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FY26 Made in DC Curator & Retail Innovation Grant Program Expired
Grantaura Eligibility Checker

Eligibility for FY26 Made in DC Curator & Retail Innovation Grant Program

Curator-led temporary retail pop-up grant for DC operators with space control and 15+ MiDC-certified makers

Amount $25,000
Deadline Closed on: May 13, 2026
Location Washington & more
Category Grants For For-Profit Businesses
Questions 10 total
Required 10 required
View full grant on Grantaura Updated April 20, 2026 on Grantaura.

Sometimes the hardest part of a grant is not writing well. It is knowing whether you belong in the room at all. This eligibility page cuts through the brochure language. I want you to see the real gates before you spend hours in DES. The FY26 Made in DC Curator Grant is not for every local operator. It asks for space control before funding, a bench of fifteen certified makers, and a compliance stack that punishes wishful thinking. If you are still figuring out the lease or your maker roster is half aspiration, that matters. Let us test your fit against the actual checklist. Your Grant Assessment fee is non-refundable, but the base assessment fee can be deducted once toward the same grant's Full Application when you choose the optional checkbox at checkout.

The two gates that stop most applicants cold

Space first. Then makers. That order is not negotiable. If you do not already hold a valid unexpired lease or another legally verifiable document proving your right to operate in a DC retail space, this grant is still an idea for you. Not an application. I keep seeing people soften this into maybe an LOI works. No. The RFA does not ask for conceptual interest. It asks for legal evidence. Those are not the same thing and the distance between them has killed applications before scoring even begins. After that comes the fifteen-business rule. Fifteen. Minimum. And each participating business needs its own Made in DC certification, which takes about four to six weeks to obtain. Six weeks of certification lag stacked against a mid-May close is not a problem you solve by writing faster. Which is why I would verify certification status for every maker on your list before you write a single word of the program plan. Every single one.

Why DES is the real work container, not the final click

The public MiDC page helps you understand the program. DES is where your packet lives, gets built, gets reviewed, and either clears or dies. DSLBD says submissions must go through DES only - no hand delivery, no email, no mail, no courier. One door. So the question is not whether you understand the grant. It is whether you are building your prep inside the right system from the start. Start cold in the portal and you end up organizing a rejection rather than building an application. Big difference. If your fit feels close but not settled, or if the packet exists in pieces and you need someone to identify what breaks first, the assessment makes sense. Your Grant Assessment fee is non-refundable, but the base assessment fee can be deducted once toward the same grant's Full Application when you choose the optional checkbox at checkout. That step is not a formality. It is a pressure test. Schedule a Consultation Call

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Grantaura Grant Details

FY26 Made in DC Curator & Retail Innovation Grant Program

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Eligibility Requirements (Source-Based)

  1. Is your business physically located in Washington DC or domiciled in DC with a valid DC business license? Required
    Confidence: H
    Source
  2. Do you hold an active DC business license or acceptable alternative licensure relevant to your industry? Required
    Confidence: H
    Source Source
  3. Is your organization in corporate good standing with an active corporate registration file number? Required
    Confidence: H
    Source
  4. Can you provide a Certificate of Clean Hands issued within the last 90 days showing no outstanding District liability? Required
    Confidence: H
    Source
  5. Can you provide a valid unexpired lease or other legally verifiable document evidencing a right to operate in a DC retail space? Required
    Confidence: H
    Source
  6. Will the identified retail space be operational by July 1, 2026? Required
    Confidence: H
    Source Source
  7. Can you submit an attestation in DES that the identified retail space will be active and operational by July 1, 2026? Required
    Confidence: H
    Source
  8. Do you have proof of Commercial General Liability Insurance, and if applicable Workers Compensation and Automobile Liability Insurance? Required
    Confidence: H
    Source
  9. Has your organization and its Executive Director or officers avoided suspension from any District grant program within the last five years? Required
    Confidence: H
    Source
  10. How many MiDC-certified businesses can you realistically recruit and support for the activation period? Required
    Confidence: H
    Source Source