MORRIS COUNTY, NJ — A 15-year-old entrepreneur is taking his passion for business development and promotion to new heights, and hopes to lift up Morris County businesses in the process.
Giovanni DiDomenico started Shop Morris County with an Instagram post last year, when he was still in eighth grade. The effort has been growing ever since, as the Parsippany native highlights locally-owned shops, restaurants, and services as well as events.
Giovanni recently launched ShopMorrisCounty.com, which he describes as “your Morris County resource” and also the first county-wide guide of its kind.
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“It’s to help either small businesses get their name out there, or residents and visitors trying to find out what’s going on in the county,” he said. “Maybe people are looking for ice cream, you could go to the search bar and type in ‘ice cream’ and look for different shops. “
He also highlighted several businesses in Jefferson Township, after a sudden bridge closure significantly reduced their customer turnout.
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“It’s a Morris County movement,” he said. “We want to stay local, we want to support these small businesses.”
The idea for this effort began when he was out to eat in Boonton with his father John, who is a small business owner himself — he has owned and operated Supreme Office Cleaning for the past 15 years.
John said that while they were in the restaurant, he told his son that he’d been thinking of starting a Morris County guide years ago, but it didn’t come to fruition.
“(Giovanni) said, ‘Dad, why wait? We’re doing it,'” John remembered. “And the next thing you know, a few seconds later, he had an Instagram page called Shop Morris County.”
Since that first post with photos from Al Aqsa Restaurant on April 1, 2023, the Instagram page has gained more than 3,500 followers.
Giovanni, who is going into his sophomore year at Morris County School of Technology in Denville, also set up a booth at the Tri-County Fair in Rockaway last month to connect with more business owners.
John said it has inspired him to see his son working so diligently and to see the movement grow, even as it’s still in its earlier stages.
“We’re still new out there, and unique in our approach,” he said. “And I’m happy to just be a part of it, it’s really nice to watch it continually grow.”
Giovanni writes articles on local events, restaurants, stores, services, and family activities for the website, which has also seen the number of daily readers grow over the past month.
There are a few dozen articles on the site as of mid-July, and Giovanni said he will keep writing and keep connecting with local companies. For the summer, he also launched a digital Morris County Guide with event ideas, articles, and advertisements.
“I just think digital is the way to go, definitely,” he said. “Especially with social media, as something can blow up overnight.”
And as well as promoting local companies and events, Giovanni hopes that Shop Morris County can showcase exciting things in the county and help businesses work together to support one another. This is a project that he will continue to grow, as he pursues his interests in business development.
“I’ve already put so much effort, I want to continue it,” he said. “It’s still in the beginning, it could grow a lot more.”
John said that he is confident the movement will grow, and foster pride and community in Morris County.
“We’re all one, all cultures, all peoples, all business owners,” he added.
You can check out Shop Morris County online and on social media.
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