Brief

State rolls out directory of local businesses online

By: Erik Gunn - May 26, 2020 5:32 pm

Screenshot of mainstreetwi.com, set up by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. to help shoppers find local businesses that sell online.

Wisconsin launched a new directory Tuesday listing small businesses that offer online service, as part of the state’s response to the business impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The portal has more than 230 companies included so far and was set up by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. (WEDC) to guide shoppers seeking businesses offering online outlets so they can avoid in-person shopping that might heighten their risk of catching the virus that is responsible for the illness.

New WEDC Secretary and CEO Missy Hughes (Photo contributed)

“Local small businesses have been hit especially hard by the COVID-19 pandemic,” WEDC Secretary-designee and CEO Missy Hughes said in a statement. “This is a great opportunity to help sustain local and small businesses in our downtown districts throughout Wisconsin.”

The project is part of Wisconsin Main Street, a community development program established in 1987 and administered by WEDC to aid historic commercial districts in the state. Businesses seeking to be listed in the directory must be located in one of 34 business districts that are part of that larger program.

Businesses located in another group of districts, called Connect Communities, will be added to the portal later, according to WEDC.

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Erik Gunn

Deputy Editor Erik Gunn reports and writes on work and the economy, health policy and related subjects, for the Wisconsin Examiner. He spent 24 years as a freelance writer for Milwaukee Magazine, Isthmus, The Progressive, BNA Inc., and other publications, winning awards for investigative reporting, feature writing, beat coverage, business writing, and commentary. An East Coast native, he previously covered labor for The Milwaukee Journal after reporting for newspapers in upstate New York and northern Illinois. He's a graduate of Beloit College (English Comp.) and the Columbia School of Journalism. Off hours he is the Examiner's resident Springsteen and Jackson Browne fanboy and model railroad nerd.