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Arthur’s Hardware / Photo courtesy of Nancy J. Parisi
Shopping local is more important than ever before. The pandemic has impacted businesses all over the world, but especially small local businesses.
If you’re shopping local for the holidays, this is a list you need in your life. Erie County has collaborated with Visit Buffalo Niagara to create guides for every neighborhood in the area. Here’s a quick recap:
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Local Shopping Districts:
Elmwood Village
The Elmwood Village is home to some of the city’s most popular shops, bars and restaurants. You’ll find all sorts of independently-owned and artisanal retailers as you explore this walkable neighborhood.
Williamsville
The Main Street shopping experience is one of the major perks of this neighborhood. When you visit this neighborhood, you’ll find it’s full of bustling boutiques and local restaurants and bars to support.
Hertel Avenue
Hertel Avenue is one of Buffalo’s most diverse business districts. You’ll find a mix of old and new here from new bars, restaurants, and shops to established eateries and long-tenured businesses.
Michigan Corridor
The corner of Michigan and Broadway is the heart of Buffalo’s African-American history and heritage.
Allentown
Allentown has a creative energy unlike anywhere else in the city. This neighborhood is full of live music bars, art galleries, restaurants, and locally-owned shops.
Five Points
From a traditional African clothing maker to a well-stocked wine retailer to an artisan chocolate maker, you’ll find a diverse range of small businesses, restaurants, and artisans in the Five Points neighborhood.
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Black Rock
Black Rock still retains its own distinct charm. From classic taverns and diners to innovative restaurants, the businesses here reflect the neighborhood’s unique character and history.
Fillmore District
The Fillmore District is another hub of activity on the city’s East Side.
Downtown
Downtown Buffalo has undergone a radical transformation over the years. Ellicott Street has welcomed new restaurants, breweries, and distilleries, and new hotels, eateries, shops and entertainment options are popping up along the waterfront at Canalside.
Clarence
Erie County’s first township, dating all the way back to 1808, is still filled with historic charm. A trip to this town will take you back to a simpler time.
East Aurora
The village of East Aurora continues to embrace its creative roots. You’ll find a family owned 5 & 10 store here as well as locally-owned cafes, boutiques, and restaurants.
Hamburg
Hamburg has a small-town spirit. You’ll find walkable streets, fine dining, and boutiques here as well as decades-old neighborhood ice cream parlor and movie theatre.
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Parkside
Frederick Law Olmsted designed this entire neighborhood. Parkside is home to Frank Lloyd Wright’s Darwin Martin House Complex and the Buffalo Zoo as well as cultural attractions, coffee shops, and even a cupcakery.
Kenmore
Buffalo’s first suburb is a blend of tradition and reinvention. This vibrant central business district today is home to long-running businesses as well as newcomers.
Larkinville
Larkinville is one of the city’s most impressive transformations. Formerly empty warehouses and vacant parcels are now home to restaurants, breweries, and distilleries.
Broadway-Fillmore
Once the heart of Buffalo’s Polish population, the crossroads of Broadway and Fillmore Avenue is now a diverse neighborhood of African-American, Vietnamese and Bangladeshi residents.
Grant Street
This historically Italian neighborhood has been transformed by newcomers from around the world. The center of all this activity is the West Side Bazaar, a business incubator that helps recently-arrived entrepreneurs pursue their dreams of owning their own businesses.
South Buffalo
South Buffalo has always been the heart of Buffalo’s Irish community. Irish music, dance and culture is celebrated and preserved here. You’ll find Irish pubs here as well as quaint shops.
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University Heights
University Heights is Buffalo’s college corridor. You’ll find a strip of restaurants, bars, and small shops here that cater UB’s South Campus. This neighborhood feels just as eclectic and diverse as students.
Springville
Springville has a traditional Main Street with small, locally-owned shops. But that’s not all. Springville is also home to an innovative regional arts hub with theater, visual arts, and musical programming.
Orchard Park
Our favorite football team calls this neighborhood home. Beyond Buffalo Bills games, you’ll find a vintage American village set in gently rolling countryside as well as locally-owned, independent businesses.
Visit Buffalo Niagara
This article is a paid promotion by one of our advertisers. With these paid articles our goal is to share valuable information with our readers that we think you’ll find useful and interesting.