Walk into a few shops around town and you might think you’ve stepped into a war zone – plexiglass, dirty floors, and clutter (a few local variety stores come to mind). But amongst those more chaotic establishments, there are some real gems – striking storefronts, pleasant awnings, clean floors. The kind of place you want to stay around in for a while. But where are they?

Crown Heights based company Ground Up Designers is seeking to answer that. As part of a new initiative, this architect (Lana), interior designer (Kristen), and graphic designer (Tayef) trio are launching a book and creating a digital map to showcase all of the well designed spots in Crown Heights and the surrounding neighborhoods. But they need some help, so they have turned to Kickstarter:

“Stemming from our desire to meet new people, introduce ourselves to the world, and get to know our community, we have designed a book, a digital map, and a party. All together this interactive project is called ‘Built + Branded’. The goal for “Built + Branded” is to showcase the best designed small businesses in the five Brooklyn neighborhoods surrounding our studio; Prospect Heights, Crown Heights, Clinton Hill, Fort Greene and Bed Stuy.”

Included in the mix are some of your local favorite places like About Time Boutique, Glass Shop, Park Delicatessen, Franklin Park and Basil. To boot, there will be a party to help them celebrate the launch of the book.

Projects like these are a great way of incentivizing businesses to open quality establishments in the nabe. So check it out and support if the spirit so moves you!

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