‘It’s bigger than the dollar’: Several Black-owned businesses holding pay-what-you-can week

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- For the second year in a row, several local and Black-owned businesses are holding 'Unity Pay-What-You-Can Week'.

What began as a solo effort at Philly Vegan to give back to the community after COVID, has since grown into a broader initiative focused on collaboration and community among Black-owned businesses in Richmond, said owner Samuel Veney.

"Everybody has a special menu that is tailored to pay what you can," Veney said. "The menu is set up, so that way they can service as many people as they can and it doesn't interrupt their business. You can choose something from it and just pay whatever you can pay."

Veney and other participating restaurants, like the Richmond Croaker Spot, are offering menus for it through Sunday.

"Last year, there were only seven of us in it," said Croaker Spot Owner Sherita McGowan said. "And now Samuel has restaurants and other cities that have joined, you know, it got recognized nationwide."

McGowan, owner of Croaker Spot, joined the movement and has seen it expand. Only the Richmond location of her restaurant is participating.

"We can collaborate and, you know, bring unity amongst us because, there's always the stigma that they think we're all in competition with each other and we're not," McGowan said.

This year, Veney said 12 restaurants are participating across the state, not just locally.

"This has been one of our slowest starts of the year, even worse than the water crisis,” Veney said. "Food makes people happy, and we know they can bring them joy through tough times. So everybody decided, hey, look, it's bigger than the dollar."

Veney said he believes the sky is the limit for the movement’s future.

"People celebrate Black history all throughout the world during this month, while also we are doing something very special that started last year and who knows what he can grow into," he said. "Maybe this ends up being the week all across the nation."