CFDA x NY Forward Grant Fund

Binc helps bookstore owners, booksellers, and comic store employees and owners with unforeseen emergency financial needs. The Foundation assesses each request to determine how best to provide relief. If approved, grants are typically paid to third-party vendors.

The Restaurants Care Resilience Fund provides California independent restaurants and commercial caterers with $5,000 grants to build operational resilience and weather the financial pressures facing small restaurant operators. Administered by Restaurants Care, a program of the California Restaurant Foundation (a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that has been supporting California's restaurant community since 1981), the Resilience Fund was launched in 2021 and has since awarded over $11 million in grants to more than 2,000 independent restaurants across the state, supporting burger joints, taquerias, bakeries, and other independently owned operators that serve as the heart of their communities. The fund is supported by corporate partners including PG&E, SoCalGas, Sysco, FreshPoint, J. Lohr Vineyards, EcoLab, Employers, and others. Applications are offered once per year, with multiple grant recipients selected annually (in 2026, the program awarded $5,000 grants to 256 independent restaurants and commercial caterers). Separately, Restaurants Care also operates a parallel emergency assistance program that provides up to $2,500 directly to individual food and beverage workers facing illness, injury, natural disaster, or death in the immediate family.

The Chicago Neighborhood Market Grant Program provides Chicago small food and beverage business owners and farmers market operators with one-time grants of $10,000 to strengthen local food systems and expand access to fresh, healthy food across the city. Administered by the Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) in partnership with Allies for Community Business (A4CB), the program is funded by the Chicago Road to Recovery Plan through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), with A4CB providing $450,000 in total grant funding to eligible applicants. To qualify, applicants must be a small retail food and beverage business owner or a farmers market operator, operating a storefront or market that is physically located within one of Chicago's designated priority geographies. The program specifically focuses on businesses that serve as both economic anchors and food access points in neighborhoods historically impacted by disinvestment, with the broader goal of ensuring that access to fresh, healthy food does not depend on the neighborhood a resident lives in. Grant funds may be used for a range of purposes, including equipment purchases, market operations, marketing and outreach efforts, and improvements that help farmers markets operate year-round rather than only during traditional market seasons.

The DC Restaurant & Retail Stabilization Grant provides up to $50,000 in financial assistance to small restaurant and retail businesses in Washington, DC that experienced a revenue decline in 2025. Funded by the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED) and administered by Capital Impact Partners — a local nonprofit community development financial institution — the program is a $3.875 million initiative designed to help brick-and-mortar businesses remain operational and support long-term sustainability. Grant funds may be used to cover occupancy costs and payroll over a six-month grant period. Preference is given to businesses that lost more than 10% of gross revenue in 2025, did not receive prior DMPED funding in 2023–2025, have a positive impact on the local community, and purchase goods or services from the DC, Maryland, or Virginia economy.

The Department of Small and Local Business Development (DSLBD) is excited to announce that we will accept applications for the FY 2026 Robust Retail Citywide Grants. The FY 2026 Robust Retail Citywide grant(s) support existing DC-based retail businesses in maintaining operations and viability. DSLBD intends to award up to $10,000 per business to approximately 50 businesses from the $500,000 in available Fiscal Year 2026 funding. This grant will be operated as a reimbursement grant, awarded via lottery to DC retail businesses that meet all eligibility requirements by the final deadline. Businesses that received a Robust Retail Citywide award in FY2025 are not eligible to apply.