About Retail Advancement Fund
The Retail Advancement Fund spends its giving locally in Richmond to support small retail and food-service businesses and neighborhood commercial vitality. Grants are almost exclusively small capital awards for asset purchases, equipment, or repairs targeted at independent restaurants, cafes, food markets, personal-service shops, and a few community-focused retail projects. The foundation appears oriented toward helping entrepreneurs—often repeatedly—to stabilize and grow brick-and-mortar storefronts that serve local neighborhoods. Its profile suggests place-based economic development and small-business resilience rather than programmatic nonprofit capacity-building.
Focus Areas
Independent neighborhood restaurants, cafes, and food markets in RichmondSmall retail storefronts and personal-service businesses (salons, cleaners)Micro-capital for equipment, repairs and asset purchases for small businessesPlace-based commercial corridor revitalization and neighborhood entrepreneurshipSmall business support organizations and community retail projects (e.g., Great Work RVA, Church Hill initiatives)
Who They Fund
grantee organizations (nonprofits/institutions) seeking capital or equipment
About Retail Advancement Fund
Retail Advancement Fund’s recent giving centers on repeated asset purchases for Richmond storefront businesses, from ice cream shops and restaurants to salons, cleaners, and neighborhood retail projects. The pattern is practical and local: grants are used to buy equipment, repair spaces, and add operating assets that help small businesses function in place. Several recipients appear more than once, which points to sustained support rather than one-off awards. Spotty Dog Ice Cream received grants in 2024 and 2025, while Urban Set Bride, Bonos Carribean Cuisine, Kitchen on Wellington, and Glean LLC also show follow-on funding across years. Those awards range from modest capital infusions to larger purchases, suggesting the funder is willing to back both immediate needs and incremental upgrades. The foundation also supports community-facing organizations tied to local commerce, including Great Work Rva and Church Hill-oriented projects. Its grantmaking reads as neighborhood economic development through micro-capital: helping independent businesses secure the physical assets, repairs, and software they need to keep storefronts open and serving Richmond residents.
What Retail Advancement Fund Funds
In food-service and neighborhood retail, Retail Advancement Fund has backed Richmond businesses with asset purchases for places such as Ms Girlee's Kitchen LLC, Second Bottle Wine & Snack Shop, and Dolce Pizza & Grill. These grants point to a strong emphasis on the day-to-day needs of independent kitchens, cafes, and markets. Personal-service businesses are also part of the portfolio. Lafox Hair Designs received support for repairs and asset purchases, while Jade Salon and C Alexander's Cleaners were funded for asset purchases. The foundation has likewise supported retail-oriented community projects through Great Work Rva, which received funding for asset purchases. Repair-oriented grants appear alongside equipment and software support. Glean LLC was funded both for assets and, in an earlier award, for assets including software, showing that the funder supports the operational side of small business as well as physical storefront needs.
How Retail Advancement Fund Gives
Typical grant size is tightly clustered around micro-capital: the p25 is $9,180, the median is $10,488, and the p75 is $16,489. That distribution sits well below large institutional grantmaking and fits asset-level support for small businesses. The record shows repeat awards to the same recipients across 2023, 2024, and 2025, including multiple years of support for several Richmond businesses. The foundation is a regular funder rather than a DAF, does not fund individuals, and does not make program-related investments. Giving appears project-based and restricted to capital, equipment, repairs, and related operational assets.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$368K
Total Assets
$81K
Total Revenue
$175K
Total Expenses
$194K
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $9K and $16K, with a median of $10K.
25th Percentile
$9K
Median
$10K
75th Percentile
$16K
Geographic Reach
Local1 state funded
About 100% of grants go to recipients in VA.
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Leadership
NANCY THOMAS
Accepts unsolicited proposals
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