The Business Resource and Innovation Center (BRIC) at the Free Library of Philadelphia supports entrepreneurs, nonprofits, job seekers, and inventors at every stage, helping to improve their skills through individualized guidance in research, public programs, and curated print and digital resources. We create multiple entry points for those with ideas, plans, skills, and passions, enabling people to make fact-based decisions in order to fulfill their goals.
Visit or Contact Us
Hours
| Sunday | Closed |
| Monday | 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. |
| Tuesday | 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. |
| Wednesday | 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. |
| Thursday | 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. |
| Friday |
9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. |
| Saturday | Closed |
- * Friday had hour changes - preparation for the Memorial Day holiday
Upcoming Events
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Virtual Ask a Business Consultant: Office Hours with Temple Small Business Development Center
Wed, June 1, 2022
1:00 P.M.
Parkway Central Library
Temple Small Business Development Center (SBDC) is here to answer your business questions! We’re hosting virtual office hours with a business consultant who can help current and prospective entrepreneurs with a variety of business concerns, including business planning, business…
Virtual Full Circle Career Workshop: Changing Careers, Branding and Elevator Speech
Tue, June 7, 2022
12:00 P.M.
Parkway Central Library
Are you unsure of how to introduce yourself in networking situations? Are you unclear about what others think and feel about you professionally? If yes, this is just the workshop for you! In this workshop, learn how to develop your personal brand in a clear, easy-to-understand process, and…
Virtual Ask a Nonprofit Expert: Grant Writing
Wed, June 8, 2022
10:00 A.M.
Parkway Central Library
Most nonprofits apply to foundations and other grant-giving organizations for funding. At your meeting with your consultant, you can discuss how to identify suitable grantors, what they expect in a grant application, and how to create a stellar grant proposal. Please note: this month's…
Lunch & Learn: Reference Solutions For Business Expansion
Wed, June 8, 2022
12:00 P.M.
Parkway Central Library
Learn how to use the Reference Solutions U.S. Business and Consumer Modules to target specific groups of businesses or individuals who may most likely be interested in your business's products or services. In this training, you will learn how to identify the ideal geography of…
Blog Posts
Business Librarian and Business Owner: Business Plans Made Easy with Gale Business Plan Builder
Have you ever wished you could find a resource that would practically write your business plan for you? Well, your wish has come true! Gale Small Business Builder is a step-by-step online planning tool for starting, managing, and optimizing a… continue reading
By Sharontina H. April 16, 2021 3
Five Alternatives to Starting a Nonprofit
Are you thinking about starting a nonprofit organization? In the Regional Foundation Center (RFC), the Free Library’s resource center for nonprofits, we see lots of folks who are committed to helping their community and want to give… continue reading
By Caitlin S. April 13, 2021
Business Librarian to Business Owner: Do Your Research! Trademark Edition
If you’ve been following our previous blog installments , then you will probably recall last month’s account of competitor copy-cat syndrome . We haven’t heard a word from this business since then, mainly because they blocked us… continue reading
By Sharontina H. March 22, 2021
Women and Investing: A Panel Discussion in Celebration of Women’s History Month
Vanguard and the Free Library of Philadelphia will present a lively panel discussion in celebration of Women's History Month on Monday, March 22, beginning at 2:00 p.m. Sharon Hill, Ph.D., Senior Portfolio Manager and Head of Alpha Equity… continue reading
By Joe S. March 16, 2021 1
Press
If you're in the "I have an idea but now what?" stage of entrepreneurship, the Business Resource and Innovation Center at the Parkway Central branch makes for a great first stop. Just don't expect free coffee.
For its 570,441 cardholders, the Free Library system offers thousands of resources, materials, online courses, workshops, and classes.
In the Free Library's new Business Resource and Innovation Center, you can be as noisy as you want, even eat there. You can get free headshots taken for your LinkedIn profile, or a video of you practicing pitches. Or take a class on how to write a business plan.
Check out the latest edition of the Free Library, exult in the beauty of Fairmount Park, or follow the footsteps of African-American artists in North Philly.
The expansion of the Library includes a new teen center with video games; a Manga animation collection, and young adult novels; a small business resource center with powerful wifi and onsite consultants; and 7,200 square feet of undetermined public space with chairs, tables, power outlets, and meeting rooms to be used however one wishes.
In its largest renovation since its opening in 1927, the Free Library of Philadelphia is set open 41,000 square feet of newly reimagined space within the Parkway Central Library after years of planning and renovation.
The Free Library of Philadelphia's renovation is the largest since it was completed in 1927, and increases the building's public space to 68 percent.
There will be three new areas: the Robert and Eileen Kennedy Heim Center for Cultural and Civic Engagement, the Business Resource and Innovation Center (BRIC), and the Marie and Joseph Field Teen Center.
Taking Care of Business in the 21st Century is the fifth installment in the Association's "Quick Reads for Busy Librarians" series. The Quick Reads series features publications under 100 pages long and covering topics deemed essential to modern public library workers.
The Business Resource and Innovation Center (BRIC) of the Free Library of Philadelphia is a core partner of Phialdelphia VIP's LawWorks program, the city's only broad-based provider of critical legal support to the small businesses and nonprofits creating employment opportunities, generating tax revenues, and serving their communities.
The Free Library's Business Resource and Innovation Center wants to teach Philly entrepreneurs a thing or two about pitching. Next week, the Parkway Central Library will launch the Pitch Corner, a new resources and space for innovators where they can hone their business pitches and strengthen elevator pitches about their assets and aptitudes.
The Free Library of Philadelphia on Wednesday will launch the Pitch Corner, a new tool for entrepreneurs, nonprofits, and job seekers. It's a semiprivate space in the Parkway Central Library's business center where start-ups can practice and record their pitch in front of a video camera.
3rd Place: BRIC librarians represented by Rebekah Ray. The Free Library of Philadelphia, Business Resource & Innovation Center (BRIC) curates information for and fosters the growth of new social enterprises and nonprofits.