To contextualize the question, we gave you four different options that we classified...
What type of city do you want to live in?
ommunicating business and economic strategies to the public is difficult. In a sound bite society known for oversimplifying complex concepts, we need more effective ways to engage the public in...
How to DK
Big events are now a "thing" in Emporia. We have a series of international events that draw thousands of people into the community, but we need your help to keep...
Building a Better Bullpen
Entrepreneurs are people that spot an opportunity and find a way to take advantage of it. They are problem solvers. Entrepreneurs are the "doers" of a community. Beyond the concepts...
A New Process to Honor our Veterans
The Veterans Banner project is easily one of our favorite projects at Emporia Main Street. Approximately 250 veterans have been honored through this process with photos collected, banners produced and...
Planning your Human Resource Assets
Small business owners often start with only one or two employees, and then they grow their businesses. Because of their humble beginnings, some entrepreneurs have a difficult time with human...
