What "Support the Businesses" Means

I know we all understand the effects of Hurricane Irene on local businesses and how hard hit most were by the loss of nearly one week of customers, but I thought I could explain a little bit more about what 'support your local businesses' means to me.

The weekend prior to Labor Day is traditionally a very strong weekend for boro businesses. People buy those items they have seen for a while before they head back home, there are end of summer sales, we like to enjoy a meal out while the weather is still gorgeous, and many people spend the weekend with friends and family before we part ways once again until next summer. The Saturday before Irene businesses were boarding up, moving merchandise, and getting the spaces prepared for potential flooding and high winds. Sunday, Irene arrived. So, that weekend was a bust.

Then from Sunday to Thursday early evening there was no power and Friday was spent getting everything up and running again. And this Labor Day weekend, many people are re-stocking, doing laundry, cleaning up, and getting the kids ready for the delayed start of school tomorrow. Another bust. While some businesses had lost upwards of $50,000, many small stores lost between $2,000 and $10,000 in business. For businesses that had generator power during the week or never lost power, business was booming, especially for necessities.

But, let's face it, the borough is not exactly a place where you shop for necessities...it is recreational and, if you do not live in the borough, you really do have to make a deliberate decision to come over to shop or eat, it's not like we are 'on the way' anywhere except The Point.

Businesses, for the large part, are strong in the borough and everything is pretty much back to normal. The ones that were hit hardest were the ones that were already teetering in their survival before Irene. What is difficult is that we are heading into the shoulder season and then into the dreaded winter months when the borough becomes a bit of a ghost town on Water Street. Most businesses are open year-round here, but from about right after the New Year until really the middle of May and June, business is as slow as molasses in January! But, they are used to it, they expect it, and prepare it. That's why 2 weekends and 1 week loss of business is so important...when you are storing nuts for the winter, you just lost a big part of the gathering of nuts!

So, for the fall and winter this year, I ask that you support the businesses that you enjoy by considering the following:

• If you come to the boro once a month for shopping or dining, maybe this year, you could come twice a month
• If you have dinner out in the boro regularly, maybe you could invite some friends to join you more often
• Consider the borough for holiday shopping and, if you already shop here every year, maybe a few extra gifts this year from Water Street
• Consider gift certificates this year, what a great gift
• The borough is beautiful in the fall and a cozy experience in the winter, bring friends or invite friends to come stay at one of the inns
• If you have been thinking about coming to the borough for a while, maybe this month, you will.
• Don't forget they are filming a big movie here with Meryl Streep, Steve Carrell, and Tommy Lee Jones later this month....come and check it out and yes, we will try to milk this for all it is worth.

All in all, if there are businesses that you really like and enjoy, don't just go back to your normal routine with them....maybe this year you could help to make up for some of the loss they experienced. Supporting your local businesses doesn't mean shopping or eating out in places that you don't already go to, or buying something you don't need or want. It means, if you like something and you want it to stay there, you have to support it when they need it...that time is now, this fall and winter.