Five small businesses receive Main Street Iowa Open 4 Business grants

Five small businesses from Main Street Iowa districts received $50,000 in state grants after successfully pitching their expansion ideas before a panel of judges, part of the final round of Main Street Iowa’s Open 4 Business contest.

Thyme & Spice Co. in Burlington topped four competitors in the statewide pitch contest in Cedar Rapids on Monday evening.

The awards were presented by Debi Durham, director of the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) and Iowa Finance Authority.

“Everyone deserves to go home a winner tonight,” Durham said. “These incredible business plans reaffirm the importance of our Main Street programs, which serve as a conduit for small business growth and retention and play a crucial role in making our communities places where people want to visit and live.”

Other winners and their awards include:

• First runner-up, Goldfinch Tap + Eatery, Marion, $10,000.
• First runner-up, Holtz Service & Small Engine, Avoca, $10,000.
• Second runner-up, BlueMoon Holistic Wellness, Nevada, $5,000.
• Second runner-up, Corning Family Chiropractic, Corning, $5,000.

Thyme & Spice Co. earned another $1,000 for People’s Choice, selected by audience vote. The additional category, sponsored by the event’s host city of Cedar Rapids and The District: Czech Village & New Bohemia, was introduced to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Open 4 Business.

“This is a room full of doers and dreamers,” said Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell. “Here in Cedar Rapids, I like to think of us as a magnet for entrepreneurs. Welcome is our language — it’s not just the welcoming of people from other places; it really is the welcoming of ideas that come from all over.”

Marion’s Goldfinch Tap + Eatery was awarded a $10,000 grant as a first runner-up.

In 2020, Goldfinch owners John and Taylor Lillibridge relocated from Florida to Cedar Rapids, where Mr. Lillibridge grew up. He began working as Goldfinch’s general manager, while Ms. Lillibridge was its special events coordinator. Three years later, the husband-wife duo purchased the business.

According to a news release, the business plans to use the grant for new catering equipment, dining furniture and serving materials to accommodate more guests during in-house community events, which take place monthly and involve donating to local schools and nonprofits or partnering with the neighboring Giving Tree Theater to host Murder Mystery Dinner & Show events.

This year’s contest drew 20 applicants. Of those, 12 were invited to interview virtually with a panel of judges, who then selected five finalists.

On Monday, each finalist had five minutes to present their ideas to the following state-level judges: Lisa Shimkat of America’s Small Business Development Center Iowa; Vada Grantham of Des Moines Area Community College; Kaitlin Byers of Kiva Iowa at Cedar Rapids’ NewBoCo; and Eric Meeter of Pressed, a hand-stamped and hammered jewelry boutique in Spencer and the 2020 Open 4 Business winner.

Open 4 Business supports growth and expansion of existing small businesses in the more than 50 Main Street Iowa communities. In the past decade, the program has awarded dollars to more than 45 businesses.

The grants are administered through IEDA’s Iowa Downtown Resource Center and Main Street Iowa programs.