TAMPA, Fla. — Small businesses are opening and expanding in downtown Tampa as business applications reached a record high nationwide in 2025, including two Sparkman Wharf retailers that grew from small starts into storefronts.
The U.S. Census Bureau said the country saw a record 5.7 million business applications in 2025, a more than $2 million increase since 2019. Florida ranked third in the country for both business applications per capita and for the number of new businesses that were likely to employ multiple people.
At Sparkman Wharf, Gabriel Santos is five weeks into operating his first storefront for Engrained Lifestyle Apparel, a brand focused on Tampa Bay-themed designs.
“There has always been a problem, in my opinion,” said Santos. “Finding a way to represent Tampa outside of your Bucs or Lightning or Devil Rays jersey.”
Santos started selling his designs online in May 2024 before moving into in-person sales through local markets.
Engrained Lifestyle Apparel is not the only Sparkman Wharf business that started as a temporary or smaller operation. Ben Prakobkit and his wife, Lisa, opened the second location of Modern Paws at the Wharf in 2020 after starting the pet shop company out of their apartment in 2015.
Prakobkit said the business began after their dog had an allergic reaction.
“We kind of went down the rabbit hole of more of a natural alternative to conventional medicine,” said Prakobkit.
Modern Paws now has several shops across the area.
With multiple locations and employees, Prakobkit said the owners understand the work their staff members do.
“All of our staff understand that, you know, there is nothing we would ask them to do that we haven’t done personally ourselves,” Prakobkit said.
The Tampa Downtown Partnership, which monitors businesses in the area, said downtown Tampa is also making strides.
“Tampa’s Downtown is entering its next phase of growth,” the organization’s CEO, Kenyetta Hairston-Bridges, said in a statement. She added that the group wants more retail small businesses and is “developing a Downtown Retail & Ground Floor Activation Strategy.”
Santos said he hopes more foot traffic downtown will bring more business. He is currently running the shop by himself and said he may eventually hire help.
“I’ve worked every single day since opening, so it is just part of the grind,” Santos said. “Like to me, I would rather gauge the traffic and see if I need to hire someone, when would I hire them?”
For now, Santos said he is working alone as he builds his brand in downtown Tampa.