As Labor Day heralds the beginning of fall, downtown merchants are wrapping up what they report as a strong summer 2016 tourist season.
Labor Day weekend, which fortuitously coincides with the annual Four Corners Motorcycle Rally, meant a strong influx of sales tax for the city from both tourists and locals.
Eric Larkin, general manager for Gardenswartz Sporting Goods in the 800 block of Main Avenue, said the retailer had one of its best monthly tally for July sales in 10 years.
“We’ve had a lot of new merchandise, which I think has something to do with it,” Larkin said. “We’re carrying the Mystery Ranch backpack, which Backpacker (Magazine) named Backpack of the Year. We’ve also moved a lot of paddle boards.”
While Gardenswartz has brought tourists and locals through its doors with discounts on various merchandise throughout the weekend, the store’s busy season is evergreen. Now, employees are preparing for both resident and nonresident elk hunters planning to spend their September in the Colorado backcountry.
Other businesses participating in the weekend sale capitalized on the motorcycle rally, which began Thursday and ended in the wee hours of Labor Day.
“Our spa sessions have been fully booked over the weekend,” said Antoinette Whidden, a manager at Spaaah Shop and Day Spa at 934 Main Avenue. Some of those customers have been bikers, in addition to the typical summer tourist crowd and a few indulgent parents whose kids are newly back in school.
“It helps to have stuff on sale that appeals to the bikers, like leather jackets,” said Riley Houston, who works at the Silk Sparrow at 801 Main Avenue. “When a lot of businesses have sales at once, we also see a bigger draw.”
New businesses have sprung up downtown over the summer, including retailers Moose on the Loose, which occupies one of three suites under the Francisco’s veranda, and Miami Blues of Durango, in the 700 block. The latter has been open about a month and reported its busiest weekend to date on Monday.
Earlier in the season, The Durango Herald reported that city sales tax and lodgers tax were down in April and May compared with those months in 2015. The drop came despite rising April and May visitation numbers, which usually benefit retailers, restaurants, hotels and attractions such as the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad.
Representatives with the Durango Area Tourism Office, Durango Chamber of Commerce and Durango Business Improvement District could not be reached for comment on Monday.
jpace@durangoherald.com
