‘It feels like a homecoming’: Vancouver businesses open in Chinatown to help revitalize area

While street disorder, anti-Asian racism and vandalism exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic are driving some away from Vancouver’s Chinatown, two business partners recently moved back to the historic neighbourhood because they want to be part of the solution.

The storefront at 83 East Pender Street had been vacant for more than seven years when Dustin Grant and Perry Lam relocated to the area in late June.

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“It feels like a homecoming,” Bootleg Barbers’ Dustin Grant said.

Grant opened his first barber shop in Chinatown in 2013 but left four years later due to various reasons that included a rent hike.

After trying a couple of different East Vancouver locations, he now wants to help bring the neighbourhood back up to shape.

“It’s one of the most beautiful historical parts of the city and to see it deteriorate over the past years the way that it was, it’s sad,” Grant told Global News in an interview.

Perry Lam said he tried to launch his men’s clothing store in Gastown last year but the neighbourhood proved too tough.

He’s now sharing Grant’s space and together, the pair hopes to be part of the change.

“I think we’re really trying to offer to help clean up the community,” said the owner of Private & Co.

“Bring like a whole new vibe and have the tourism come down back here again.”

The building housing their retail unit is owned by the Cheng Wing Yeong Tong Society.

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The ground-level space had been empty since the Peking Lounge furniture store — known for its window displays — closed at the end of March 2015.

Everything, including the floor, was in disrepair, according to the Chinatown society association.

“Five, ten years, nobody (did anything), you can’t even walk around there, that’s actually how bad it is,” said Mike Jang with the Cheng Wing Yeong Tong Society.

The society spent thousands restoring the space, and Jang is glad they found the right tenants.

“Right now, the store is looking good,” Jang told Global News on Saturday.

It’s a positive sign for the revitalization of Chinatown, according to the Chinese Benevolent Association of Vancouver.

“They feel more comfortable to run businesses in Chinatown, so it’s a matter to build that confidence in people so that they feel safe to come down to Chinatown,” president Fred Kwok told Global News.

“Before, they stay away from it because I guess it (didn’t) look good,” added Jang.

Lam has roots in the community and Jang gave him and Grant a break on rent to help them get started on their five-year lease.

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“We now have a solid landlord that wants a solid business here and not the type of landlord that just wants to squeeze every cent out of you every time your lease is up,” Grant said.

The pair is hoping their business will be “a cut above” in the heritage neighbourhood facing its share of ongoing challenges.