Jun 1, 2007

Start-ups downtown get a boostBy Bill MooneyNJ.com

Trenton– As part of its ongoing efforts to breathe new life into the capital city’s downtown, the Trenton Downtown Association is assisting with a retail incubator project.

Entrepreneurs who want to start their own shop can do so by utilizing the Gift Gallery incubator at 125 S. Warren St., according to Eric Maywar of the TDA. The idea is that budding small-business owners can be nurtured there, and when they are ready to operate on their own and move to a new location in the downtown, another potential entrepreneur will be ready to move in to the incubator site.

“We are trying to see if we can build up a list of people who are ready to move in when these are ready to go get their own space,” said Maywar, who runs Classic Used and Rare Books a few doors away from the Gift Gallery.

The TDA will provide financial support by paying a portion of rent and all utilities in the first year, and a portion for a period thereafter, Maywar explained, but the key is that the businesses have to locate downtown.

Trying to make Trenton’s downtown a thriving retail district has been a challenge for years. It sometimes seems as if there is a setback for every victory. Athletic apparel company Foot Locker recently opened a store at 31 E. State St., but Indian cuisine restaurant Tandoori by Nature, which opened in December at 13 E. Front St., has already closed.

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