Small Format Needs Your Help

We have exciting news about the future…

As many of you know, Small Format opened 3.5 years ago during the peak of the 2020 pandemic. We’ve always fancied ourselves a “3rd space” for queer creative communities to gather, ever-evolving to meet our needs and the needs of those around us. The vision has always been to cultivate a creative space that gives people a little more pleasure and joy; an intergenerational third-space for a queerness that de-centers the palatable mainstream monoculture (read: white, middle-class, and cis) and holds people through daily acts of resistance; a space for us, by us, where we can break bread together in the daylight; a space where marginalized people can dream, celebrate, and plot for liberation.

In response to the pandemic, this vision was forced to constantly shift to survive the unique threat to global health and never-before-seen economic pressure. Being a new business that signed the lease months before the pandemic halted the world as we know it, meant Small Format wasn't eligible for loans and aid aimed at lessening the impact of the pandemic for small businesses. Small Format has still taken the care to wear as many hats as are needed and wanted by our community: cafe, art gallery, community free food fridge, harm reduction training site, to name just a few.

The vision for this space has always been co-operative and collaborative, so after a lot of hard work and organizing, we are officially restructuring as a worker-owned business. Small Format is re-formatting!

In order to do this, we need a few weeks to catch our breath and make some much-needed improvements to the space. We will be temporarily closed to the public, from March 18th to April 25th. We cannot wait to reopen as a co-op, embodying our beliefs in non-hierarchical, symbiotic relationships.

As we navigate this major change, for the first time, we need to ask for monetary support from our community. Small businesses and local spaces for people to gather are shutting down all over the state. We are ready to do everything we can to continue, but we will not be able to do so without support. We have linked our crowdfunding page in our bio, all donated funds from which will be invested towards growing Small Format into the best possible worker-owned space and community resource that we are able to provide.

What the funds will be used for:

• Qualifying for a loan from the Co-operative Fund of the North East.

• Funding to provide more programming, and pay our staff to host beloved events such as book clubs. Currently most of our events are staffed through volunteer hours.

• Investing in equipment to do pop-ups, farmers markets, and catering.

• New, much needed kitchen equipment.

• New furniture for accommodating more body diversity in the space.