Small Business

Imam Cagdas has been making baklava the same way since 1887: entirely by hand, without any automation. The Gaziantep shop is now in its fifth generation of ownership, with Burhan Cagdas carrying on the craft his forefathers passed down to him.

Bodegas are one of New York City's oldest and largest neighborhood institutions, with more than 10,000 spread across the city's five boroughs. But this century-old industry is fighting to stay alive under rising rents, cutthroat competition, and Zohran Mamdani's city-run grocery initiative.