April 6, 2023 – City of Fort Collins officials recently re-launched a new website for its For Fort Collins program, ForFortCollins.com. The new For Fort Collins website features a page of local business stories categorized in different ways to encourage community members to discover, support, and shop locally while connecting the community to local businesses and connect local businesses to resources and information spanning marketing, business development, incentive programs, and more.
Initially launched due to the pandemic, For Fort Collins was created in 2020 by the City of Fort Collins and other collaborators to support local businesses as they navigated the uncertainty of mandated closures, mask mandates, and social distancing. Since then, the needs of the community have evolved.
“We’ve all heard the proverb ‘necessity is the mother of invention’. This rings true for For Fort Collins and why it was created,” said Shannon Hein, Small Business Program Manager with For Fort Collins. “We saw a need during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and designed the website to fill that need. Now, we want to shift the focus of For Fort Collins to helping our local businesses grow and helping community members discover all of the unique local businesses that make Fort Collins special.”
The new For Fort Collins website features information about women-owned, Black-owned, veteran-owned, or one of the other seven-and-counting categories. Fort Collins plans to grow its plethora of resources to support an inclusive and connected community.
“When you make even just one purchase from a local small business, you’re supporting your friends and neighbors,” said Hein. “We want to make learning about the unique businesses right in your backyard easy.”
The new For Fort Collins website has also been updated with new features, tools, and resources for local entrepreneurs and business owners looking for support in growing their businesses, including information about the Multicultural Business and Entrepreneur Center (MBEC).
The MBEC provides multilingual support to small businesses in the Fort Collins community, especially those owned by entrepreneurs of color, women or Hispanics, that do not have the same access to resources, technical assistance, or the social network of support that other groups have. All services at the MBEC are free and open to all.
“For Collins wouldn’t be possible with the help of our partners Midtown Business Improvement District, OTM, Visit Fort Collins, Downtown Development Authority, Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce, and the City of Fort Collins,” said Hein. “We are For Fort Collins because we want it to be a city that can foster small businesses by helping them adapt, grow and thrive.”
For a full list of local business resources and ways the community can support local, visit Here.
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