Stories

Shoppers show up to support local businesses

December 4, 2020

Micah Cho, WTXL TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — With Christmas now a month away, the holiday shopping season is in full swing. Now more than ever, it’s important to shop small because of the pandemic. Socially-distanced shoppers across North Florida and South Georgia flocked to shops hoping to get a head-start on the holiday shopping season. With […]

Opinion: Love Your Local This Holiday Season

December 1, 2020

Cristina Paredes This year, local, small businesses have been faced with many unprecedented challenges. The impact of COVID-19 on small businesses has been nothing short of devastating as owners have had to innovate and reimagine their operations considerably when COVID-19 hit the community in March. Restaurants, like Jeri’s Midtown Café and Catering with Care, shifted […]

Love Your Local campaign looks to support community businesses for the holidays

Kristian Thomas, ABC27 TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Highlighting businesses that have had a tough year with the pandemic is what the Love Your Local campaign aims to do. For many, COVID-19 is still impacting their ability to make money. Some are dealing with a tough reality that they might not make it through the holidays. […]

‘Black Owned Friday’ brings optimism for Tallahassee’s holiday shopping season

TaMaryn Waters, Tallahassee Democrat Twice as many Black-owned businesses were forced to close this year compared to white-owned businesses as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic.  However, some local economic experts say 2020 — the year of racial reckoning — may be ripe for “Black Owned Friday” to stop the decline.   LaTanya White, an entrepreneurship instructor at Florida A&M’s […]

‘Love Your Local’ push supports Small Business Saturday shopping

TaMaryn Waters, Tallahassee Democrat The Tallahassee-Leon County Office of Economic Vitality (OEV) has three words for residents this year — Love Your Local.  Sounds simple, but the sentiment when put into action can plunge desperately needed dollars into Tallahassee’s bruised economy amid the coronavirus pandemic.   OEV Director Cristina Paredes said the “Love Your Local” concept is about spreading […]

Small Business Certifications & Why Your Business Needs One

Shanea Wilks Are you a small business owner with an interest in local government contracting? Are you seeking the opportunity to compete against like-sized firms for projects smaller in scale?  If you answered yes to any of these questions, the Tallahassee-Leon County Small Business Enterprise (SBE) Program may interest you. The SBE Program, administered by […]

Innovation and Local Entrepreneurs

Richard Fetchick Tallahassee boasts great assets that serve as springboards to innovation. Florida A&M REACH, ACT House, Innovation Park, Domi Station, Tallahassee Community College Center for Innovation, and Florida State equip thousands of bright minds every year with tools that can lead to new, commercializable ideas. In 2019, Leon-County-based tech startups brought in $823,000 in […]

Moving MWBEs Forward

Fall 2020 will mark a new chapter of the activity in the expansion of the MWSBE Division of the Office of Economic Vitality. The $65 million Tallahassee Police Department will be the largest construction project since the consolidation of the MWSBE programs of the City of Tallahassee and Leon County Government and the implementation of […]

Upcoming Events
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October 3, 2025

Big Bend Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week is an annual event that celebrates the achievements and contributions of diverse local businesses in the Tallahassee-Leon County region.

October 15, 2025

The Economic Vitality Leadership Council is responsible for quarterly meeting to increase the community’s competitiveness across the six economic development initiatives, provide advice upon implementing the strategic plan, encourage collaboration across all community sectors, and recommend improvements to improve competitiveness.