PHOTO by Bailey KeigerLaura Beaghan, co-manager of The Clubhouse, stacks T-shirts at the store Wednesday morning.
Written by Bailey Keiger
Downtown Athens clothing boutiques are seeing some effects of a slowing economy and fewer people in Athens during the summer months, but business isn’t as bad as one might expect.
Downtown Athens clothing boutiques are seeing some effects of a slowing economy and fewer people in Athens during the summer months, but business isn’t as bad as one might expect.
“We’re lucky to be downtown, and we’re lucky to be a store where college kids want to shop,” said Linda Rasch, a salesperson at Heery’s Clothes Closet, a high-fashion boutique on College Avenue. “But of course the recession has affected us,” Rasch said.
Cillie’s Clothing, a consignment store that also sells new fashions, is also seeing evidence of the poor economy. “We are getting more people who try on something but don’t buy it and girls who come in and say ‘Dad’s gonna kill me’ when they buy something, and I used to never see that,” said Katharine Waldrip, the store’s manager.
Despite the economy and students traveling away from Athens for the summer, Waldrip says her store is doing fine sales-wise.
Cillie’s Clothing, a consignment store that also sells new fashions, is also seeing evidence of the poor economy. “We are getting more people who try on something but don’t buy it and girls who come in and say ‘Dad’s gonna kill me’ when they buy something, and I used to never see that,” said Katharine Waldrip, the store’s manager.
Despite the economy and students traveling away from Athens for the summer, Waldrip says her store is doing fine sales-wise.
“I’ve had a great few weeks,” Waldrip said, “Summer has had no affect on sales. People realize that it’s 80 degrees, and they want to go out and get a cute top to wear.”
While business may not be at a complete standstill, area stores are keeping their options open and using different tactics to draw in patrons and motivate customers to shop.
“We’ve started to send out cards in the Sunday paper to our loyal customers for $50 off if you spend $100 or more,” said Rasch. “We’ve always had a big summer sale, but we started the card thing as a way to stimulate the economy and our business.”
Social networking has also become a popular source for marketing businesses.
“We’ve started to use Facebook to market our sales more,” said Laura Beaghan, co-manager of The Clubhouse, a store that specializes in Georgia Bulldog merchandise.
“We have offered more sales because of the economy. People go to these large stores and see deep discounts, and they’re starting to expect sales.”
While many students choose to leave Athens once the spring semester is over, freshman orientation and other visitors often fill the hole left by departing students.
“Summer is usually a good season for us. There are high school conferences staying in Athens, and freshman orientation helps a lot.” Beaghan said.
In the end, most businesses know that sticking to the basics will help pull them through most tough times.
“We’ve been here 6 years,” Waldrip said. “We’re just trying to keep our prices affordable and our merchandise fresh. I think we’re gonna be OK.”
Edited by Sara Spigener
“We’ve started to send out cards in the Sunday paper to our loyal customers for $50 off if you spend $100 or more,” said Rasch. “We’ve always had a big summer sale, but we started the card thing as a way to stimulate the economy and our business.”
Social networking has also become a popular source for marketing businesses.
“We’ve started to use Facebook to market our sales more,” said Laura Beaghan, co-manager of The Clubhouse, a store that specializes in Georgia Bulldog merchandise.
“We have offered more sales because of the economy. People go to these large stores and see deep discounts, and they’re starting to expect sales.”
While many students choose to leave Athens once the spring semester is over, freshman orientation and other visitors often fill the hole left by departing students.
“Summer is usually a good season for us. There are high school conferences staying in Athens, and freshman orientation helps a lot.” Beaghan said.
In the end, most businesses know that sticking to the basics will help pull them through most tough times.
“We’ve been here 6 years,” Waldrip said. “We’re just trying to keep our prices affordable and our merchandise fresh. I think we’re gonna be OK.”
Edited by Sara Spigener
PHOTO by Bailey Keiger
The sale rack at Red Dress Boutique offers deep discounts for customers.
Bailey, Sara:
ReplyDeleteThis story is a good read, with nice quotes and examples from the store managers and employees. Talking to a shopper might add another perspective -- somebody explaining why they feel like buying right now, or maybe saying they're just looking today because of economic uncertainty.
I like the color in the photos, especially the bottom one with the yellow, orange and green.