A neighborhood in North Philadelphia is the place where it seems like almost everyone knows Carlos Rodriguez's name — whether it's his many family members, long-time friends or those he serves as Store Manager of the TD community store in Juniata, which opened in November 2024.
You can clearly see the affection people have for him whenever Carlos walks the streets of Juniata. He’s constantly stopped by someone just wanting to say hello or chat about a variety of topics.
“My wife tells me she feels like she’s with someone famous, but I'm just here to help the people,” said Carlos. “I have worked in banking for 20 years, and it’s my passion. It's not just about a paycheck but doing what we need to do for our customers and feeling good about it when we come to work.”
This dedication to serving communities and their unique needs is at the heart of each of the seven TD community stores, with an eighth community store set to open in May in Boston’s Nubian Square neighborhood.
TD’s community stores are located in underserved neighborhoods, where access to physical bank locations are scarce. These stores offer dedicated spaces for free community events, financial education, and co-hosted events with local organizations that focus on financial access, inclusion and community development. Each location reflects the community with its design, and most include touches such as a custom mural or artwork from local diverse artists.
"TD is committed to providing a more financially secure future for all,” said Steve Turley, Head of Retail Growth & Transformation, TD Bank. “Through our community store format, we’re transcending traditional banking and empowering people through resources and guidance when it comes to their financial health. These stores are designed with dedicated space for TD to engage with community leaders and local nonprofits, supporting the community on the matters that mean the most to them."
Being a good neighbor
The community stores make a real effort to tailor support and services to not only meet the financial needs of a community but reflect and celebrate the ways that make each special. For example, the entire Juniata team is fluent in Spanish to best serve the area’s majority Hispanic population.
"We understand how the community has grown and how it’s built because we are a part of it," Carlos said.
What makes TD’s community stores stand out are the events held in the community room of the store. For example, Juniata featured four free tax prep assistance sessions in February t through the Campaign for Working Families (CWF) as well as information on TD Bank’s financial education programs.
Dr. Nikia Owens, President and CEO of CWF, noted the tax events and TD’s presence in this community is already reaping benefits.
"It’s important for people to develop a positive relationship with a banking institution no matter their income," she said, adding that community events can help increase knowledge of important financial topics that impact everyone, and foster connections within the neighborhood.
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Reaching out to communities
TD has leveraged input from local nonprofits, elected officials, community advocates and more in deploying community stores to make sure the bank is truly addressing local needs. TD opened three community stores in Charlotte in 2023 through collaboration with Mayor Vi Lyles to support the city’s “corridors of opportunity.”
Meeting neighborhood opportunity starts with a hyper-local approach to small business. TD colleagues at community stores meet with small business owners in the store and canvas the neighborhood to connect. The colleagues do this to get to know the neighborhood and provide the best service possible.
“I went through the accounts we opened over the past year and reached out to small business owner customers and invited them in,” said Christine Fregosi, Store Manager of the Sharon Amity store in Charlotte, North Carolina. “We take a different approach than other banks do — it’s focused on the human side of banking. I grew up near our Charlotte location, so this is my old stomping ground. I'm really passionate about giving back to my community.”
Small business specialists are also available in the stores to talk about business deposit accounts, merchant services and lending.
“A lot of the local customers and organizations we work with introduce us to other community-focused groups in the area that we then engage and help support in a variety of ways,” Christine said. “This gives us even more opportunities to help more people."
Creating networking opportunities
The community rooms of the Charlotte stores have been the site of many different business events, from networking opportunities to meet other business owners to workshops to learn about investing.
The Normandy Boulevard community store in Jacksonville, Florida — one of the first community stores — hosts monthly roundtables for small business owners focusing on a different topics such as real estate, business credit, risk management or procurement. These meetings bring in a variety of people from the area who connect and learn from one another.
“At TD, you're walking away with a reciprocal relationship,” said Denise Boykin, Normandy Store Manager, TD Bank. “We care, not just about giving you solutions, but about connecting you with people you didn't know you could benefit from.”
Denise serves on several nonprofit boards in her community and knows a lot of people from her philanthropy work. She uses her extensive social media network to get the word out about the programs at her community store, which brings greater attendance.
“By engaging with nonprofits in our area, we can help their networks grow, while our consumer and commercial customers are able to get the support, information and resources they need to flourish. Really, that's what a TD community store is all about,” Denise said.
For more on personal finance topics
If you have more questions about personal finance topics, visit the Learning Center on TD Bank's website. You can find more TD Bank services at TD.com. We hope you found this helpful. This article is for informational purposes only and is based on information available as of April 2025 and is subject to change. This content is not intended to be used or acted upon with respect to any client's specific circumstances. For specific advice about your unique circumstances, consider talking with your qualified professionals.