ROANOKE, Va. (WDBJ) – Downtown Roanoke bars and breweries said Saturday’s St. Patrick’s Day festivities generates some of its highest sales volume all year.
Martin’s owner Jason Martin said the street party format, which the bar does not hold on regular weekends, expanded capacity five to six times on its own. This helps his business hit eight to 10 times more business on parade day than on an average Saturday.
“When the weather is beautiful like it is today, it could be eight to ten times busier than a normal Saturday,” Martin said. “It’s crazy. I mean, obviously, our capacity is super increased, too, because we do a street party, which we don’t normally do. So that increased our capacity five to six times alone.”
Martin said events like Saturday’s are critical to the business after a slow winter.
“These outdoor events really get us through the slow times,” Martin said. “We had a really crappy January with the weather. And so we’re kind of still digging out of a hole. So this will help catch us up. It’s very important to the health of the business that we can do these outdoor events, especially St. Patrick’s Day.”
Olde Salem Brewery’s Roanoke location said business tripled compared to a normal Saturday. Assistant Manager Stephanie Hernandez described the pace as nonstop.
“It is chaotic from the time that the parade starts until at least like dinner time for us,” Hernandez said.
Big Lick Brewery employee Ethan Summerson said that he expected the brewery pour anywhere from hundreds to a thousand pints on Saturday. He also said St. Patrick’s Day serves as a seasonal turning point for downtown businesses.
“Every St. Patrick’s Day, that’s kind of like when you mark when the winter slow season is over,” Summerson said.
Summerson added that the event draws foot traffic that benefits the broader downtown area.
“A lot of the downtown businesses thrive on this kind of business because you get a lot of people walking around and a lot of it is about sort of going from place to place,” Summerson said.
Hernandez said some customers stop in simply due to proximity and leave with a new impression of the location.
“They’re just stopping because it’s convenient,” Hernandez said. “And then they realize, oh my gosh, this is a really cool spot.”
Downtown bars said they expect business to strengthen in the warmer months ahead.
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