Biddeford is among 10 towns competing to win a $500,000 makeover for six businesses and a starring role in a reality TV series.
Representatives from the Hulu series “Small Business Revolution – Main Street” were in Biddeford on Monday for a community-wide event to promote the contest and are scheduled to meet with local businesses Tuesday. Each season, the show features a town selected by a public vote that then undergoes a business makeover with help from celebrity experts.
The series is co-hosted by Amanda Brinkman, who created the show, and Ty Pennington, known for shows like “Trading Spaces” and “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.”
“We have had such an incredible response from communities across the country wanting to be featured in season 4,” Brinkman said in a statement. “Nearly 12,000 nominations poured in this year and fans of small businesses flooded our social media pages with posts about favorite local businesses.”
The other communities being considered for the fourth season of the series are Arlington, Washington; Camas, Washington; Corsicana, Texas; Marinette, Wisconsin; Menominee, Michigan; Searcy, Arkansas; Cañon City, Colorado; Durant, Oklahoma; Pageland, South Carolina; and Washington, North Carolina.
Biddeford was entered into the running by Heart of Biddeford, a nonprofit Main Street Maine program that promotes the city’s downtown. Delilah Poupore, executive director of Heart of Biddeford, said the contest is a unique opportunity to draw attention to Biddeford’s ongoing revitalization and could provide a boost to small businesses.
“I have watched the first three seasons and their approach is a completely respectful one that tries to help a business develop its own goals,” Poupore said. “If we win, we’ll see six businesses rise to a whole new level of success. By them getting increased support, they raise a bar on what a small business can do. The other small businesses around them benefit from that.”
The top five communities will be announced in mid-February. The public will have a week to vote before the winning town is announced at the end of February. Small businesses from the winning town will be able to apply to be featured on the show.
Gillian Graham can be contacted at 791-6315 or at:
Twitter: grahamgillian
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