ST. PETE BEACH, Fla. — St. Pete Beach businesses are holding a "Locals Appreciation Month" to show appreciation for customers who shop local.
The Corey Avenue Business District members wanted to thank the locals for their support this year.
The business district is one of two historic business districts in St. Pete Beach. The members of the association include boutiques, art galleries, hair salons, spas, restaurants, bars, real estate and service businesses.
The September event is filled with 30 days of in-store specials.
Elizabeth Nowak, owner of Elizabeth's Boutique, opened her store in May. She originally planned to open in March but COVID-19 delayed her store's opening date.
"It's been very challenging. This is something nobody really anticipated that something like this would ever happen even businesses that have been here for 40 years. It never crossed anybody's mind," said Elizabeth Nowak.
Nowak said since travel was limited this year, tourists have stayed up north.
"Every single day, we are offering some additional specials for all our local customers to come and shop with us," said Nowak.
Lynn Walker-Rovira opened the Shaded Keg Pub about a year ago. She said COVID-19 had a significant impact on her business.
"March 15 is when we closed. We were closed until June and then came back for 2 weeks then closed again. We were able to come back about the second week of July because we expanded our food menu," she said.
She said prior to the pandemic, they mainly sold beer and wine. The pub expanded their menu to stay open.
"We have nachos, a lot of different things like crab nachos, BBQ chicken nachos, shrimp salads, a lot of different things we didn't have beforehand," said Walker-Rovira.
She said her pub has safety measures in place to make people feel comfortable going out.
"We're following all the rules and maybe even a little bit more to get people to feel comfortable," she said.
"We're really hoping for a good turn out and a good weekend."
You can click here for more information on "Locals Appreciation Month."
