I recently sent a text to Carol and Jesse Holland. Jesse replied that he had five customers in the store and would get back to me soon.

Let that sink in for a moment.

Just a few years ago, Brooks approached RIDC to collaborate on opening a BIPOC-owned running specialty store. At the time, we could count on two hands the number of running specialty stores in the U.S. with any BIPOC ownership: Renegade Running in Oakland, California; Southwest Runners in Farmington, New Mexico; Charlotte Running Company in Charlotte, North Carolina; Elite Feet in Middletown, Delaware; and a handful of others. Brooks believed RIDC could help change that.

We moved quickly to design a pilot program, give it a name—RUN THE BLOCK—and build a landing page and application form on our website. Brooks committed $200,000 to the winner, and their team members across marketing, PR, and sales supported the program’s build-out and execution.

I remember standing on stage with Brooks CEO Dan Sheridan at The Running Event (TRE) 2023, announcing the RUN THE BLOCK program publicly for the first time during the Industry Awards.

With plans in place, investment from Brooks, and support from partners such as Playmakers, Charm City Run, OutsidePR, and Strava, we opened applications. I’ll be honest: I thought 20 applications would be a dream. After a lot of outreach, including a feature in ESSENCE, we received 109 applications.

An incredible review committee and a separate selection committee, led by RIDC’s Chris Lampen-Crowell and Abigail Hollie, ultimately selected Carol and Jesse Holland. We brought them to TRE 2024, where they shared the name and vision for the store they were about to build.

RUN THE BLOCK included dedicated mentorship through Karnan Associates, a retail consulting firm that works closely with independent running stores on financial planning, merchandising, operations, and long-term growth. The Hollands also met with vendors and retailers across the country and began building community well before opening through weekly group walks and local engagement.

They initially planned to open in summer 2025, but delays beyond their control pushed the opening to winter 2025. Delayed, but not denied!

Now we are here. The doors are open, the store is beautiful, and the Hollands are welcoming friends, family, and the entire DC, Maryland, and Virginia (DMV) community to Haraka Run and Walk on February 21 from 9-12 PM to celebrate. Register today!

If you are in the DMV area, we hope you will join the Hollands for their grand opening event. Please help spread the word and show your support! If you cannot visit the store in person, you can still support Haraka Run and Walk by shopping online and sharing with others.

To the Hollands: We are so proud of you. YOU DID IT!!!