KC program to fill downtown storefronts gets $100K from Airbnb
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Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Airbnb is donating $100,000 in Kansas City's Open Doors program to move local entrepreneurs into vacant downtown storefronts before the World Cup brings a flood of visitors.
The big picture: Roughly 11,000 Airbnb guests are projected to stay in and around KC during the tournament, according to a Deloitte study commissioned by Airbnb, and city leaders want that foot traffic landing in local shops, not chains.
Driving the news: The city announced the donation last week alongside the Economic Development Corporation of Kansas City (EDCKC), which runs Open Doors.
- The program places small businesses into high-visibility vacant spaces along the downtown streetcar corridor on three- to six-month leases. The city is subsidizing part of the rent and offering grants up to $10,000 for build-out and inventory.
- Airbnb will also sponsor a digital small business guide launching in early May.
By the numbers: The same Deloitte study projects $105 million in total economic output across KC and surrounding areas during the tournament.
- KC is putting $1.6 million into Open Doors, on top of Airbnb's donation.
- EDCKC has already connected 22 businesses, artists and organizations to 18 storefronts in the Crossroads and along the streetcar line after a competitive application process last fall, with 10 to 15 more placements coming in spots like Union Station before the tournament.
- The $100,000 is part of Airbnb's $5 million Host City Impact Program, spread across the 16 World Cup host cities.
What they're saying: "Kansas City has created a special opportunity with the Open Doors program that supports small businesses and small organizations like Kansas City Jazz Alive in a completely innovative way," Emily Behrmann of Jazz Alive tells Axios.
- The jazz nonprofit is one of the organizations using the program to set up a pop-up space before the World Cup.
- "As a nonprofit, Jazz Alive would never have dreamed we could operate a pop-up music listening room. But here we are."
What's next: The small business guide launches Friday, with EDCKC selecting participants from a mix of Open Doors businesses and other locally rooted KC shops, restaurants and destinations.