A number of iconic and longstanding restaurants in the Chinatown- International District (CID) have closed within the last year. Social entrepreneur Laura Clise is looking to stem the tide collaborating with community partners to launch Amplify, a campaign to support and sustain 35 small businesses in the historic neighborhood. The campaign kicks off in the throes of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

Consider that Harbor City closed in February after 37 years in business. Shanghai Garden, opened in 1990, will close at the end of May. Late night hangout Ho Ho Seafood, opened in 1987, closed last October.

Happy Food gained popular and critical acclaim when it opened last year but it closed in January in Little Saigon.

“We believe that safeguarding, celebrating and spending money in support of small businesses around Chinatown, Japantown and Little Saigon, is everyone’s responsibility, not just the local business owners’,” says Clise, a 2020 Seattle Magazine “Most Influential” selection. “In recognition of the unique place they occupy culturally in the city, we need to be more intentional about supporting and promoting these businesses.”

Clise is the founder and CEO of Intentionalist, the website that promotes local small businesses of diverse ownership. With Amplify, Clise is looking to sustainably support small businesses by providing promotional and marketing support, including professional photography and other marketing assets.

“It is hard to amplify CID businesses without access to good images and information,” Clise says. “Digital marketing and communication has really become essential. It’s more important than ever. For a number of reasons many CID businesses don’t have the bandwidth, the resources to build those muscles. They are in survival mode.”

Starting May 17, the AMPLIFY: Chinatown-International District Small Business Pass, presented by the Asian American Foundation, will feature special offers and discounts at participating businesses that is subsidized by the Asian American Foundation. To register go to the Amplify page.

Intentionalist collaborated with the Chinatown-International District Business Improvement Association and Friends of Little Saigon to select the featured 35 small businesses throughout the neighborhood.

“This isn’t just another ‘shop local’ campaign,” Intentionalist said in a statement. “We’re seeding relationships and providing tangible resources.”