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Lake Forest honors 20 small businesses awarded Main Street Digital grants
Summary
City staff and the OCIE SBDC recognized 20 local brick-and-mortar businesses that completed a four-week Main Street Digital program and each received $1,000 to support digital advertising.
Lake Forest recognized 20 local businesses on Sept. 16 that completed the Main Street Digital program and received $1,000 grants to support digital advertising and online marketing.
Economic Development and Housing Manager Adrian Grijalva said the program was funded with $50,000 set aside in 2024 from SEAP funds and delivered in partnership with the Orange County Inland Empire Small Business Development Center (OCIE SBDC). The program provided a four-week course and one-on-one consulting to help brick-and-mortar businesses build digital presence and marketing skills.
Mike Daniel, regional and network director of the OCIE SBDC, described the program as peer-to-peer business support: “We are a bunch of business owners helping other business owners grow and succeed. … It’s teaching them, in this case, social media, how to be successful, how to use TikTok or Facebook or Instagram or Constant Contact, right, to drive more customers to the business.”
Manarish, center director of the Cal State Fullerton SBDC, thanked the city and called the collaboration “nothing but amazing,” saying she hopes to expand support for small businesses in Lake Forest.
Grijalva read the 20 participating businesses and invited them to receive certificates and join the council for a photo. The businesses named in the meeting included: Grama Pizza and Pasta; Bonjour Veil Lake Forest Bridal; Flare Dev; Griswold Home Care for Laguna Hills; Hawkins and Hawkins Tax Services; L & M Automotive; A Little Something Sweet; Montessori Preschool and Tutoring Academy; Mountain Mike's Pizza; Navis Pack and Ship; Our Place; Pristine Plumbing; Saha Pizza; SparkLab Robotics and Coding Academy; Spectrum Specialties and Awards; Sunny Dumpling House; We Architects Group; Williams Construction Services; and Yoga 6 Foothill Ranch.
There was no public comment on the presentation. The item was a recognition and informational presentation; no new council ordinance or budget action was recorded during the item.
