Businesses navigate 'a fact of life': Summer slump

June, July, August. 

School is out, temperatures are up and things are moving slower — even some business. 

“June and July, in particular, are notably slower than all the rest of the months,” said Dan Thomasson, owner of dinner. in Crestline. Thomasson has been in his current location for two years and said he starts to see a drop-off in business toward the end of May. “I think sports have wrapped up, so families are going to the lake more on the weekends.”

Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Suzan Doidge said it isn’t uncommon for families to leave the city, whether to take extended vacations or to live at a lake house or vacation home over the summer. 

This slow-down typically starts after Memorial Day, Doidge said.

“There’s definitely a lull,” said Seth Adams, owner of Village Sportswear. “There’s definitely a back-and-forth just because people around in our environment, where we are, they have second homes, they have lake houses, they take vacations.”

In a recent survey of business owners and operators in Mountain Brook conducted by Village Living, 43.9 percent of business owner respondents said they do “less or significantly less” business during the summer months, compared to 34.1 percent who said business levels remain about the same and 21.9 percent who see an increase of shoppers.

“I think all communities that have a retail base suffer during the summer unless … you’re in a vacation destination,” Doidge said.

Although dinner. offers meals to-go and families will come in to stock up on side dishes or main courses for their vacation, Thomasson said fewer customers come in during lunch hours through the summer months. 

Tom Sheffer, who owns Avo/Dram and Icehouse in Mountain Brook Village and Jackson’s in Homewood and Nashville, said the summer means business slows down some for his restaurants, too.

“You don’t feel it up there [Nashville] like you do here,” he said. “They don’t have a lake house; it’s farther to the beach.” 

Sheffer said he has also noticed that peak hours shift. The days are hotter, and because everyone has that “vacation feel,” people eat at restaurants later and stay out later.

“We’re all long out of school, but you can still feel it’s summer,” Sheffer said. 

Thomasson agreed, mentioning that as the sun stays up longer, his busier hours shift from 5-6 p.m. to 6-7 p.m.

However, the majority of survey respondents — from medical and design services to restaurants and retail — disagreed, with 73 percent stating their peak hours remain the same. Participants who responded otherwise said evenings may be stronger, and limited parking and school being out can affect traffic, too.

“Students are in school during the school year and out during the summer, so they can really come all day,” one respondent said. But others — about 83 percent of respondents — mentioned that their clientele doesn’t typically change, despite schools being closed.

Doidge said in the past, some business owners would change their summer hours to meet both their needs and customer needs. 

According to the survey, 61 percent of business owners and operators see the majority of shoppers during the midday hours, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., and for the most part, that’s consistent throughout the year.

For the 16.7 percent of respondents who said they alter their store hours over summer months, most said they close earlier or open a little later. One also mentioned the business is open when employees are available to work.

“Basically, what we have learned over the years through all of this … is business in the mornings is slow, and after lunch we’re busy for the rest of the day,” Adams said. “It doesn’t seem to change.”

He said people will run their errands in the morning, stop for lunch and shop in the afternoon. But when the holidays come around — Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day — Doidge said the number of shoppers and restaurant-goers drops off. 

“A lot of people take off for Memorial Day, and that starts the summer,” Doidge said. “And the second big push is over the Fourth of July.”

To combat a loss of customers, businesses have adjusted.

Thomasson said to account for the increased heat of the summer, dinner. changes its menu to incorporate lighter foods.

“Certain things, when it heats up, they don’t sell as well,” he said. “When it’s really hot, we don’t sell as much mac and cheese. It’s as simple as that because it’s already hot enough.” 

Thomasson said they tend to sell more gazpacho and cold vegetable sides. Sheffer said his restaurants will update drinks for more festive and refreshing options, and he sees fewer heavier foods being consumed. 

Adams, on the retail side, said he has learned that his shoppers want to “buy now, wear now,” and not purchase clothing for another season. 

“They want something they can wear tomorrow, and they want something they can put on and be ready to wear now,” he said. 

Over the years, he has started to order items that are more in-season and hold off on ordering sweaters or winter wear until later in the year.

The Chamber of Commerce also tries to bring in shoppers with the back-to-school tax-free weekend — scheduled July 20-22 — as well as Market Day and Crestline Tent Sale. 

Doidge said they try to promote events or local businesses’ special sales when they know about them and in the future, the chamber is hoping to have a transit bus run between the three main villages so shoppers can easily get to different stores without worrying about parking.

Jean Clayton, owner of Christine’s on Canterbury, said summers have improved over the years as more and more visitors make their way to Mountain Brook. She attributed this to weddings generating greater activity during May and June and also that several of her shoppers were in the area to attend UAB.

Adams agreed, adding the Grand Bohemian Hotel brings in people from out of town who might not otherwise think to shop in Mountain Brook or may not be within a close vicinity for it to be an option.

Regardless, some businesses within city limits do see that decrease of shoppers during June, July and August.

“I feel like it’s a double-edged sword,” Sheffer said. “These are affluent communities, but geographically [Birmingham is] close to the beach and the lake. I think it will always be a fact of life.”

“Summer, obviously, does create a different environment,” Adams said, “but we do continue to push forward, move on and transition into the up and coming months.”