Recently, Barclays announced the third annual winners of their Small Business – Big Wins giveaway. We threw our hat in the ring to bring more locally written shows to the stage in North Texas, but didn’t make the cut this time. Top winners of the $255,000 in prize money included Sunhee’s Farm and Kitchen, Dixon Coop Market, & Beautiful Curly Me.

The 10 Top Finalists all had something in common – people working hard to build their dreams. Here are more details about who made the top cut & took home at least $5,000 each:

• Sunhee’s Farm and Kitchen—Troy, New York ($60,000): Driven by a passion for food & community, Sunhee’s Farm and Kitchen provides authentic Korean food for dine-in, take-out and catering at its local market. Additionally, this small business employs immigrant Americans from all over the world and provides free virtual English classes for adults.
• Dixon Cooperative Market – Dixon, New Mexico ($40,000): Founded in 2005, this unique market provides locals with a grocery store that supports local growers and producers. The market also provides educational resources to the community.
• Beautiful Curly Me – Atlanta, Georgia ($20,000): Beautiful Curly Me gives every little girl the chance to have a doll that looks like them by creating dolls with braids & curly hair. For every doll sold, one is donated to underserved communities.
• Buttermilk Boutique, LLC – Clayton, North Carolina ($5,000): A pastry shop dedicated to memorable luxury sweets and treats for everything from weddings to corporate events.
• Good Karma Bikes – San Jose, California ($5,000): A non-profit dedicated to
  providing bike repair and secondhand sale services to members of the local
  community in need of aid.
• Happy Day Dessert Factory – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania ($5,000): An ice cream parlor serving homemade hard ice cream as well as water ice, custard, milkshakes & more. Products are made daily with premium ingredients.
• KnoNap – Washington, D.C. ($5,000): A tech startup that makes small, portable tests that enable users to test drinks and cocktails for drugs commonly used to spike drinks.
• Mickey’s Popcorn – Memphis, Tennessee ($5,000): A snack producer founded by a married team producing small batch gourmet popcorn in flavors inspired by their region.
• Rose Sisters Chips – Brooklyn, New York ($5,000): A snack company founded by two sisters using a family recipe that dates back to their Polish-Canadian childhood in Brooklyn. The recipe has been passed down for three generations.
• Wowzitude – Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey ($5,000): A travel entertainment company that specializes in virtual tours that cater to seniors and others who might not be able to experience distant locations physically

We received the following message instead of a grant, but, hey, no hard feelings. Maybe next year!

Dear Entrant,

Thank you for participating in the Barclays Small Business Big Wins 2023 Contest and Sweepstakes. We received many amazing and inspiring entries, unfortunately yours was not chosen as a winner by our judges or randomly selected as a sweepstakes winner. We understand the effort that goes into making small business dreams a reality, and we appreciate your time and participation. If you would like to see who the winners are, visit barclayssmallbizbigwins.com.

Watch for future opportunities to win from Barclays. We wish you good health and much success in 2023.

Sincerely,
The Barclays Small Business Big Wins 2023 Contest and Sweepstakes Team

This is a one-time email in relation to your participation in the Barclays Small Business Big Wins 2023 Contest and Sweepstakes. Your name has not been added to any email list and you will not receive additional emails from Barclays Bank Delaware without your express consent. The email was sent on behalf of Barclays Bank Delaware by Marden-Kane, Inc. 575 Underhill Blvd., Suite 222, Syosset, NY 11791.

Art grants and donations are an important pillar upon which local theater is built. Especially as we rebuild during this ongoing pandemic, financing stage productions and new (untried / unproven) shows is a challenge. The Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program kept a lot of lights on that would have gone forever dark, but its still a steep climb onwards. What’s your plan to improve the local theater scene?