Welcome to our November edition of the Massachusetts Asian Restaurant Association newsletter! We're excited to bring you a selection of opportunities and events designed to inspire, educate, and connect. Inside this issue, you'll find exclusive information on upcoming events, details on grant opportunities that could support your business, and much more!

We celebrated a significant victory with the defeat of Ballot Question 5, which would have raised the minimum wage for tipped workers to $15 per hour. This outcome saved the restaurant industry an estimated $870 million, averaging $133,000 in savings per restaurant.

 

The success was attributed to a collaborative grassroots effort involving servers, bartenders, owners, suppliers, chambers of commerce, and political allies. The measure was defeated by a decisive 64-36 vote, highlighting the collective opposition from the restaurant industry and its supporters.

On October 28, 2024, a health hearing was held in Taunton, pertaining to the forced closure of the restaurant, Hong Kong City. The two contending parties to the hearing are the local health department and Mr. Pan Fei, the owner of Hong Kong City. Both parties presented their case to support their positions. For more detail, please read the report by SingtaoUSA, link below:

 

 

MARA’s co-president Andy Kuang was also present at the hearing.

 

Mr. Pan Fei’s Hong Kong City case got MARA’s attention. As an organization with a substantial Chinese restaurant community, MARA wants to find out what kind of problems, if any, can occur between restaurants and the Health/Food Safety inspectors. Is Mr. Pan’s experience an isolated instance or a much common occurrence among Chinese restaurants? MARA also wants to understand better in what capacity MARA can support its members and other Chinese restaurants as it relates to the Health/Food Safety inspections. For this reason, MARA has designed a field survey. 

 

Please take a moment and share your experience with Health/Food Safety inspections by taking this 22 question survey; click the link below to start.

MARA has partnered with Potencia to offer affordable, one-on-one English tutoring sessions tailored for adult immigrants. These 10-week online programs provide personalized learning, real-life conversation practice, and flexible schedules. At just $5 per session ($50 for 10 sessions), participants receive 1-hour individual lessons with an additional discount available for MARA members.

 

Interested individuals can apply online below or text (617) 580-0176 for more details. Don’t miss this opportunity to improve English skills in a supportive, affordable environment!

 

 

 

Weatherization teaches air sealing, insulation, moisture controls and ventilation. It reduces energy costs by increasing the energy efficiency of building, while ensuring health and safety.

 

One of America's fastest growing clean energy industries! Studies estimate there will be more than 16,000+ new jobs in Weatherization.

​

The class is a 2 week intensive, hands-on training followed by guaranteed job placement.

 

Entry-level jobs require no experience and pay up to $25/hour. Higher-level positions such as Crew Chief and Supervisor jobs pay up to $120,000 annually.

​

Weatherization is a pre-apprenticeship program that also connects graduates with apprenticeship options with our employer partners.

You are invited to the 1st Small Business Finance Summit, organized by ElevAsian in partnership with the SBA and the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, on December 12, 2024, from 8:30-11:30am. 

 

The event will feature a panel of small business finance experts and a fireside interview with Gilbert Tsang, CEO of MEM Tea, who will share his entrepreneurial journey and experience with the SBA 504 program. Attendees will also hear from traditional lenders, community development financial institutions, impact investors, and more. 

 

For additional details, contact Andy Goldberg at andrewgoldberg@elevasian.org.

Grant & Program Opportunities

(Deadline: December 6th, 2024) Small Business Impact Initiative Grant Program - The Asian Business Empowerment Council (ABEC) is proud to partner with National Grid, Amplify LatinX, BECMA, and the Massachusetts LGTBQ Chamber of Commerce on our 2nd annual Small Business Impact Initiative Grant Program. ABEC will award four $10,000 grants to Asian American/Pacific Islander (AAPI) businesses in 2025 to support small businesses overcome challenges, access more resources, and create a positive change in our local communities.

 

(Rolling Deadline) Amber Grant - Women's Net gives away at least $30,000 every month in Amber Grant money. In recognition of the diversity of businesses owned by women, they've also expanded their grant-giving to include Marketing Grants, Business Category Grants, as well as two $25,000 Year End Grants.

 

(Rolling Deadline) Free LLC Formation for Moms - Zenbusiness is giving every mom in America the ability to start an LLC for free, plus the cost of your state fee.  

Let your Legislators know that 

Credit Card Fees are out of control!

Please email your legislators and let them know that credit card fees are out of control. Massachusetts is one of two states that does not allow a business to add a convenience fee to consumer purchases to cover the cost of processing payment by credit or debit card. And while it has been like this for many years, the pandemic has exacerbated the issue as more and more consumers rely on credit cards. While 2% to the customer only amounts to a few dollars, 2% on all credit card transactions is a large expense for the business owner.

Founded in 2018, Massachusetts Asian Restaurant Association (MARA) is a non-profit corpo­ration registered at Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It formed a partnership with Massachu­setts Restaurant Association (MRA) in 2020. MARA provides Asian restaurant businesses the resources and guidance needed to advance in the industry. MARA is a platform connecting Asian restaurant members with professional service providers as well as relevant governmental entities to enhance the communication collaboration and mutual benefits. Visit ma-ara.org to join or learn more.