Palm Springs businesses can take a hit during Coachella, one local wants to help
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) -- While the east valley enjoys a business boom from Coachella's more than 200,000 visitors, restaurants and shops in downtown Palm Springs may lose traction.
"If I look at, Saturday in March versus a Saturday during Coachella, it's probably about a 40 to 50% decrease," Jeff Witthuhn, owner of Peepa's clothing said.
It's also impacting restaurant staff.
"The first weekend I probably walked out with $80 when I can easily work out with $380 or $400 per day," Julio Ramirez, a server at Eight4Nine said.
The restaurant's owner said they're already seeing a decrease in traffic.
"Our reservations for this coming Saturday as an example are down over the past Saturday. They're down by about 30%," Willie Rhine, co-owner of Eight4Nine, said.
Robinson and Witthuhn say this drop in sales comes while they're already dealing with an uncertain market.
"With all of the politics out there with, tariffs going into place, with the increased costs. We are trying to do whatever we can to save money. Summers are always a bit of a struggle anyway, so we're expecting to struggle a little bit more this year than normal," Rhine said.
It's why Matt Robinson, a Palm Springs resident and creator of the 'I love downtown Palm Springs' Facebook page, is pushing locals to support downtown this month.
"We forget we live in paradise. I've been here 35 years, and to me, it is paradise and the mom and pop shops are what make downtown unique," Robinson said.
Robinson has coined the month of April as 'Be a tourist at home month,' and has posted several businesses that could use the support. He wants locals to shop in their backyard first.
"If you're local, please come out. We love to see you in our stores and walking the streets. So you're a valuable part of what we do downtown," Witthuhn said.
"The locals sort of have a misconception that downtown is very busy. So they tend to stay away from downtown areas and that's not true," Rhine said.
