A bigger Shop Local Raleigh makes for a bigger Triangle controversy
I’m Brian Gordon, tech reporter for The News & Observer, and this is Open Source, a weekly newsletter on business, labor and technology in North Carolina.
The biggest Triangle controversy over the holidays involved a not-quite anonymous Facebook comment from the head of a local business nonprofit.
In late December, Shop Local Raleigh executive director Jennifer Martin responded to an inquiry from a Wake County parent about sports opportunities for their transgender child by denying that child’s identity was real. “There’s no such thing as a transgender son,” she wrote. “Blessing to you, but the sooner you help your son realize this, the more successful he (maybe a she) will be.”
Martin had posted anonymously in a private Facebook networking group for Triangle women, but a group administrator identified her to the online community. Some of Shop Local Raleigh’s more than 900 businesses now question their membership.
“I think the only way that our LGBT and ally community will feel comfortable supporting Shop Local Raleigh is if bigger actions are taken,” said Erica Vogel, who runs a jewelry and leather goods business in Rolesville. “I think [Martin] doesn’t deserve to represent our small business collective.”
A decade since North Carolina’s “bathroom bill” sparked national backlash and boycotts, issues around transgender identity are even more politically charged. Gender-affirming care and youth sports participation bans were driving narratives of the 2024 presidential election and just this week, North Carolina enacted a law to officially recognize only two sexes, male and female.
Another difference between the 2010s and today — and a reason the fallout from Martin’s comment is more important to track, is the growing reach of Shop Local Raleigh and its executive director. The nonprofit officially named the Greater Raleigh Merchants Association was started in 1940 to promote local small business interests. It organized the annual Raleigh Christmas Parade, and its first director served for 50 years.
But by 2009, GRMA sought a rebrand to reverse its dwindling membership. “We needed to find a way to become more relevant,” said Kevin Coggins, then the association’s board president. “The word ‘merchant’ had become super dated.”
Coggins said the group had fewer than 50 members businesses at the time. Martin was hired at its executive director in 2011, and since then, Shop Local Raleigh has grown into a larger civic player, counting more than 900 members (including bar owners, dog walkers and HVAC repairers) and running not just the Christmas Parade, but also the popular Brewgaloo craft beer festival.
Since 2016, the organization has gone from two to six employees, seen its revenue leap, and the board has increased Martin’s salary considerably — from $70,000 to around $190,000 last year, tax records show. Shop Local Raleigh, during this time, went from taking in less than $600,000 a year to more than $1.2 million.
“It does a tremendous amount of good, supporting small independent businesses in the area,” Coggins said. “It does a really good job of advocating for small business in issues involving various governments that business owners have to navigate.”
In a Dec. 29 statement, the GRMA board wrote it “is currently addressing the matter. The comment made does not reflect those of the organization. Shop Local Raleigh is dedicated to a culture of diversity, inclusion and respect.”
Martin didn’t comment on the controversy until Jan. 2, when she issued a public apology on Shop Local Raleigh’s social media accounts and in an email to regular vendors.
“It was never my intention to cause pain or division, nor to bring harm to my employer or to those I love and have supported for many years,” she wrote. “Still, I recognize that intent does not erase impact, and I take responsibility for the harm my words caused.”
If the board decides to dismiss Martin, it won’t be due to a lack of growth. The question is whether the coalition can sustain under its current leader.
Clearing my cache
- I made $4 betting (or is it investing?) on what President Donald Trump would say during his Dec. 19 speech in Rocky Mount, through Kalshi, one of the biggest predictive market platforms.
- A major milestone in the two-company obesity drug race: Novo Nordisk got the first oral GLP-1 pill for weight loss approved, and the Danish company is already making it in the Triangle.
- The end of the year is the time for end-of-the-year lists: What were North Carolina’s five biggest jobs announcements of 2025? How about layoffs? And then I broke down the 10 largest startup funding rounds of the year statewide, with the tech-centric Triangle dominating the list.
National Tech Happenings
- MTV is shutting down its all-music channels after 44 years. The first video to air on the network in 1981 was The Buggles’ “Video Killed the Radio Star”.
- Meta is acquiring the AI agent Manus, which conducts deep research and coding, for $2 billion.
- New Year’s resolutions should be to sleep more and drink less bottled water, if recent health studies are to be a guide.
Thanks for reading and Happy New Year!
- Enjoying this newsletter? Share it with a friend. If it was forwarded to you, sign up here.
- No longer want to receive this newsletter? Hit the unsubscribe link near the bottom of this email.
This story was originally published January 2, 2026 at 10:18 AM with the headline "A bigger Shop Local Raleigh makes for a bigger Triangle controversy."
