Many parents and alumni supported Main Street businesses during Homecoming and Family Weekend on Oct. 23-24. The increase in customers raised weekend profits of some Middletown stores and restaurants by up to one third.
Sammy Bajraktarevic, manager of Cornerstones, an Italian restaurant and bar at 98 Washington Street, said that many Wesleyan families filled up the restaurant for dinner on Friday and Saturday nights of Homecoming weekend.
“Business rose by about a good 35 percent,” Bajraktarevic said. “We’ve always maintained a good relationship with Wesleyan parents and alumni. They come to eat here whenever they’re in town.”
Other businesses on Main Street also reported an increase in sales during Homecoming weekend. Capital Liquors, for instance, enticed campus visitors with marked-down prices on kegs.
“We get lots of [Wesleyan] customers anyway. But there definitely was a boost that weekend. Lots of kids even brought their parents in to introduce them to me,” said Karen Bevan, a cashier.
Homecoming visitors did not have to go as far as Main Street to enjoy some of Main Street’s delectable offerings. Several businesses on Main Street set up booths and sold food and beverages under the huge tent on Andrus Field for the annual “Taste of Middletown” event.
Thai Gardens, a popular restaurant among many Wesleyan students, set up a booth on Andrus Field this year for the first time. Many students showed up with their parents at the restaurant anyway, however.
“We were very happy with business [during that weekend], ” said Wareeya Sripa, the head waitress from Thai Gardens.
Homecoming had little affect on some other Middletown businesses.
Carolyn McDermott, who works at Javapalooza, said she was surprised and disappointed with the customer turnout over that weekend. The coffeehouse, which opened in the beginning of October, has seen a steady flow of customers in the last month and a half.
“We were expecting [business to rise],” McDermott said. “There was some extra business on Friday night, but nothing on Saturday.”
Despite a lack of response from parents and visitors, McDermott feels that students have been supportive of the new store.
“A lot of [students] usually come in and order food, then sit and study for hours,” she said.
To bring more students to Javapalooza, the store offered a “Wesleyan Night” on Saturday. They gave all students 30 percent off their orders as a way to foster exposure.
Neither Public Market nor Matt’s Music store reported any change in revenues.
“We get a lot of students coming in during September, but after that it’s pretty steady business,” said “Mad” Matt, the owner of the music store.
Public Market also set up a booth in Andrus Field, but did not see sales rise. Both stores hope for more business from Wesleyan students in the future.
According to “Mad” Matt, the lack of increase in profits could be attributed to students not being aware of the smaller business options along the street. He went on offering the Public Market, an Italian food store, as an example of a less frequented place. He attributed this to a lack of a large storefront, and warned that students are potentially missing out on a good thing.
“[The Public Market] has some of the finest Italian food you will find in Connecticut. There’s actually a whole lot of great Italian stores around here. But they don’t get much business from the students. And it goes without saying that other stores that don’t sell food don’t get anything either,” he said.
Furthermore, when parents visit, students tend to focus on Main Street as a place for food rather than shopping.
“Why else would I go there? During Homecoming my parents took me and a few friends to Tuscany Grill on Main Street. We also did some grocery shopping, but we didn’t do that in Main Street,” said Nicholas Altman ’08.
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