Recently Eagle Mountain City created a virtual Main Street on its website. This main street is open to Eagle Mountain businesses and has the ability to allow vendors to sell products as well as a booking service. You can go to the virtual Main Street by following this URL: https://eaglemountaincity.com/mainstreet/. I added Cedar Valley Sentinel (formerly i84005) to the store and was approved in a matter of minutes. I was then able to set up my storefront and was up and running in less than 15 minutes. I don’t have any products to sell, but do offer services to the community. The site allows you to connect to a Stripe account so you can collect for the products and services you see on the site.
“Main Street is a digital multi-vendor marketplace for Eagle Mountain’s local businesses. This marketplace was established to provide a common location for all local shopping to make it easier for residents to find and shop local businesses. Residents can shop products and book services directly through this marketplace. Local small businesses are invited to register as a vendor on Main Street at no cost by going to the Vendor Portal page.”
I recently sent a series of questions to Evan Berrett, the City Staff member that has been working on this project. He was more than happy to answer my questions and to give me some more details on the project. His email interview is below.
One of the concerns I had was in regard to cost. What is the budget impact for the virtual Main Street as well as the cost for businesses to join?
Q: What is the annual cost of the program for the city?
A: Annual costs are related to licenses for the tools used for creating Main Street and presently total $626.00/year. In time, we hope to work with the Eagle Mountain Chamber of Commerce to transition to their control. Presently, due to technical limitations, they are unable to host the Main Street tools.
Q: Are there any requirements for being a vendor (i.e. location, business license, etc.)
A: There is no cost to be a vendor, and a business license is not required. We only limit vendors to those located within Eagle Mountain City, and products must be appropriate for a local government website (no weapons, adult products, etc.)
I then asked a series of questions about the project itself, and who has been involved in the project.
Q: How long has this been in the works?
A: From concept to creation, it has been around two months.
Q: What is the purpose of the program?
A: The purpose of Main Street Eagle Mountain is ultimately to support our local small businesses. Main Street Eagle Mountain does this by providing a central location where residents can go to shop multiple Eagle Mountain businesses at once. It helps residents find the local businesses that they may not know are here and makes it easier to shop local by purchasing from different businesses in a single checkout experience, similar to Etsy or Amazon (just not as sophisticated, and only for Eagle Mountain). We also wanted to ensure that businesses that are service-oriented are equally supported in Eagle Mountain. Fortunately, the capability exists in the tools we are using to provide service-oriented businesses the ability to sell appointments, bookings, reservations, class sign-ups, etc. In the future, we hope to pass administration of Main Street over to the Eagle Mountain Chamber of Commerce once enough interest is present, and the Eagle Mountain Chamber of Commerce is technically capable of doing so.
Q: Is this in response to COVID-19, and if so, will it continue after the pandemic?
A: Yes, this idea came about as a way to help local businesses through the COVID-19 pandemic. We would like to see Main Street Eagle Mountain continue after the pandemic has subsided if there is interest from businesses and the residents of Eagle Mountain City. It is not intended to replace any existing markets such as the Farmers Market, or ShopFest Utah, but compliment them year-round.
Q: Are there any other organizations that are helping with this project in terms of funding, time, consulting?
A: Thus far Main Street Eagle Mountain has been funded solely by Eagle Mountain City and setup in-house by Eagle Mountain City staff with some help with needed site customizations from our contracted website developers. As mentioned earlier, we hope to involve the Eagle Mountain Chamber of Commerce soon and ultimately pass it on to them.
The site contains some very informative tutorial videos on how to setup up products and add your branding to the site. Please go visit the site and give the Eagle Mountain businesses some support in this time of the pandemic.
“All Eagle Mountain based businesses are invited to setup a store on Main Street Eagle Mountain. Vendor Registration creates your store within Main Street and gets your basic details and setup taken care of.
Please watch the instructional videos to help you through creating your store. Main Street Eagle Mountain has many features and options, so the videos are a great way to get started.
Need help with Registration? Contact Evan Berrett at eberrett@emcity.org”
Mike Kieffer – Editor-in-Chief, Cedar Valley Sentinel
Mike Kieffer is a dynamic leader and community advocate based in Eagle Mountain, Utah. He serves as the Editor-in-Chief of the Cedar Valley Sentinel, a local publication dedicated to informing, inspiring, and elevating the Cedar Valley community through honest and accurate journalism. With a passion for fostering connections, Kieffer has made it his mission to highlight local businesses, provide reliable news, and support community development.
Beyond his editorial role, Kieffer is the owner of Lake Mountain Media, LLC, a company specializing in media and communications, and the co-owner of Quail Run Farms, which focuses on sustainable farming and community engagement. He also actively contributes to the local economy and culture as a member of the Eagle Mountain Chamber of Commerce.
Kieffer’s dedication extends to preserving and promoting the history and heritage of the Cedar Valley area. He often participates in community-centered events and media, including podcasts that explore the unique aspects of life in the region. Through his varied endeavors, he remains a steadfast advocate for the growth and enrichment of the local community.