A Message to Chinatown & Beyond, from our Co-Founder Vic Lee

Hello friends, 

I spent last week reflecting. During moments when I could find clarity, my mind took me back to the Persian proverb, “This too shall pass.” In 2011, I felt a deep sense of loss for the first time after my grandfather passed away. I struggled to process my overwhelming sadness, lashing out at those around me because I felt alone. A few days later, I found myself unexpectedly moved to tears from a simple handwritten card that read, “This too shall pass.” The bad, and good, moments are ephemeral.

As I think about what the future holds in a deeply divisive society, our curiosity, compassion, and duty cannot be ephemeral if we want to drive the change we want to see. I want to see a Chinatown that's not only a gateway for opportunity but also a vibrant community where businesses and people thrive together. A place where our cultural heritage remains a source of strength, and innovation ensures our resilience for future generations. A continued source of inspiration and model for coalition building, empowering other communities to come together to drive meaningful change.

Is this lofty? Yes. Is this unattainable? Absolutely not.

If we focus on change at the local level, we will have the ability to inspire and influence those around us in tangible and visible ways. Yes, Donate to organizations that are mission and value aligned. Volunteer your time and skills to organizations that need capacity (but don’t be discouraged if they take a while to respond. The organizations that need capacity are slower to respond because they’re rolling up their sleeves). Shop with your values. Buy local and support minority owned businesses as much as possible. And most importantly, Be Curious. Ask questions to people you don’t often ask. Explore the “why” behind how something works or doesn’t work, and embrace the opportunity to learn from them. Only when we are curious, can we display authentic kindness and empathy. 

Welcome to Chinatown’s commitment in this long game is to fill our community’s cup because our collective needs cannot be met if our individual needs aren’t met. My Co-Founder, Jen’s, wise words to me at the start of our journey: “You can’t pour from an empty cup”. We are facing a reality where New York City’s storefront vacancy is 11.2%, nearly double from 6% in 2019. The cost of doing business is not only rising through the cost of goods, but everyday policies we don’t think about unless you’re John Wilson. Mastercard estimates businesses under scaffolding experience monthly revenue losses between $3,900 - $9,500. And all of this is on top of the nuances Chinatown small businesses face, including the lack of digital adoption. Our impact survey identified 47% of Chinatown businesses open 10+ years stated using technology was a top challenge, vs. 7% of businesses open <10 years. 

These problems at the macro level are daunting but I am optimistic that we can tackle this if we adopt a community first, grassroots approach. Our first value has, and always will be “We are Partners, not Saviors” in our work. Listening with empathy must be the first step of action, and we will be doubling down on our commitment to speak with our constituents through efforts like this open survey on what’s actually needed. 

Engaging directly with our community members has kept us rooted in their experiences and needs, allowing us to adapt and respond thoughtfully. This ongoing dialogue has been crucial in building resources like the Small Business Innovation Hub. In the most simple terms, we believe in the human spirit – whether it's personalized coaching and guiding businesses through transition, or creating long term stability through succession planning, our work is built to empower entrepreneurs.

Through every challenge, we are reminded that true resilience comes from standing together and lifting each other up. It’s this collective strength that inspires Welcome to Chinatown to keep building, adapting, and uplifting our community so it can thrive for generations to come. That doesn’t have to be ephemeral. 

With gratitude,
Vic

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大家好，

我上週花了很多時間反思。當我思路清晰時，它把我帶回到這句波斯諺語：“這也是會過去的。” 2011年，祖父過世後，我第一次感到深深的失落。我掙扎去處理這無法承受的悲傷，因為我感到孤單，所以我發洩在我周圍的人身上。幾天後，我發現自己意外地被一張簡單的手寫卡片感動得熱淚盈眶，上面寫著：“這也是會過去的。”壞的和好的時刻都是短暫的。

當我思考一個嚴重分裂的社會的未來時，如果我們想推動我們想要看到的變革，我們的好奇心、同情心和責任就不能是短暫的。我希望看到一個唐人街，不僅是機會的通道，也是一個充滿活力,企業和社民一起蓬勃發展的的社區。在這裡，我們的文化遺產仍然是力量的源泉，創新確保我們為後代提供適應變化的韌性，這裡成為一個建立聯盟的啟發和模式，使其他社區能夠團結起來推動有意義的變革。

這理念是崇高嗎？是的。是遙不可及嗎？絕對不是。

如果我們專注於地方層級的變革，我們將有能力以切實可見的方式激勵和影響我們周圍的人。是的，向和你的使命及價值觀一致的組織捐款，向有需要才能的組織自願貢獻你的時間和技能（但如果他們需要一段時間才能回應，請不要灰心。需要才能的組織反應較慢，因為他們正忙於工作）。根據您的價值觀購物，盡可能購買本地產品並支持少數族裔企業。最重要的是，保持好奇心，向不常問的人提問，探索某件事成功或失敗背後的原因，並抓住向其學習的機會。只有當我們好奇時，我們才能表現出真正的善意和同理心。

在這場漫長的遊戲中，「歡迎來到唐人街」的承諾是為我們社區的杯子裝滿，因為如果我們個人的需求得不到滿足，我們集體的需求就無法得到滿足。我的聯合創始人 Jen 在我們的旅程開始時，對我說了一句明智的話：「你不能從空杯子裡倒出水來」。我們面臨的現實是，紐約市的店面空置率為 11.2%，幾乎是 2019 年 6% 的兩倍。做生意的成本上升，不僅是因商品成本上升，而且還透過我們不會考慮到的日常政策而上升，除非你是約翰威爾森。 萬事達信用卡估計，鷹架下的企業每月收入損失在 3,900 美元至 9,500 美元之間。所有這一切都是在唐人街小企業面對的困難之上，包括缺乏數位化的採用。我們的影響力調查發現，開業 10 年以上的唐人街企業中有 47% 表示使用科技是很大的挑戰，而開業不到 10 年的企業只有 7%。

這些宏觀層面的問題令人望而生畏，但我樂觀地認為，如果我們採取社區優先、草根的方法，我們就能解決這些問題。在我們的工作中，我們的首要價值觀始終是「我們是合作夥伴，而不是救世主」。以同理心聆聽必須是行動的第一步，我們將加倍努力，透過對實際需求進行公開調查等行動，與我們的區民進行對話。

直接與社群成員互動使我們能夠深入了解他們的經驗和需求，從而使我們作出有效的適應和應對。這種持續的對話對於建立「小型企業創新中心」等資源至關重要。簡而言之，我們相信人文精神——無論是個人化輔導和指導企業過渡，或是透過繼任計畫創造長期穩定，我們的工作都是為了賦予企業家權力。

每一次挑戰都提醒我們，真正的韌性來自於站在一起、互相扶持。正是這種集體力量激勵「歡迎來到唐人街」不斷建造、改造和提升我們的社區，使其子孫後代能繼續蓬勃發展。那就不一定是短暫的。

懷著感恩的心，

Vic