Local Businesses See Increased Traffic Over Holiday Weekend

If this past holiday weekend is any indication, Patchogue's Main Street is going to be bustling with holiday cheer and seasonal shopping this year.

Many businesses seemed to benefit from this past weekend's . Lorice Fiala, president of the  and owner of  said that last weekend sales were good in her store, and she noticed an improvement over this time last year.  This is a trend Fiala anticipates will continue through the holidays.

"The Village is all trimmed up nice, and I think that's a plus.  People will be coming just to see our decorations," Fiala said. She mentioned that the menorah lighting in the Village on Dec. 5 will add to the holiday decor.

Barbara DeSimone, one of the owners of the  noticed that her restaurant also benefited from Patchogue's recent festivities.

"All the people that came for the parade were coming in the door, and they were hungry; so, that's actually really good for business.  It's a great thing when they do these things.  It brings in new customers," DeSimone said.

The popularity of restaurants and pubs in the downtown area is instrumental to the success of local shops according to co-owner of , Chip Hunter.  He reported that the gallery had several walk-ins over the weekend.

Hunter said, "I think the restaurants actually have a lot to do with it, too, because our window is opened up at night; so people are walking around to the restaurants and pubs and bars and stuff, and kind of glance in, and they're more apt to come back during the day."

Even stores that are not traditionally thought of as holiday shopping destinations are hoping to ride the wave of prosperity sweeping through Patchogue this season.

Cherie Alleyne, owner and manager of , which specializes in intimate apparel and swimwear, said that despite the cold weather customers are purchasing swimwear. Alleyne said she is expecting the business to come from people traveling to warmer climates during the winter.

"Hopefully, they'll need more bathing suits, and they'll come to us for those," said Alleyne.

At the recently opened , owner Tracey Scafidi said that her customers are purchasing gift cards for use on treatments.

"With the beauty business, gift certificates are a huge thing," Scafidi said.