Sherman Avenue is lined with stores that can be found almost anywhere, such as Einstein Bros. Bagels, Gap and RadioShack. A turn in one direction on Church Street will take you to a Chipotle, and in the other direction you can find Urban Outfitters and a Barnes & Noble Booksellers.
It can be hard for a local business to compete in a city where about one-third of businesses are part of national corporations, according to an estimate from Evanston Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jonathan Perman. However, nestled between the national chains found throughout the city are small boutiques that are flourishing because they cater to a niche clientele.
“It’s exciting. It’s competition for all of us,” said Tim Camastro, owner of Rollin’ To Go, 910 Noyes St.t. “It motivates us to get to (the national chains’) levels.”
Camastro said it is easy to compete against larger sandwich shops like Jimmy John’s and Potbelly because his shop is on Noyes Street, while the chain restaurants are on Sherman Avenue. However, he said he thinks he would do fine even if he were located next door to Potbelly.
Camastro said his success depends on providing a unique, high-quality product. Nancy Depondt, owner of Bagel Art, 615 Dempster St., agreed.
“If you’re just looking for a cheap bagel, you’ll go to Einstein’s,” she said. “If you’re looking for good, fresh ingredients you’ll come here.”
Fulfilling a specialty is not enough, however. The hardest part about being a small business is advertising, Dupondt said. Print advertising can be expensive and not always worth it for her business, so she likes hosting fundraisers or other events where residents can try her food for free.
The Evanston Chamber of Commerce tries to help small businesses by providing services that chains receive from their parent corporations, said Brooke Saucier, manager of membership, marking and development at the chamber.
The chamber offers networking programs to help smaller shops find bookkeepers, accountants and other services, such as a monthly business after-hours program and networking breakfast. It also hosts smaller programs targeted to a specific audience, such as attorneys or women business owners.
Saucier said all of the events are popular and attended by large and small businesses alike. The business after-hours usually attracts about 80 attendees, usually including representatives from Hilton Hotels.
Rollin’ To Go is not a member of the chamber but has been expanding successfully. Camastro recently opened franchises in New Jersey and downtown Chicago. Although his shop on Noyes Street depends largely on Northwestern students and staff, his other two shops are doing fine, he said.
He opened his Chicago location near bus stops and office buildings so that he would draw in foot traffic. His New Jersey franchise is targeted toward a young, “hip” crowd. As long as he can get his food out quickly, both groups are satisfied, he said.
“I’m pretty confident with my product, we can compete well,” he said.
