Downtown Allentown businesses compete for $5K makeover

ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Calling small businesses in downtown Allentown: Do you wish you could get a free marketing makeover?

Well, you may just be in luck.

The City of Allentown is partnering with City Center Allentown and AlphaGraphics, a marketing and custom printing firm, to give $5,000 to a small business in need of a facelift.

• Small businesses in downtown Allentown are eligible to enter a contest for $5,000, to be used for marketing
• The deadline is June 30
• The winner will be decided by community members through online voting

The prize can be used to redesign a logo, update menus or loyalty cards, new signage and more.

Ilene Stroh and her husband bought AlphaGraphics, at 515 Hamilton St., Allentown, in 2013. Their business will donate the prize.

"To see what was here then, and what's here now, is amazing," Stroh said.

"We thought this contest would be a great way to keep the downtown area thriving."

'Follow your dreams'

Eric Cutting and his partner, Gil DeGruccio, took over Blended, a restaurant at 27 N. 7th St., in November. Before that, it was known as Blended by Brü Daddy's.

Now it's among the restaurants that have entered the contest.

DeGruccio had worked at Blended by Brü Daddy's as executive chef, and Cutting as general manager. They took out a $15,000 loan through their landlord and paid about $20,000 for the working inventory that was left behind.

"Business, in the beginning, was slow," Cutting said. "We knew we had some challenges ahead of ourselves. And then we just started blossoming."

He said they changed the menu, introduced new products and used advertising to set themselves apart from the old owners.

"We're pretty much treading water," Cutting said. "Not in a bad sense, but we're breaking even every time we get the opportunity."

For Cutting, taking over the restaurant was a dream come true.

"Follow your dreams, because they don't follow you," said Cutting, who said he's spent 29 years in the restaurant industry.

"I definitely love putting smiles on people's faces."

He said he found out about the contest through Nicole Wescoe, the event coordinator at City Center Allentown. She and Megan Colon, the business development manager of City Center Allentown, came by in person to tell him to look into it.

Cutting said that if he wins the contest, he wants to use the money to highlight the front of the building and make it brighter.

"We are at the entrance of the ArtsWalk," he said. "I look at that building all the time and say to myself, 'What a dull entrance.' The ArtsWalk should have a bright cheer when people are walking by."

He'd also use the money to make the inside of the restaurant more vibrant, to "match my vibe, match the vibe of the energy that we have with our employees," he said. "We're very fun."

Deadline to enter is near

The deadline to enter the contest is June 30. Finalists will be chosen by July 17 and community voting will run until July 31. The winner will be announced in August.

Restaurants and retailers eligible to enter the contest must be locally owned, and have a small business between 5th and 13th Streets, and Walnut and Chew Streets.

It also must be current with taxes and municipal utility bills, have proof of building insurance and meet city codes.

So far, six small businesses have entered.

The community voting itself is meant to be a way to raise awareness about small businesses. It will involve a social media push and in-person displays to help generate votes.

The contest will be held online, and anyone is eligible to vote.

"Allentown is definitely a place where a lot of diversity and multicultural backgrounds all come to gather, network, socialize and have a good time," Cutting said.