Downtown Chapel Hill is an incredible hub for the region’s economic, social and cultural activity—and it’s a community Rivers Agency has been proud to be an active part of for more than 25 years. With the unprecedented disruption brought on by COVID-19, Rivers is assisting the Downtown Chapel Hill Partnership with a new campaign called Experience Downtown Chapel Hill (XDCH) aimed at strengthening local businesses and inviting people to return and show their support for the downtown district.
From Henderson Street to Merritt Mill Road, and along Franklin and Rosemary Streets, campaign banners hang from streetlights and in storefront windows featuring the XDCH logo, “We’re Open” messaging and the campaign’s website address—www.eXperienceDCH.org. Visitors to the website can find information about the area’s shops, restaurants, cultural institutions, upcoming events and ways they can support the district’s economic growth.
The campaign also has the support of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “Downtown Chapel Hill has long served as a gateway to the University, and we know that businesses are ready to safely welcome back our students, faculty and staff,” said Joel Curran, Vice Chancellor of University Communications at the University of North Carolina. “Every time we buy local, we invest in our vibrant community and support our neighbors and friends who help make Chapel Hill one of the best college towns in the country.”
If you would like to help Chapel Hill’s small businesses recover from the two-month closure caused by the pandemic, you can donate at the campaign website. Funds raised will support financial recovery, sanitation resources and community engagement. In the future, the campaign will use funds to provide safe, free events and programs that help create a dynamic downtown destination for everyone.
“As we thought about how best to rally support for our community, we were mindful to create a campaign that addresses our town’s current recovery needs, but was a concept that could evolve and work to promote Chapel Hill in the future,” explained Lauren Rivers, founder and CEO of Rivers Agency. “The impactful new campaign we designed will be around for years to come, celebrating what makes Chapel Hill unique and encouraging residents and visitors to experience downtown.”
To commemorate the community’s ability to come together and its shared collective optimism, XDCH also is commissioning a custom mural in downtown. The mural will consist of individual tiles featuring pictures of people, places, moments or events that represent the diversity of the Chapel Hill community and its residents. Supporters can purchase tiles and submit their own photo to be featured as part of the mural. Details about this project and the artwork’s location will be announced later this summer, and all funds raised will help further fuel support for downtown Chapel Hill.
Rivers Agency is the premier ad agency for Raleigh, NC, Chapel Hill, NC, Durham, NC and Carrboro, NC.