StayLocal

09/29/2026

Business owners: The Nola Files is asking you to share your experiences regarding opening your business or keeping it open.

If you've faced challenges when seeking permits, updating contact information, staying open during road work and utility outage interruptions, and more, you can use the linked form page below to describe what happened *and* share your ideas for solutions that work for independent business owners.

The Nola Files, founded by Dirty Coast's Blake Haney, is best described as a civic field guide to New Orleans published per-topic in both digital and in limited print.

The report on small business, their third, is set to be titled "Ground Floor Revival". It will be shared with the greater community, business incubators and advocates and decision makers, highlight partners' ideas and nationwide best practices. The information is intended to help build City government that works more effectively and efficiently for home grown, independent businesses.

Tell your story here: https://thenolafiles.com/small-business

07/07/2026

Thank you Petite Rouge and Dirty Coast for hosting the funny, smart City Shuffle Trivia Game Night 2026! Players put their New Orleans knowledge to the test as they pulled cards with questions about local places, iconic figures, originals, and pests. Everyone left with a gift from Dirty Coast.

Congrats to champion Nicole Eiden and 1st runner up Julie Griffith Herrington, who were neck and neck and forced a tiebreak question during the live Winner’s Circle round.

City Shuffle Trivia Night is part of Independents Month, StayLocal’s summer campaign to celebrate locally owned businesses for their spirit of entrepreneurship, individuality, and character. Independents Month is supported by Dirty Coast, LCI Workers' Comp, BizNola Video Services Parkway Bakery and Tavern QSM and The Urban Conservancy. Special thanks to our media partner New Orleans Public Radio WWNO.

Independents Month continues through July 31. Head to your favorite local business and or find a new one at www.staylocal.org/independents

Let's continue to show love to New Orleans businesses all July long.

06/23/2026

The Business Stabilization Fund for French Quarter businesses --those located on blocks with active construction--is no longer taking applications.

You can see the new Street Construction Status Dashboard, which shows both planned and active progress, at https://nola.gov/iccmap/

"This upcoming week, we will be announcing a grant program for businesses," New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno posted Sunday. | WWL

05/28/2026

We’re turning our Sustainability Spotlight on Culture, a collective connecting circular economy practices, innovative environmental solutions, and cultural storytelling to drive real impact in New Orleans. At its core, Climate Culture NOLA showcases how sustainability can and must weave into our daily lives: in how we gather, create, and care for our communities.

Given that nonprofits are often known for operating on tight budgets, we're standing on our chairs and cheering all the ways in which Climate Culture supports small, locally owned businesses, making investment in a stronger, more resilient local economy essential to what they do.

From farm-to-table catering and neighborhood-based services to creative partners who activate public space and lead community cleanups, sourcing locally is a direct way Climate Culture turns values into action. It’s how we can *all* keep dollars recirculating in our neighborhoods while reducing environmental impact. Climate Culture's commitment to integrating economic and environmental sustainability is underscored by their work with New Orleans businesses


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Each of these businesses is contributing to a more sustainable New Orleans by minimizing environmental impact while strengthening the cultural and economic fabric of our city.

Understanding the impact of choosing local first has been a core value of Climate Culture since inception. By braiding local sourcing, expressive art and New Orleans front line exposure to climate impacts, Climate Culture invites conversation and activation around how we live in harmony and honor the stories of our unique, coastal, Southeast Louisiana environment.

New Orleans legacy will continue on only by investing in the people, places, and practices that make us who we are. Learn more at https://www.instagram.com/climateculture_nola/

To search StayLocal's directory of eco-friendly businesses, head to staylocal.org/find

photo credit:

05/07/2026

Open-air markets and food halls can generate a surprising amount of single-use waste, from plastic clamshells to 3 piece cutlery packets to layers of to-go style wraps or bags. A big part of the draw to these locations is to gather, making a group outing more fun when choosing from a variety of food vendors.

Here’s one way that .rochmarket excels: in the use of real plates and utensils, and a centralized dishwashing station.

(The Market cuts down on waste and reduces the upstream resources required to produce disposable items in the first place. It’s currently washing and reusing 450 plates, 250 cups and 500 utensil sets in a typical day.

“We’re thrilled when customers sit down at some of our big, shared tables and enjoy the real serveware! It’s about efficiency: being energy efficient, working as an efficient staff, and within the confines of the small space we have to store waste,” says St Roch Market operator Kevin Pedeaux. “More than a dozen individual St. Roch Market vendors help keep the Market sustainable in this way.”

By making the reuse of plates, bowls, glasses and utensils part of essential operations, our city’s 150-year-old market is reducing material consumption and diverting about 26,000 lbs of landfill waste, roughly equal to the carbon absorbing work of 650 trees, each year. 🌳

(Impact calculation courtesy ReThink Disposable.)

Learn more about green businesses on our website, staylocal.org/green-biz or more about St. Roch Market at https://www.strochmarket.com/

05/05/2026

Ever compare yourself to a native plant? We invite you to try.