A landmark Southeast Asian marketplace in Appleton is undergoing a $1.4 million renovation that will expand opportunities for entrepreneurs and reinforce its role as a cultural as a culturally significant neighborhood hub.
Long Cheng MarketPlace, 1804 S. Lawe St., Appleton, received a $250,000 Community Development Investment Grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation to assist with the project.
“At WEDC, we want to help create communities where every entrepreneur has the ability to thrive,” said John Miller, secretary and CEO of WEDC, the state’s leading economic development organization. “Long Cheng MarketPlace is giving small business owners that chance while also serving as a cultural hub for Southeast Asian communities in the Appleton area.”
Long Cheng MarketPlace leases affordable space to small businesses, artisans, and food vendors, which offer culturally specific cuisine, prepared foods, specialty groceries, and retail goods. Many of the vendors are first-generation business owners.
In addition to its economic impact, Long Cheng MarketPlace serves as a gathering place through cultural celebrations, educational programs, business events, and a seasonal farmers market. It is home to a Hmong cultural senior center in Wisconsin.
“Long Cheng MarketPlace was created to be more than a place to shop. It is a place where culture, entrepreneurship, and community come together,” said Maiyoua Thao, founder and CEO of Long Cheng MarketPlace. “This investment allows us to create more opportunities for small business owners, many of whom are first-generation entrepreneurs, while preserving and celebrating the cultures that make our community unique. We are building a space where businesses can grow, families can connect, and future generations can see themselves represented.”
Renovations will include exterior and interior facility improvements designed to modernize the marketplace, improve functionality for vendors and customers, increase accessibility, enhance gathering spaces, and support future business growth. Planned improvements include parking lot upgrades, building exterior enhancements, banquet and event space renovations, commercial kitchen improvements, and infrastructure updates that will improve the overall visitor experience.
The marketplace is named after a city in Laos where Hmong people supported Americans during the Secret War and later fled from, in some cases beginning a journey to the United States, Thao said.
“It honors those who came before us,” she said, but added that it has new meaning. “Long Chen began as a symbol of resilience. Today it is a symbol of possibility.”
