Tia Woods had been the coordinator of a dance program. It closed but left her with space in East Hartford. She had a business idea: Woods, who is Black, knew many minority artisans needed space to show and sell their products.
So in February 2019, she created what she called a “modern consignment boutique” called “ITS the Room,” a kind of mini-mall where minority entrepreneurs, crafters and artists could set up shop. After a year, things looked promising. She had as many as 18 vendors, and people were coming in the door.
“We were doing well. I was learning marketing, figuring it out,” she said in a recent telephone interview.
But then the coronavirus arrived. She “didn’t have the capital to pay the rent” without income and closed in March. She is now working at a residential care facility in Hartford.
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