Business News - November 5

If you’re in the office today, I hope you make time to vote. In Virginia, the polls are open until 7pm!

Today’s Top Three:

• Say cheese! Our photoshoot for the Holiday Gift Guide is quickly approaching.

• Register for Small Business Saturday! #ShopSmall

• RPD is hosting a Residential Meeting over dinner to discuss safety.

Bonus: Don’t miss the Virginia Veterans Day Parade this weekend!

Keep reading to stay informed!  

- Joya Garris, Community Engagement and Communications Manager

Stay Informed

Dining Award Winners Announced 🏆

Congratulations to all of the winners of The Roanoker Magazine’s 2025 Dining Awards! Over 30 downtown businesses won awards across multiple categories, including best brunch, tacos, and seafood.

Business Feature: Elite Lashes & Ink

Another new business opened its doors in Downtown Roanoke.

Ambassadors in Action 📸 

Get Involved

RPD Residential Meeting 👮 

Wednesday, November 20th at 6pm in Charter Hall, City Market Building

Property Managers, save the date! The Roanoke Police Department is hosting a Residential Meeting to discuss safety concerns. Don’t forget to mention that there will be FREE FOOD for residents! 🌮 

Questions? Please reach out to RPD.

Showcase Your Business with DRI’s Gift Guide 🎁

The Downtown Holiday Gift Guide is back! Set to launch in late November, it’s perfectly timed for Black Friday and Small Business Saturday, putting your products in front of holiday shoppers.

Photoshoot Dates: November 14th & 15th

Item Drop-Off: Please bring your items to DRI by November 11th, no later than 4:30 p.m.

Our photographer and I will handle the styling and photography of your items and will let you know when they’re ready for pickup. Please also email me with the item names, prices, and categories, or I can select categories for you.

Categories: Gifts for Her, Accessories, Gifts for Him, Gifts for the Home, Food & Beverage, Self Care, Gifts for Kids, Gifts for Pets, Gifts Under $20

All retailers received full details by email, but feel free to reach out with any questions! You can reply to this email or contact me directly at [email protected].

Join us for Small Business Saturday 🛍️

Small Business Saturday is Saturday, November 30th from 10am - 6pm at various businesses throughout downtown, and you’re invited to participate! This event is perfect for clearing out last season’s products and encouraging local shopping for the holidays.

By participating in this event, you’ll receive FREE promotion! We’ll include you in the webpage, Facebook event, social media mentions, feature (blog) post, etc.

Late Night Fun: Extend Your Hours!

Holiday Night Market 🎨 

Keep your doors open for our new Holiday Night Market on Saturday, November 23rd from 4-8pm. We are excited to partner with Savvy Events once again to bring craft vendors, holiday-themed vendors, and regular Farmers Market vendors setting up for an extended day for customers to meet their holiday shopping needs! Additionally, this event will be family-friendly with free activities for kids throughout the Market area!

Dickens of a Christmas 🎄

Boost your holiday sales by staying open during Dickens of a Christmas!

DRI will list your business in a special Roanoke Times Dickens insert if you commit to staying open late each night of Dickens (Dec. 6, 13, and 20), which is FREE promotion for your business!

If you haven’t already done so, hit reply on this email to let us know you’re staying open late.

Gain Knowledge & Network

Get a Budget-Friendly Headshot 📸 

Reminder: Ad 2 Roanoke is hosting Headshot Happy Hour at The Quarters THIS Wednesday, November 6, from 5:30-7:30pm.

Cost is $10 for members and $20 for non-members.

Tired of Boring Captions?

Writing social media posts for the same content daily is exhausting. At a certain point, you run out of ideas. If you haven’t already, try an AI generator! I’m testing out ahrefs.com, and so far, I really like it. I can easily upload an image and select the tone I want (formal, casual, engaging, etc.). Choosing whether or not to include emojis and hashtags is as simple as clicking a button. In seconds, I have an interesting caption for my social media posts. The generator also works when I don’t upload a picture but add a brief description.

Try it out for your next post and let me know what you think!

Events, Street Closures, & Parking

Downtown Events and Street Closures 🚧

The following street closures and associated events may affect Downtown traffic and business for the week of November 4 - 10.

• Straight Street Youth Night on Friday, 11/8 & Saturday, 11/9 from 4pm - 11pm

  Closure: Luck Ave between 3rd St and 4th St

• Virginia Veteran’s Parade on Saturday, 11/9 at 11am

  Closure: Jefferson St, Campbell Ave, Williamson Rd, and Franklin Rd

Check out our Event Calendar for a full list of events.

Find Downtown Parking 🅿️

With more than 1,300 on-street spaces and 7,000+ off-street spaces, plenty of free or paid parking options exist.

Parking Information

DRI - Your Downtown Partner

Put DRI to work for you! 💼

Our mission is to make Downtown Roanoke the preferred place to Work, Live, and Play. As a Downtown business, you have a valuable FREE resource at your fingertips. Let us help share your story!

Website Listings on DowntownRoanoke.org - Our business listings often come up among the first in Google searches. Help us enhance your listing by providing us with vital information including website, phone number, description, hours, menus, and images.

Fill out the form.

Job Listings on DowntownRoanoke.org - Downtown Roanoke is the most vibrant workplace around and a destination for job seekers. Let us help get the word out when you’re hiring!

Submit a job listing here.

Event Listings on DowntownRoanoke.org - Our Event Calendar is THE place people go to find out what’s happening Downtown. Get your event in front of the audience you’re looking for.

Submit an event here.

Important Contacts 👤

Often businesses need phone numbers for government services, such as solid waste, permitting, etc., and other services, such as private parking and transportation.

Check out our list of frequently requested information!

Important Contacts