Mystic Ginger Receives $5K Grant From Gloucester Township

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — Mystic Ginger, an Organic Salon and Herbal Apothecary, and Local Artist Boutique in Blackwood, has been awarded a Small Business Assistance Grant for $5,000 from Gloucester Township, township officials announced.

“It’s super helpful because now we can purchase PPE, supplies and promote our business,” Mystic Ginger owner Kellie D'Ascenzo said in a video announcing the grant.

In 2019, D’Ascenzo tapped into her years of experience doing cosmetology in New York to open Mystic Ginger.

The establishment offers skin remedies, teas, and 20 local makers that specialize in pottery, jewelry and soaps. The artisans are all from the South Jersey and Philadelphia region.

She says she's a certified herbalist and her salon is focused on the ingredients in all the products.Read more here: Mystic Ginger Apothecary Grand Opening Feb. 16 In Gloucester

Mystic Ginger is located at 102 South Black Horse Pike in the Blackwood section of Gloucester Township. It can be reached by phone at 856-563-6634, by email at mysticgingerapothecary@gmail.com and through their Facebook page.

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Gloucester Township created the Small Business Assistance Program using $425,000 of the $493,426 in Community Block Development Grants it received through the federal CARES Act.

The program is for small businesses that have been negatively impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. It makes up to $5,000 available for these businesses for up to 120 days.

Gloucester Township stores, restaurants, entertainment, and nonprofessional service businesses with no more than the equivalent of 10 full-time employees that were in business as of Dec. 31, 2019, are eligible to participate.

The business must have one employee, including the business owner, who will be retained and meets the low/moderate income requirement; or it may be located in an eligible program area.

The business must also be committed to opening or reopening and retain or re-employ at least one permanent job.

Anyone deemed eligible to participate by the federal Department of Urban and Housing Development (HUD) must enter into a financial assistance agreement, referred to as the "Participation Agreement," on terms that it reaches with the township.

Once they qualify, businesses may use the funding for working capital expenses. This includes payroll, rent/mortgage, utilities such as Internet or electricity, advertising/marketing, insurance and/or cost to comply with the state and any local social distancing policies.

Specifically excluded from eligible expenses are public utility payments and taxes, unless they are in escrow and included in a regular mortgage payment.

See related: Gloucester Twp. Offers Up To $5K For Small Businesses Amid COVID