Local
Lessons from an Idea Friendly Gift Shop in a Small Town
One of the chapters in my upcoming workbook is about using crafters as your next set of entrepreneurs. Stephanie from Canada shared her crafter entrepreneurial story with us! You don’t have to go it alone. Fourteen years ago Stephanie and her sister moved to a small town that had lots of summer tourists but no…
Read MoreTurn your crafters into entrepreneurs and a new choice for shopping during the holidays
I’m writing a workbook. About ways to save your small town. Here’s one chapter from the book. Crafters can be your new entrepreneurs You can boost creativity while building community with co-crafting events such as “crafternoons,” hacker or maker days. These are events where crafters/makers/or hackers gather together and do their thing. Sometimes they are…
Read MoreEntrepreneurship in small villages in Portugal – Speaking about small businesses, entrepreneurship and sharing rural stories
In today’s global economy, entrepreneurs are always looking for new opportunities to innovate and create value. Small towns and villages are often overlooked and also can be a rich source of local knowledge and expertise. However, engaging with these communities can be challenging for people outside them, especially in areas with low population density and…
Read MoreTwo Ways to Make Your Town More Attractive: Celebrating the Good and Welcoming Newcomers
Talk about the good things First things first, take a moment to appreciate what already makes your town special. Is it the picturesque scenery, the tight-knit community, or the awesome local businesses? Make a list of all the things you love about your town and share it with your friends. Get them involved too! Post…
Read MoreTurning a school into apartments in a small town with adaptive reuse project
I talked about adaptive reuse in our Rural Housing webinar. In May of 2019 three young business owners, under the age of 35, bought the abandoned Bowtie School in Homestead PA, population 2800 people. It took them two years to figure out what to do with the building! They finally decided to turn it into 31 apartments. It took…
Read MoreDo we rebuild?
In July of 2022 Letcher County, Kentucky had a 100 year flood, that left many businesses having to decide if they should rebuild or not. The devastation was beyond believe. The IGA Grocery store in the small town of Isom was one of the many businesses affected. On a visit to the county one year…
Read MoreThey put a restaurant in a roofless building
I created the Tour of Empty Buildings ten years ago, in 2013. There have been many towns that ran with the idea and host tours too. Natchez, MS, Danville, KY, Jefferson, IA, Oglesby,Il are just a few of them. The Texas Historical Commission has been hosting Imagine The Possibilities Tour in small towns state wide…
Read MoreIowa Blogger Conference – March 19, 2016
Iowa Blogger Conference is 10 days away. It’s not too late to register and attend! http://www.iowabloggerconference.com/ It will be held at Iowa Central Community College in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Reasons to attend: 1. It’s a one day educational conference for beginners and intermediate bloggers. You will learn about bloggers and take home a digital tool…
Read MoreToulouse-Lautrec on a Barn
I saw the article in the paper and promptly forgot about it. Then my friend asked if I wanted to go take a picture of it. I didn’t realize it was so close to where I lived, just west of Dayton on Highway 175. What a great story! How often do you see the Peter…
Read MoreThe Family Farm
When I grew up I played in the corn and the wild grass and under the biggest tree in the county I climbed many trees and walked the creek with my grandpa in search of a big fish I played around tombstones and pretended I was a preacher In the grass under a circle of…
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