Sewickley businesses hoping for big holiday shopping to make up for 2020 losses

The business community in Sewickley is pleading with residents: “Shop here so we can stay here.”

“It’s the truth,” said Alexis Comunale, vice president of the Sewickley Chamber of Commerce and owner of Jewel Thief jewelry store.

The chamber launched a capital campaign in October to raise money to spend on advertising promoting local businesses — a reminder to area residents to not forget about locally owned retailers through the holiday shopping season.

Comunale of Sewickley said the chamber raised $10,000, which has been used to purchase local television and newspaper ads with the mantra “Shop here so we can stay here.” She said the money also was used to produce signs posted along Route 65 that remind drivers to shop local.

The ads and signage will run through the end of Christmas, Comunale said.

She said the pandemic forced the chamber to cancel important fundraising events earlier in the year — making the October campaign significant because area residents need to be reminded to shop local.

A business owner for the past 18 years, she said the fate of local businesses depends on how much shopping is done at their stores through the holiday season.

“We have nothing to compare to this,” she said of the hard times brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. “At least with the last recession in 2008, there was a possibility when many shops closed that others would move in. But there’s no one waiting in the wings this time. It’s very frightening.”

Almost 100,000 small businesses across the U.S. have closed permanently since the pandemic began, according to a September analysis by Yelp.

Pennsylvania businesses also are hurting.

As of Oct. 5, more than 10,000 businesses had been approved for $192 million in grants through the covid-19 Relief Statewide Small Business Assistance Program, according to Gov. Tom Wolf.

Part of the problem, Comunale said, is a fear of spreading or catching covid-19. The fear has kept people home. So there is a local effort meant to reassure potential shoppers of stores’ safety.

The chamber’s president, Diane Kauffman said in September that the only negative impact on the local business community has been Wolf’s “ping-pong restrictions on small businesses and total lack of transparency in his decision-making process.”

“Above all, we want to reassure the Pittsburgh community that Sewickley businesses are following the current guidelines and welcome visitors to shop and dine safely in our small business neighborhood,” she said in an emailed statement.

Sewickley Borough officials voted to allow Pittsburgh-based AE Works, a building/consulting and design firm, to move into former Explore Sewickley’s storefront in September.

Explore Sewickley, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting and improving the borough, closed recently and sold the building in October after being placed on the market in December 2018.

Part of that organization’s mission was to revitalize Sewickley’s business district and promote community events in the borough. Without its presence, the Sewickley Chamber of Commerce is doing all it can to “keep the business community alive here,” Comunale said.

Starting Nov. 27, many Sewickley businesses will take part in Small Business Weekend, a shopping holiday created by American Express to drum up support for small businesses. Comunale said the holiday will be extended in Sewickley through Dec. 4.

The Sewickley Chamber of Commerce will enroll shoppers in a raffle to win a $250 gift card when they make five purchases at local stores.

Even the borough has pitched in to show support. Free parking will be available to shoppers from Nov. 26-29.

Comunale can only hope the sales generated during that timeframe will work to keep them afloat.

“Choose us over Amazon,” she said. “We need the community support.”