The Storefront Upfit Grant funding provides financial assistance for build-outs, improvements, and renovations of storefront spaces and stand-up expenses associated with starting or expanding a storefront business in downtown.
Donor Name: Downtown Raleigh Alliance
State: North Carolina
City: Raleigh
Type of Grant: Grant | Reimbursement
Deadline: 10/01/2025
Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $100,000
Grant Duration: 1 Year
Details:
Raleigh Civic Ventures (RCV) offers this grant program to incentivize and attract new retail, restaurant, and service businesses, aid in the expansion of existing retail businesses, direct support to strategic areas, accommodate pop-up uses that may convert to long-term tenants, better support minority and women-owned businesses, and ultimately drive a healthy and strong storefront economy in Downtown Raleigh.
The program is specifically intended to help new storefront businesses and expanding retail businesses with upfit and one-time standup expenses.
To support equitable growth for all in the downtown area, a diverse business funding booster of $2,500 is available for businesses with 50%-or-more ownership by individuals who identify as:
- Minority
- Women
- LGBTQ+
- Veteran
- A person with a disability.
Program Objectives
- Attract new businesses that provide needed/desired services or products within downtown to address demand of residents, employees and visitors, as well as increase foot traffic and create a viable commercial core.
- Stimulate private investment in retail within downtown through property improvement, business development or expansion.
- Contribute to the overall value of downtown by encouraging more retail, restaurant, and service businesses, which makes downtown a more vibrant, sustainable, livable place and adds value to other businesses and investments in downtown.
- Provide additional resources, access, opportunities, and pathways to entrepreneurship for Minority- and Women-owned businesses (MWBE).
- Direct additional attention and assistance to areas of downtown in need of more targeted, storefront-level, economic development support.
Funding Information
- The total pool of Storefront Upfit Grant funds that may be awarded in FY26 is $50,000.
- This funding opportunity offers reimbursement grants of up to $15,000, depending on location and business use.
Grant Period
July 2025 through June 2026.
Eligible Expenses
- Hard costs to physically upfit space
- Soft costs associated with design, construction and execution
- One-time standup expenses
- Eligible standup expenses must directly relate to the business concept or be an essential expense of the business model. Consideration and approval is at the discretion of RCV and the review committee.
- Regular operating costs and recurring expenses are ineligible
- Examples of eligible standup expenses:
- Furniture, Shelving, Signage, POS system, Paint, Lighting, Décor, Displays.
Eligibility Requirements:
- A business license is required.
- Eligible business uses include but are not limited to new retail, restaurant, experiential, and service uses.
- Existing retail businesses expanding by 30% or more are also eligible. (Existing restaurant and service businesses are not eligible unless relocating to new location which is within the eligibility area).
- For pop-up businesses, a minimum three-month lease commitment is required.
- The proposed location must be storefront space inside or on the boundary of the map depicted above.
- Storefront spaces on the “out-of-bounds” side of the streets that are used as boundary lines may be considered at the discretion of RCV. A storefront space being “on” a boundary street will be determined by the location of the primary customer entrance to the space from the street.
- Retail uses are eligible within the entire grant boundary area.
- Restaurant and service uses are limited in grant eligibility to be within the smaller targeted area.
- Pop-up concepts (as defined by an intended duration or lease commitment of less than one year) are only eligible in the priority area boundary.
- Professional office and bar uses are explicitly ineligible (bar being defined as a business concept where 70% or more of projected or actual revenue is derived from onsite alcohol sales and consumption).
- Brewery and distillery concepts with onsite production are excepted from the 70% definition and are explicitly eligible.
- Creative concepts that add new products or services to downtown are encouraged.
For more information, visit DRA.
