LOGAN SQUARE — The staff at Paulie Gee’s is lending a hand to local vendors left reeling after Dom’s Kitchen & Market and Foxtrot suddenly closed last month.
The popular, award-winning pizzeria is offering space inside its Logan Square restaurant for local vendors to set up and sell their products at no charge.
Vendors can sign up online to sell their products 5-10 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays at the restaurant, 2451 N. Milwaukee Ave., for the foreseeable future, said Derrick Tung, the owner of Paulie Gee’s.
There is space for about two vendors to set up at the same time. The plan is to rotate vendors who signed up to make sure everyone has at least two occasions to sell, Tung said.
The gesture looks to help the makers and local companies whose products were stocked at Foxtrot and Dom’s locations. Following the closures, some vendors are facing thousands in unpaid invoices from the grocery chain. Other vendors previously told Block Club the hit of losing Foxtrot and Dom’s could put them out of business since the stores were responsible for much of their sales volume.
“We can’t replace that [revenue] fully for them, but at least we can help get their name out there and hopefully they can continue to grow what they had planned,” Tung said.
Tung was once a small business vendor selling pizzas at local farmers markets without a brick-and-mortar store, so he understands the financial struggle of being an entrepreneur, he said.
The initiative could also benefit Paulie Gee’s, which usually sees its lowest sales on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Tung had been trying to find creative solutions to getting more people in the door those days, so he hopes having vendors can bring in more foot traffic, he said.
“This happened at an unfortunate time for vendors but an OK time for us,” Tung said. “We were like, ‘Let’s scrap what we had planned and let’s just do this for now.’ We’re kind of playing with it and seeing what we want to do with it just to be a little bit more community-driven.”
Tung is also offering discounted pizza and beer to employees who were unexpectedly laid off from the grocery chains. Former employees, who have filed a class-action lawsuit and have demanded back pay from the company, can dine at both Paulie Gee’s locations if they show an April pay stub and an ID, Tung said.
At the Logan Square location, those affected can enjoy any pizza, shot or select beer for $15. Former employees can also get a discount at the Wicker Park location, and 20 percent off the bill at both spots.
Tung is one of several independent business owners and local markets stepping up to help the vendors who relied on sales from Dom’s and Foxtrot.
Ándale Market in Andersonville is hosting a pop-up market for Foxtrot and Dom’s vendors with no booth fee this month. Since space is limited, vendors need to apply online to the pop-up by Wednesday. Market organizers will accept 16 vendors who will take home 100 percent of sales, organizers said on social media.
Local virtual market Here Here Market is offering a free month for artisans and chefs to join its platform and a 15 percent discount for customers shopping those vendors.
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