GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — In January, the cold cooped up customers and the snow spilled onto street parking, making for a "scary" month for small businesses in Grand Rapids, according to the owner of Fika.
"This is the scariest I've ever seen it," said Nick Van Liere, who opened the vegan and gluten free restaurant and coffee shop on Plainfield Avenue in May.
"The weather has not provided a safe way to get into local businesses," he said. "The sidewalks are a mess. The roads are a mess."
Van Liere, who also owns Rise Authentic Baking Co., a bakery on Fulton Street, says he's had to consider making some "challenging" decisions in the past month.
"You have to think about asking for rent reduction. You have to reduce expenses. You have to cut hours from your employees," he said.
Around a year ago and right down the road from Fika, both the Saugatuck Brewing Company's Creston Taproom and Fatboy Burgers closed, respectively citing a desire to focus on distribution and a changing economy impacted by the pandemic and inflation.
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"I think maybe it was a bit of a wake up call," said Alex Karatkiewicz, executive director of the Creston Neighborhood Association. "We do need to support our local businesses."
If the wintertime habit is to hibernate, Karatkiewicz says breaking the habit by spending money locally, even if only for a cup of coffee or a small bite to eat, is beneficial to local business and their bottom line.
"It's sometimes just about making it easy and reminding people of all the different spots and things they can check out," he said. "When we spend our dollars locally with our local business owners, that money stays local through jobs and sponsorship and engagement in the community."
For Fika, a focus on community is part of their business plan, seen through its pay-it-forward meal program.
Van Liere also says he puts his employees "first" and wants to pay them a "livable wage alongside comprehensive benefits," which adds urgency to the need to generate revenue.
The name of his small business, though, is about pursuing the opposite of urgency.
"Fika is a Swedish word," he said. "We're not actually a Swedish restaurant, but we are really inspired by the practice of fika, which refers to an intentional break."
As the weather warms and winter melts away, Van Liere hopes his business can be boosted by people who choose to seek these moments of respite.
"I know it might feel like a lot to take five or ten minutes out of your day and go somewhere local, but I can speak on behalf of my own local businesses and everybody else in the city that taking the extra five, ten minutes out of your day to find street parking, come in, buy a coffee from us, buy food from us, tip our staff, that can make or break a business right now," he said.
Fika is open Monday through Friday (8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.) and Saturday and Sunday (8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.).
