A number of Queens community partners came together last week to celebrate Flash’s Bicycle Barn, a legacy black-owned business that has lined Springfield Boulevard in Queens Village for the past 46 years.
The community celebration, led by Aleeia Abraham of the BlaQue Resource Network, took place outside the bicycle repair shop at 107-34 Springfield Blvd. on Friday, Aug. 7, featuring an appearance from NYC Chief Equity Officer & Commissioner Afua Atta Mensah and around 20 members of the local community.
The store, operated by Doreen Thompson and her daughter Tesha, has lined Springfield Boulevard since 1980, offering bicycle repair services for local residents ever since.
Photo by Shane O’Brien
Abraham said it is vital to ensure that legacy, family-owned businesses like Flash’s, which was opened by Doreen’s father in 1980, can be empowered to stay open in their community.
“A lot of our legacy businesses hold so much of our history… you can tell so much about a community by just looking at its storefront,” Abraham said. “Obviously, there’s an economic value with having people who live nearby keeping their businesses open. They employ locally and they care about their community.”
She said mom-and-pop businesses offer “something different” to chains that open throughout the city, stating that long-term independent businesses are part of the fabric of their communities.
“We want to keep people here,” she said.
Aleeia Abraham, founder of the BlaQue Resource Network. Photo by Shane O’Brien
Abraham called on the local community to support businesses like Flash’s, even if they don’t ride a bike. In that case, she said, local residents can help by spreading the word to people who cycle frequently.
“We need you guys to stay open,” Abraham told Tesha, who runs the store alongside her mother. “You’re part of our story. You tell a portion of black history.”
Abraham said she founded the BlaQue Resource Network seven years ago as a resource for black-owned businesses and to help celebrate black culture, history and entrepreneurship in Queens.
“Maybe Queens people were having a hard time finding out what’s going on,” she said. “Maybe Queens people were having a hard time getting information.”
Mensah credited Abraham and BlaQue Resource Network with creating a “beautiful storm” with a strong civic organization that cares for the local communities it represents, adding that it was an “honor” to join last week’s celebration.
“To be able to stand with a small business owner and support is so important,” Mensah said. “Small businesses are what make this city thrive.”
Tom Grech, president and CEO of the Queens Chamber of Commerce, said it was important to promote legacy businesses like Flash’s, stating that he did not know the store existed until Abraham posted a video about it on her Instagram last week.
“(Today’s celebration) is all about giving small businesses a chance,” Grech said. “It’s not about shopping at Walmart or shopping online. It’s about buying a bicycle and getting it serviced locally.”
Queens Chamber of Commerce CEO Tom Grech. Photo by Shane O’Brien
Local resident Steve White said he has been shopping at Flash’s for generations, stating that he has bought his and his children’s bikes at the family-owned store.
“They always say a village raises a child, but the way they instilled that (love of bike riding) into my kids, I always appreciated that,” White said at the celebration.
Tesha said she has seen significant change in the neighborhood while working at the store across the decades, stating that kids are less inclined to ride bikes now than previously.
“After school finishes, a lot of kids are staying at home,” Tesha said. “They’re not outside. They’re not engaged anymore.”
Tesha, who has been working at the store ever since her grandfather opened it in 1980, spoke of its personal significance, stating that she has built her life around the bicycle repair shop.
“This is my home. This is my passion. This has been my life. And this is what I love,” she said.
Photo by Shane O’Brien