The Only in Seattle newsletter is designed to share resources and information with leaders in Seattle’s neighborhood business districts.
In this edition:
The Chubu Centrair International Airport outside Nagoya, Japan opened a new terminal, themed after Seattle and complete with Seattle-owned businesses and products.
“The opening of the Seattle ‘Flight of Dreams’ exhibit brings Seattle businesses overseas to millions of travelers, offering them a taste of Seattle’s best,” said Mayor Jenny A. Durkan. “Some of our most innovative small businesses in Seattle are being celebrated and recognized for their ingenuity. With this project, we are deepening our important cross-cultural connections, promoting tourism, and business development on both sides of the Pacific.”
The “Flight of Dream Project” includes a food and shopping section, called the Seattle Terrace. The first 787 test aircraft, was installed as a gift from Boeing. 30 percent of the Dreamliner’s airframe is built in the region. 16 Seattle-based businesses are featured, including:
The Seattle Mariners are also prominently celebrated in the terrace.
Seattle’s Office of Economic Development worked closely with local entrepreneurs and business owners, in partnership with Japanese developers, to help source companies who were interested in expanding their business to Japan. For many of the businesses, this is their first expansion into Japan.
Deputy Mayor Shefali Ranganathan was on hand for the grand opening.
“Seattle is proud and excited for the companies expanding their reach in Nagoya, Japan,” Joe Mirabella, Communications Director for the Office of Economic Development said. “Not only are they expanding their own opportunities, but like so many Seattle companies, they are serving as an example for our region’s values and opportunities.”
Owners James and Subin Chang.
There seems to be a Seattle-area food truck for just about every type of food you can think of. We owe our local, delicious, convenient, international variety of street food options to creative and resourceful small business owners like James Chang, owner of Seoul Bowl.
Seoul Bowl’s menu takes Korean food staples and puts them in choose-your-own bowl form. Customers choose their protein option—bulgogi, spicy pork, chicken or fried tofu—and add toppings like kimchi and pickled radish. Their menu also includes mandoo (potstickers), bulgogi sandwiches, and bulgogi kimchi fries.
With Seoul Bowl, James is bringing his favorite flavors from Korea to Seattle. “After graduating college, I lived in Korea for about five years traveling and eating all kinds of foods,” he says. “A lot of times I was always asking myself why there wasn’t this kind of food in Seattle. When I moved back to Seattle with my wife, we decided to start a food truck in hopes to share more flavors and foods from what we had in Korea.” James and his wife, Subin, came up with their menu together, based on their favorite meats and sauces from Korea.
Having worked at a food truck in New York previously, opening a truck was a natural choice for James. “I really enjoyed the food truck culture and atmosphere. I think because the food truck can go anywhere and serve food, it makes it always a new adventure.”
While James enjoys the freedom of running his business out of his truck, any food truck operator will tell you it’s not easy. James worked with the Office of Economic Development’s Restaurant Advocate, Jennifer Tam, to navigate requirements and get his business up and running. “She has helped me basically from the start of my business until now,” he says.
James and Subin are continuing to work with Jennifer as they pursue their future vision for Seoul Bowl. “We’re growing and looking to expand into a brick and mortar [location], and Jennifer has always been extremely helpful,” he says. “In the next five years I hope that Seoul Bowl will be in many brick-and-mortars, as we want to continue to grow and share our flavors from Korea.”
Seattle foodies can look forward to future brick-and-mortar Seoul Bowl locations—for now, the truck can be found year-round at various locations and events around Seattle, Bellevue and more. “We are currently in the process of getting some permanent spots in the Seattle area, which we’ll be at for lunch,” James adds.
Food truck locations are competitive and can be difficult to obtain. James’ success in getting locations that work for his business is just one aspect of the hard work mobile food vendors put into creating a successful business. Organizations like the Washington State Food Truck Association, Seattlefoodtruck.com, and the Seattle Department of Transportation are just a few of the ways mobile food vendors hustle to obtain locations on private property and in the public right-of-way.
Subin preparing an order.
Seoul Bowl posts their locations for the week each Sunday on Instagram and Facebook, so follow them to see where they’re at next. If you don’t know what to order on your first visit, try James and Subin’s go-to order: the bulgogi bowl with all the toppings and yum yum sauce. “My wife will always ask me to bring her a bowl so that she could eat it at home or for lunch.”
Got an idea for your own food truck? You can find resources for opening a food business on our Restaurant Success page, and get in touch with us to learn more about our services for small businesses.
EnviroStars, Washington’s green business program, has helped more than 150 businesses of all sizes and types improve their sustainability during the program’s first year. 57 Seattle-based businesses are participating so far.
The program connects businesses with local environmental assistance, resources and utility rebates. Businesses earn EnviroStars recognition by taking steps to green their facilities and operational practices such as replacing inefficient lighting with LEDs, composting food scraps and switching to safer cleaning products.
“Seattle’s small businesses continue to innovate while creating a more sustainable future. Our businesses of all sizes are leading the way to create a cleaner city and reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” said Mayor Jenny Durkan. “It will take all of us—consumers, businesses, and government leaders—working together to realize our vision of a sustainable, equitable, and robust economy that will thrive for generations to come.”
EnviroStars helps businesses implement best practices that save energy and water, generate less waste and pollution, and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions – choices that are both good for business and good for Washington’s environment.
The City of Seattle has helped 57 businesses improve their environmental practices and gain recognition through EnviroStars, including Hellbent Brewing Co. in Lake City.
Envirostars-recognized Hellbent Brewing Co. in Seattle.
“We’re pleased we joined Envirostars because our owners, staff, and customers all highly value a clean, sustainable way of living,” said Jack Guinn, Co-Owner of Hellbent Brewing. “Brewing is a fairly resource-intensive business, so it’s been great having professional help minimizing our environmental footprint. Envirostars patiently evaluated our water usage and waste disposal practices and showed us areas we could improve—saving us money and giving everybody peace of mind.”
This year, Hellbent Brewing Co. installed a solar energy system on its roof with the help of Seattle-based Sphere Solar Energy and found other resource-saving measures through Envirostars, with guidance from the Office of Economic Development. Hellbent Brewing now boasts the largest solar energy system on a brewery in Washington, generating about 30 percent of its own energy. Thanks to an incentive program from Seattle Public Utilities, Hellbent Brewing is also installing a new clean-in-place brewing system, which will reduce their yearly water bill by $3,000.
Consumers can visit EnviroStars.org to find businesses of all types that share their environmental values, whether they’re looking for a brewery, auto body shop, insurance agency—or, even an international treasure hunting game, in the case of Envirostars-recognized Geocaching HQ.
“EnviroStars has inspired us as a company to up-level our environmental efforts, building upon what we were already doing. Since enrollment, we’ve started an internal Green Team and made effective changes to our facilities and operations. What we’re most excited about is the two tree planting events we’re hosting in the fall to help offset our carbon footprint from employee travel,” said Maria McDonald, Facilities and Operations Manager at Geocaching HQ.
For some Envirostars members, such as the Woodland Park Zoo, conservation is part of their core mission. “Envirostars helps the zoo manage the impact of our daily operations, showcase our sustainability efforts to a broader audience and connect to like-minded companies and organizations,” said Zosia Brown, Resource Conservation and Sustainability Supervisor at Woodland Park Zoo. “Sustainability is core to our new strategic mission, to save wildlife and inspire everyone to make conservation a priority in their lives. We know that we can achieve much more by collaborating with community partners, and so are thrilled to be a founding member of this program and to see it continue to expand.”
Well-known Washington staples such as Chateau Ste. Michelle winery, Tom Douglas restaurants, and Fremont Brewing have joined EnviroStars, along with many more small businesses like Villa Jerada, a Seattle business specializing in Moroccan and Levantinian artisanal products, and Aaron’s Bicycle Repair in White Center.
“We always wanted to do more to be eco-friendly and reduce waste in all its forms as much as we could,” said Mehdi Boujrada, owner of Villa Jerada. “We reuse all of our raw material packaging to transport finished products to customers, and we even use the plastic packaging bags to line our trash cans. We look forward to working with Envirostars on our next goals: switching to eco-friendly packaging for our spices, and creating a campaign to market the change to our customers.”
“I started working with EnviroStars over at my old shop on Vashon Island in the mid-90s and I’ve been a member ever since. There was a voucher through King County and a rebate through Seattle City Light. I was able to upgrade all the lights in my bike shop to LEDs, which use one-third less energy, and it is quite a bit brighter. The project cost me a total of $33,” said Aaron Goss, owner of Aaron’s Bicycle Repair.
The City of Seattle supports EnviroStars as part of a coalition of 21 Washington cities, counties, utilities, and local public health jurisdictions reaching from Whatcom County to Pierce County.
To find green businesses near you or get environmental assistance for your business, visit EnviroStars.org, and learn more about the program with this video.
Armoire CEO Ambika Singh.
Armoire is a Seattle-based startup that wants to change the way people—for the moment, mostly women—approach their wardrobes.
Armoire members complete a style profile including questions about size and style preferences. The app then presents a “closet” of items for the member to choose from based on an algorithm and assistance from professional stylists. The chosen items are then shipped to the member’s home. Members wear the pieces for as long as they want, and swap items when they’re ready for something new.
On the business end, Armoire is a team of a little over 22 people—also mostly women—operating out of The Riveter coworking space in Capitol Hill. Armoire’s Founder, Owner and Chief BossLady Ambika Singh sat down with us to talk about her experience building a brand that caters to all women.
Tell us about your background and career leading up to Armoire.
I’m from Seattle, I grew up on the Eastside. I went to college in New Hampshire, pretty much as far away from Seattle as you can get. I really missed it here, so I came back as an intern at Microsoft, twice, which was really different from what I was studying. At the time I was a history major with a concentration in Asian studies. I wrote my thesis about microfinance in India, so landing at Microsoft was not a straight line.
My first startup experience was less than the big success it was expected to be. We went from about 17 people a year in, and then the company laid off 14 of the 17, in my perception, overnight. It was really blindsiding for me.
Ambika and one of her co-founders, Brittany Seabaugh.
Looking back, it was professionally the most devastating thing that had happened to me. The first day was bad, the second day was better, and by three weeks later, I started to pick myself up and walk away. I learned even in the worst case, the worst case is okay. I realized this would not break me, and there would be another thing.
My next startup experience, I actually ended up with Rover. Rover was very cool, because I saw the other side. Which is very addicting. When it works, it’s awesome. We built a team, and it took on a soul of its own very quickly. I was itchy to have more ownership over what we were doing. [Read more…]
The Office of Economic Development’s Only in Seattle Initiative strives to build an equitable and vibrant city by fostering neighborhood business districts that are centers of local commerce, community, and culture. With seed funding and expertise, the Initiative supports local businesses, building owners, and residents to unite around a common vision for their district and work together to achieve it. From business coaching, community festivals, and litter cleanup, to murals, outreach and real estate development, Seattle’s business districts have used Only in Seattle to tackle tough issues, attract new investment and care for their communities. Learn more about the Only in Seattle Initiative.
The Only in Seattle Initiative is a partnership between OED, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT), and the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods (DON). Approximately $1,400,000 is available (contingent upon federal and City funding allocations) for district grants and services that accomplish goals in the five strategy areas:
PUBLIC INFORMATION SESSION
Wednesday, 9/26 at 3:30 pm at the Beacon Hill Library (5813, 2821 Beacon Ave S, Seattle, WA 98144)
Attend the upcoming public information session hosted by the Only in Seattle team to learn more about the 2019 RFA. In addition, your fellow business district managers will share past examples of successful grant applications and projects. OIS staff will be on hand to present a general overview of the program and details about this year’s application, as well as answer any questions. The event will be held at the Beacon Hill Library at 3:30 pm.
APPLICATION TIMELINE
STAFF SUPPORT AND OFFICE HOURS
Only in Seattle Initiative application support is available. Contact OIS staff for questions, and one-on-one appointments in your community. Please contact us as far in advance of the application deadline as possible.
OIS staff can provide support in any of the following areas of the application:
OIS staff cannot write or submit your application.
Theresa, Heidi, Mikel, Phillip, and Ken will have office hours dedicated to working with you on any questions or concerns you might have. Please reach out to schedule an appointment.
Applications are due on Monday, October 29, 2018 at 5:00 p.m. PST via the online grant system. Late applications and paper copies will not be accepted.
Program participants received backpacks and a standing ovation at the end of the celebration.
A new public-private partnership is helping address our region’s growing need for medical assistants, while at the same time connecting low-income community members, people of color, and first-generation college students with living-wage careers.
On September 7, representatives from the City of Seattle, Seattle Colleges and Kaiser Permanente gathered with students at the Pacific Tower to celebrate the first year of the Kaiser Permanente Medical Assistant Career Launch Scholarship program. The program provides comprehensive, wrap-around scholarships for 18 students to attend the Seattle Colleges’ Vocational Institute Medical Assisting certificate program. The Seattle Office of Economic Development supports this partnership through its investment in the Seattle Colleges Center for Working Adults, which manages the partnership and coordinates program success.
Mayor Durkan addressing the students and their families.
“We know providing true economic opportunity in Seattle starts with providing great jobs,” said Mayor Jenny Durkan. “Investing in high-demand job training allows students to remain in the City we love while building a strong economy for our local businesses. Access to good, family-wage jobs like medical assistants is how we empower our young people, families and communities.”
“This initiative is a true cross-sector collaboration, with each organization bringing their unique expertise to bear to create a win-win-win for employers, community members, and the city at large,” said Kristin Economo, Director of the Center for Working Adults. “Kaiser Permanente knows healthcare, Seattle Colleges understands student success, and the City has provided public sector leadership. Together we are able to address challenges and create impact that no organization could achieve on their own.”
“Nothing is more critical to providing great health care than great health care workers. By teaming up with the Seattle Colleges to support these Medical Assistant students, we’re investing in the future of excellent care in our region,” said Susan Mullaney, President of Kaiser Permanente Washington.
A video shown at the celebration emphasized the very real impact that the scholarship is making for its 18 recipients. “To me, this scholarship is everything,” said one of the students. “I’m a mom, a single mom at that, and balancing school and a newborn is a lot. And just having Kaiser there to push me and have a great future and start an amazing career, I think is really great.”
Medical assisting is one of the fastest-growing occupations both nationally and locally. According to Emsi data, the demand for medical assistants is projected to grow 23 percent by 2022 in King County. Job training partnerships between employers and educational institutions have been shown to benefit students, educators, and employers, and help ensure that employers are able to find skilled workers to fill in-demand positions.
Guests and students mingling.
Medical assistants perform important services such immunizations and blood draws, and investing in their training is beneficial for the entire community. A recent study from Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) found evidence that investing in additional training for medical assistants and expanding their role in a patient’s healthcare can improve outcomes for the chronically ill.
Students, ranging in age from 18 to over 45, took pre-requisite courses this summer in preparation for beginning the medical assistant program this fall. The program includes professional development from Kaiser Permanente medical assistants, tutoring, one-on-one support from a Navigator from the Seattle Colleges’ Center for Working Adults, and wrap-around support in partnership with the Seattle Jobs Initiative and multiple community-based organizations.
The Kaiser Permanente Scholarship eliminates the financial barrier that may have otherwise prevented its students accessing the training they need to pursue this high-demand, living-wage career. Students will take part in a hands-on externship in a clinic during their final quarter, in partnership with a variety of healthcare employers. In addition to professional development, students will participate in team building, mindfulness workshops, and financial coaching, further supporting them for long-term success.
On April 6, 2018, the Trump administration rolled out a new “zero tolerance policy” mandating that all individuals who illegally enter the United States must be prosecuted. Although calling for prosecution of undocumented border crossings is not new, the administration’s inhumane practice of forced family separation represents an extreme shift in this country’s treatment of immigrants, who are often fleeing to the United States to seek refuge. America’s economy has long been built by immigrants, and those coming from the Mexican border have a hand in shaping every industry Washington proudly boasts, from aerospace to tech to entrepreneurship to the state’s multi-billion-dollar agriculture industry, which flows through Seattle’s ports daily.
Contrary to a commonly-perpetuated myth, immigrants do not negatively impact the economy that is taking them in. In fact, Washington immigrants alone contributed $815 million to Medicare and $3 billion to Social Security in 2014. Those who arrive in America are here to work. Mexican immigrants show a higher labor force participation rate (69%) than the native-born population (62%). Immigrants play an important role throughout our entire economy— immigrants make up 18 percent of all entrepreneurs in Washington State. However, this article will focus on the impact of migrant workers on our state-wide agricultural industry.
The United States relies on people immigrating from Mexico in every sector of the economy, particularly in our state’s agricultural sector. 40.4% of all workers in the agricultural, farming, fishing, and forestry industries are immigrants.
For workers, an average day in Washington’s many orchards and farms can start as early as 5 A.M., with the most common minimum yield of three to four bins of apples (four bins for Red Delicious, three bins for every other apple variety), 420 pounds of cherries, 152 pounds of blueberries, or four bins of pears per day, depending on which fruit is in season. Washington’s international agricultural industry is dependent on securing a solid group of workers each agricultural season to pick, process, pack, and manage the produce that reaches global markets.
However, the population of Mexican-born immigrants in the U.S. has been steadily decreasing since the peak population of 12.8 million in 2007. From 2009 to 2014, U.S. citizen labor has failed to maintain the workforce needed to keep farms at their highest profitable margins. Benton City, Wash. grower Shawn Gay lost one third of his Gala apples three years ago when the lack of labor meant his farm just simply ran out of time to complete the harvest. Auburn, Wash. farmer Rosella Mosby saw $100,000 of profit rot away due to a loss of more than 20% of their workforce. Like Gay and Mosby, many farmers are seeing that native U.S. born workers are not able to make up for the labor gap caused by a declining foreign-born workforce. Fruit goes unpicked which means farms are losing out on precious profits and putting their livelihoods, as well as Washington’s export economy at risk.
It is no wonder that fewer Mexican-born immigrants are coming to fill Washington jobs, with agricultural worker conditions becoming harsher. According to The Economist, “while immigration between 1990 and 2006 had little effect on wages of native-born Americans, it lowered the wages of previous immigrants by 6.7%.” Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) regularly raids and audits farms, and the effect is obvious to local farm owners. “There is a lot more concern and worry,” Hedlin Family farm owner Dave Hedlin said in a 2017 interview with Go Skagit. “Even if you have a green card, you worry. Everybody has got to know people who aren’t legal.”
We have too much to lose with a disappearing immigrant population. Washington State is the second largest food distributor in the U.S., which means that the ripple effects of a lesser supply of exports affects the entire world. Our state’s economy is built on the backs, hands, and feet of each migrant worker, who are constantly enduring the fear and worry that the administration has instilled. ICE raids and detention centers are terrorizing and destroying the immigrant communities that have, for years, done the heavy lifting to build this country. We need to be working to protect and build the migrant community, not tearing them down.
Learn more about OED’s work to support Latinx and all small business owners in Seattle here, and understand resources available to immigrants of any background through the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs, such as the free Legal Defense Network, free naturalization services and workshops, English as a Second Language job-readiness skills, and more.
Business owner Jose Perez and his family members taking a break from work for a photo.
Seattleites—especially Seattleites who moved here from Mexico or California—will often tell you how hard it is to find good Mexican food in the city, but you have to know where to look. Villa Escondida in Belltown, called “among city’s best Mexican” by the Seattle Times, is one of the only Mexican-owned Mexican restaurants in the downtown area.
Villa Escondida is family-owned and family-run. Owner Jose Perez first opened the restaurant on Capitol Hill with help from his cousin in 2014, before moving to the Belltown location three years ago. Family members including Jose’s wife and mother make up most of the staff at the restaurant, where pretty much everything on the menu is fresh and house-made.
A poster made by Jose’s nephew for a school project hangs in the restaurant.
Jose was born in Oaxaca, Mexico, and moved here with his family in 1998, “just like a lot of people, looking for a better life.” He started what would become his career at the age of 16 and worked different jobs in the food industry. “At some point I got tired of it. Just wanted to do something different,” he says of his decision to open his own restaurant. “We know how to cook. We love doing it, for sure. My mom always taught us how to do it. So it’s just, why not do it ourselves? Instead of working for somebody else, we could work for us.”
The new Belltown location is a perfect spot for the restaurant—spacious, with a great street front patio—but the building came with its share of problems. Jose has had to deal with ceiling leaks and other issues, which are inconvenient for any tenant, and especially destructive for a small business.
Frustrated with constant problems, Jose was connected with the Office of Economic Development’s Lease Education Program. The program helps small business owners understand the terms of their commercial lease as well as their rights as a tenant. In Jose’s case, he also benefited from receiving these services in his first language of Spanish.
Jose sees Villa Escondida as a place where everyone can feel welcome, and where people can come to celebrate Oaxacan community and culture. It’s also important to him to support his community by providing steady paychecks: “We keep growing as a business, and we keep providing opportunity for people who need a job.”
Running the restaurant takes a toll on Jose, especially because his long hours at Villa Escondida mean that his three kids are often asleep both when he gets up for work and when he returns home at night. “I just keep telling them, the purpose of doing this is you guys. I want you guys to have a better life…That’s what makes me keep going.”
You can find Villa Escondida, and meet Jose and his family, at 2203 1st Ave in Belltown. Follow them on Facebook to keep up with their happy hour deals and brunch specials too.
Learn more about lease education and our other services for small businesses on our website, or reach out to us at oed@seattle.gov.
The Only in Seattle team would like to thank the business district managers, City colleagues, BIA representatives, business owners, and all attendees that joined the summertime lunch social at Tai Tung on Wednesday, 8/29. Over 45 attendees from all throughout Seattle attended to connect, listen to Special Events Chair Chris Swenson speak about upcoming engagement opportunities regarding the special events cost recovery model, and eat delicious food from Tai Tung; those egg rolls were delicious! A very special thank you to third generation business owner, Harry Chan and his family for hosting us and providing the food. Don’t forget to think about them for your next event, or dinner outing, and compliment them on their new sign, courtesy of SCIDPDA, and OED.
Only in Seattle Request for Applications: The Only in Seattle team announced the upcoming 2019 Request for Applications (RFA) release date of mid-September (check our website for updates). The OIS team is hoping to give applicants at least six weeks to complete the application and consult with staff for questions and support. The RFA will be due on Monday, October 29 and will include a draft code of conduct for inclusion in 2019 awardee contracts. We are asking for feedback on the OIS RFA process and the code of conduct (attached). Take the survey today!
Special Events Chair Announcement: In Chris Swenson’s brief presentation, he mentioned resources, including the Special Events Permit Fees, Process and Policy Feedback handout, and the October 25th seminar, “Learn How You Can Take Your Event To The Next Level And Be A Part Of The Vision Of The Changing Landscape of Special Events,” produced by the Washington Festival and Events Association. Chris will also be reaching out to those that indicated they are interested in engaging with the Special Events committee directly to provide input to the City’s special event fee structure and process. You can also follow up with Chris directly at chris.swenson@seattle.gov. Thanks again, Chris for your thorough presentation!
We look forward to seeing you at the next peer networking event in September. Sign up for the OIS eNewsletter and read the Bottom Line blog for the latest on the next Peer Networking events, RFA information and more.
Thank you again to all the participants and check out photos from the event below (credit Wynn Barnard).
