In any given year, communities across the country host a wide variety of festivals, from parades and music events to arts and craft shows and even biker rallies. And while the downtown landscape is altered during these time spans—parking is at a premium, traffic is disrupted, overzealous festival-goers run amok—retailers shouldn’t view festivals as a detriment to their business. With some creative marketing, a little extra effort and an open mind, retailers can take advantage of the thousands of people streaming into their town and take a winning step in the game.
Retail consultants agree that the benefits of community celebrations can extend to area merchants. “Any opportunity to expand the number of visitors to your store is a bonus,” says Gail Markert, president of Markert Group Consulting in Nashville, Tennessee. Markert admits that although jammed parking lots, loud crowds and blocked-off streets can cause headaches, opportunities do knock. “It shouldn’t just be, ‘There are 10,000 people here. When are they leaving?’ ” she says. Instead, retailers should think, “There are 10,000 people here. How can I take advantage of that?”
According to Cinda Baxter, a Minneapolis, Minnesota–based former retailer who founded the buy-local movement called The 3/50 Project, tapping into special events can position a store for success for the day, and repeat success at a later and possibly annual date. “Anytime there is any kind of community event that has a collection of the public congregated in one place, there is an opportunity for brick-and-mortars to get their face out there—anytime you have a captive audience, it’s a good thing,” she remarks.
Storeowners who view festivals as an opportunity rather than a hassle report that such events have, in fact, proven fruitful. “I think it definitely complements a store. I don’t think it’s competition at all,” says Nancy Allodi, owner of Vintage Charm in La Grange, Illinois, who experienced one of her strongest days last fall when she opened her doors during a fine arts festival. Allodi notes that people come from all over to attend the event, and while the attendees were not necessarily her regular customers, she still enjoyed tremendous sales that weekend.
Other retailers are quick to note that in this tight economy, the adage, “If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em,” is appropriate. “That’s about all you can do these days, is join ’em,” says Diane Reese, co-owner of the Country Store of Seven Springs in Powder Springs, Georgia. Reese and fellow owner Gloria Hilderbrand have, at various times, helped sponsor special events and created their own store promotions to capitalize on additional local traffic from various festivals.
Making the Best of the Fest
Still, not all festivals are created equal, at least in terms of the potential to maximize store sales. As Markert observes, “It’s the nature of the event: does it even overlap with your store? If it’s a motorcycle rally and you are a girly shop, then maybe not.”
Allodi, for her part, says that although her shop was successful when pairing up with the fine arts festival, she hasn’t seen the same results with her town’s annual pet parade in the summer.
For festivals that do draw people inclined to browse local streets and pop into stores, retailers and retail consultants offer some suggestions for attracting shoppers. “Make them feel welcome and comfortable,” advises Markert, citing the posting of a simple welcome sign in the window.
Retailer Reese says that she also uses signage about the event itself to let customers and passers-by know that a festival will be coming to the area. “If there is a flyer for the festival, the businesses in the downtown area will put them in our windows, and we’ll pass them out to our customers,” she says, pointing out that it helps boost traffic everywhere in the community.
Markert says that advertising in materials geared to festival-goers is also effective. “If the festival attracts mainly locals, they may already be aware of your store, but out-of-towners may need to hear about you through an ad in the festival’s publication or on its website,” she explains. “Contact the promoters to learn about advertising opportunities. This is also a place to learn more about the festival.”
Offering discounts and special sales during a festival is another hook. Much of the buzz at the art festival near Allodi’s store had to do with her sidewalk sale, which featured tables with $1, $5 and $10 merchandise. She was able to clear her inventory, she says, and make a sizable dent in sales of regular items. “We did great in-store business that day, which we were surprised at, to be honest. It was really big,” she reports.
Retailer Lisanne Miller, owner of P is for Primitive in Canton, Mississippi, combines discounts with special signage to entice crafters who come to her town as part of an annual rug-hooking show. “This year, if a store ran a special, they called it a ‘Hooker Special’ and had it on an easel when people came in, so the girls immediately felt welcome. You want to be appreciated when you come into a town,” she says.
Together They Stand to Gain
Another way to boost exposure during festivals is to participate in sponsorships or activities directly linked to the event, either individually or in tandem with other merchants. That may involve working with a chamber of commerce or downtown business association, or it may be another type of collaborative effort among retailers.
Markert says that such collaborations can be helpful because all parties share the ultimate goal of the success of the community. “Get with your chamber of commerce to see how many attendees are coming and how many came last year. All that kind of information can be useful.”
In Miller’s Mississippi town, retailers band together with the help of city officials during events such as the annual balloon festival, during which a hot-air balloon is brought in for demonstration. “People get to see it and come up to it. While they are there, all of the merchants have appetizers and specials, and the event goes until nine o’clock in the evening,” she says. Miller adds that the public relations aspect is just as strong. “People are in a good mood and seeing our town at its best and watching merchants work together. That’s important, especially in a small town square.”
Proprietor Ken Parsons, co-owner with his wife, Joan, of The Knot Hole Station in the unincorporated village of Driver, Virginia, near the city of Suffolk, says that retailers in his small town team up during the annual Driver Days celebration, helping to run the event and, in turn, promote their own stores.
“One year, we did a special card—people would have to go to a store and get the initials of someone there, and if they got all the initials from all of the stores, their card was put into a raffle. That was a way to make sure everyone gets traffic,” he recalls.
Even when an event does not necessarily appeal to a retailer’s core customer base, a merchant can still convey a positive image of their store and ring up some sales. “If the visitors aren’t your usual demographic, if you are near the venue, you may be able to generate sales by selling cold water and drinks in summer and umbrellas and slickers anytime it’s rainy,” offers Markert.
Indeed, as savvy retailers know, there is always an angle. In Anaconda, Montana, plenty of hunters come to town in the fall for opening weekend of game season, and that’s when Beyond Necessity Gifts kicks off the Big Game Shopping Season Sale, a promotion that appeals to hunters’ spouses and girlfriends. “We have done it for 21 years. It used to be just us, and now the whole town does it, and it’s our biggest sale of the year,” notes co-owner Mary Pat Clark.
Plan Your Winning Moves
With a few careful moves, winning big during a festival is possible.
1. Research the event. Analyze what type of people it draws and how many attendees are expected.
2. Promote the event. Distribute flyers and hang signage in your store.
3. Think of a clever way to link your store to the event. If it’s a Pet Parade, promote your pet-themed giftware, or offer free personalization on pet ornaments.
4. Design your window display to attract festival-goers. If the event typically draws more art-minded people, display your more artistic merchandise.
5. Keep your door open. This will encourage browsers to venture inside.
6. Consider setting up a sidewalk-sale table outside the shop. You could also set up a booth at the festival itself.
7. Find a quick and easy sell to visitors. You might try cold drinks, taffy apples or even umbrellas.
8. Hand out brochures or coupons for future visits. People might not buy something today, but they might be interested enough to come back at a later date.
9. Hold a drawing to help build your database. Promote the drawing with large signs, and make the prize something visitors would enjoy, such as a free spa visit for a Ladies Weekend, or a full-size decorated scarecrow for a fall event.
10. Finally, enjoy yourself! People come to festivals for fun. Keep their spirits up (and maybe pocketbooks open) by acting like you’re happy to see them, not as if they are a major nuisance.
Lynn Petrak is a freelance writer based in La Grange, Illinois.