Beaufort businesses adapt to construction as holiday shopping season nears
BEAUFORT, SC. (WTOC) - For the last week, crews have been working on a major stormwater project in the city of Beaufort.
The project started on one of the city’s busiest streets and has business owners worried, especially as the holiday shopping season nears.
We learned how businesses are trying to combat the dip in business.
That project started at the intersection of Bay and Charles Street in downtown Beaufort.
For local businesses, it comes at an inopportune time right before the holiday rush, but we spoke to one business trying to make the most of it and is seeing more people than expected walk through their doors.
That business is Panini’s On The Waterfront, a popular Italian restaurant
When construction at the intersection started last week, they started a deal that gives customers a 10% discount on to-go orders, and people can get half-off pizzas after 4 p.m.
Workers there say the deal has been a success so far and that they are seeing more people come in to eat than they saw when the waterfront closed in the summer, right before the Water Festival, which is their busiest time of year.
They say the community is really stepping up to support local businesses through the construction.
“We’ve had a lot of people come in, a lot more locals coming in to support us. It’s just nice to see the community helping us out and helping local businesses out,” said Karem Valle, Panini’s On The Waterfront.
Other businesses WTOC spoke with on Tuesday, like Olive The Above, which has been downtown for 13 years, say the construction has made them adjust.
Whether that be preparing for a different “busy” time in the day than normal, or helping customers navigate around the construction.
“That wasn’t a job we had before,” Owner of Olive The Above, Reese Fazekas, said.
However, even with that construction, those businesses we spoke with also say they are seeing more people shop downtown.
“I think people, especially our locals, knew that this was going to come up, and I think they have had our backs in that way where they are going to show up and show out considering the circumstances,” Fazekas said.
This section of the project at Bay and Charles is expected to be done in the next four to five weeks.
The whole project is expected to be completed by December of next year.
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