The Shops At Sharp End celebrates one-year anniversary
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
The Shops at Sharp End located in Downtown Columbia is celebrated its one-year anniversary Friday with an all-day shopping event and a ribbon-cutting.
The area is a startup incubator in the location of a historic Black-owned business district at 500 E. Walnut St.
A shopping event is was held from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. The ribbon cutting was held at 2:30 p.m. and will included a reading of a Missouri House resolution from Rep. Kathy Steinhoff (D-Columbia) recognizing the significance of The Shops at Sharp End to Columbia’s economic and cultural landscape.
The Shops at Sharps End came about when the Downtown Community Improvement District announced a minority-owned business grant back in 2022 to make Downtown Columbia business more diverse.
The area offers a collection of local shops that have become a hub for small businesses, fostering innovation and collaboration while honoring the area's history
Tiowana Warrick, The Shops At Sharp End Program Director says there are currently nine participants involved in the program which is down from 19 participants from this time last year.
Warrick said those taking part in the program have faced some challenges.
"It's kinda been hard to get liability insurance for the entrepreneurs, it depends on their merchandise or product and of course quotes are extremely high now," Warrick said.
There are scholarships available for those wanting to take part that will help out liability insurance, according to Warrick. To apply for the program you can do so here.
Cristal Holtzclaw is the owner of Steep & Bloom Tea and is one of the top sellers at The Shops At Sharp End. She took advantage and signed up for the program back in October 2024 and officially was setup in mid-December.
Holzclaw said makes its easier to run a her business.
"To start the business and get it going and grow a clientele without the huge overhead of a storefront so it's been fantastic for steep and bloom," Holzclaw said. "To tell people where they can go shop at regular hours which is something a lot of new businesses can't necessarily offer without a huge investment in a store front and that's my favorite thing about the shops at sharp end."
