- DC businesses are offering federal workers discounts and deals amid mass firings by the Trump administration.
- Five owners told BI they want to support the federal workers who make up a good chunk of their customers.
- The deals range from free pet exams to exercise classes.
A free coffee won’t solve all of their problems. But it may give federal workers a much-needed moment of joy and a sense of community.
That’s the goal for Matt Bormet, the co-owner of People’s Book in Takoma Park, Maryland, 30 minutes away from Capitol Hill.
Bormet opened the bookstore with his wife in 2023 in a community largely populated by public servants. After President Donald Trump took office and began his plans to reduce the federal workforce and slash government waste, Bormet sprung into action.
“We pretty quickly started hearing from our customers and friends of the store that they were getting laid off, or their friends were getting laid off,” Bormet said. “And so for us, it was really important to try to figure out how we could make people’s day 1% better, and a free cup of coffee and a free book seemed like the least we could do.”
Meanwhile, Andrew Katz-Moses, a certified financial planner in DC, started offering federal employees free one-on-one sessions, which would typically cost around $300.
He rattled off their list of concerns: “They’re worrying about paying mortgages, what to do with their investments, whether they need to be moving, considering different housing situations, what do they do about healthcare and how do they handle all these things while grappling with a massive life change,” Katz-Moses said.
From free workout classes to pet exams, business owners told Business Insider they’re doing what they can to comfort the people who keep their establishments afloat. Over the past couple of months, the Trump administration has terminated thousands of federal workers and taken steps to dismantle federal agencies, leaving many DC residents who work for the government in extreme uncertainty.
“Bookstores are unique in their ability to bring everybody from the community in,” Bormet said. “And that’s really what people need right now, is to see all their neighbors in person and talk in person about how they’re being affected, instead of just scrolling and being sad online.”
‘An important thing for us to do’
Mike Curtin, the CEO of DC Central Kitchen — a nonprofit aimed at combating hunger that operates cafés throughout DC — said that he recognizes how important federal workers are to the economy.
“It’s a wildly important part of our local economy,” Curtin told BI. “It’s one of the reasons DC has survived a lot of the other economic turmoil that other parts of our country have not. And we don’t want to take that for granted. We value that.”
A February report from DC’s chief financial office said that about 190,000 federal employees work in DC, which is about 25% of DC’s total jobs. Administration officials said that about 25,000 federal employees have been terminated across all agencies, though that total is spread out across the country.
Curtin said that DC Central Kitchen is offering federal workers 50% off of whatever they want to purchase at one of the cafés, which he said he hopes is “a great way to welcome that particular part of our community who is now facing unanticipated and unnecessary obstacles and hurdles.”
“We’re looking at using food in a bigger way than just simply feeding people, and saying that food has the power to bring people together, to unite people, to bring comfort,” he said. “This is an important thing for us to do.”
Tina Latimer, a manager at exercise studio DC Row, said that when the studio saw how federal workers were being affected by Trump’s changes to the workforce, DC Row started offering free classes. The offer will continue “as long as it’s needed.” The new member offer is typically $35 for two classes.
“We’re in a ping pong kind of a situation where people are being let go, but then they’re being brought back, but then there’s also a period of shock and trying to figure out what their next steps are,” Latimer said.
Latimer was referring to recent court orders requiring federal agencies to reinstate thousands of the probationary employees they had previously terminated. Some reinstated federal workers told BI that the back-and-forth nature of their employment has left them in a limbo state, and they’re not confident they’ll be able to retain their jobs once they’re back.
By offering exercise classes free of charge, Latimer said she hopes it’ll give federal workers “a kind of a therapy and mental clarity, clearing out your mind, but also getting a physical workout.”
Some vet clinics are also stepping in. Allison Gross, a veterinarian at Union Veterinary Clinic in DC, said that being located on Capitol Hill, a lot of the clinic’s clients are federal workers. The clinic decided to “take one stress off of people’s minds” by offering a free exam for their pets, she said. Wellness exams can typically run from $50 to $150, dependent on the pet’s needs.
“DC is a transient area. A lot of people are here without a lot of family or support system, and they come home to their cat or their dog at the end of the day,” Gross said. “And I don’t want to add any extra stress to their lives if they’re worried that their companion is sick or even just needs their routine wellness care.”
It’s unclear what the Trump administration has in store for federal workers next. The Office of Personnel Management asked federal agencies to prepare reorganization plans, and some have started implementing those plans through return-to-office mandates and reductions in force.
Given the ongoing uncertainty, DC Row’s Latimer said that businesses in the nation’s capitol should view it as their responsibility to support a major part of their customer bases.
“It’s important for businesses because each of us, as well as the community, we feed off of each other, and if we’re not there to support the community, then why would we expect the community to support us?” Latimer said.
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