Main Street South Carolina recognized Downtown Florence with the Main Street Award for Outstanding Promotion.
The award honors downtown promotions that encourage consumers and stakeholders to live, work, shop and invest in the Main Street area — a goal which is one of the core principals of the National Main Street approach.
Seeking to establish itself as a dining and entertainment destination, Downtown Florence established its Restaurant Week in 2018. After a two-year break as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, it returned in 2022 and was timed to coincide with another successful event: Tap into Downtown, a retail-focused brew crawl.
The event brought together 11 of the district’s 14 restaurants and enjoyed promotional and coordination support from Downtown Florence’s advisory board as well as the SC Restaurant and Lodging Association. A $10,000 budget for the event came from the revenue of other events as well as the district’s hospitality tax allocation. Promotions shifted from Florence’s typical focus on the Myrtle Beach region to the Columbia designated market area because of its greater focus on independent restaurants.
Thanks to improved data collection, Downtown Florence tracked 20% higher foot traffic in the district compared to 2021 as well as increased restaurant sales during a historically slow week in mid-September.
“Downtown Florence, which has already won the prestigious Great American Main Street Award in 2023, has done it again with this recognition. They found a creative way to bring more people downtown to enjoy everything Florence has to offer, and demonstrated why they have become known for their innovation and their energy,” said Jenny Boulware, Main Street SC manager.
Main Street SC is a program of the Municipal Association of South Carolina. It empowers residents, business owners and local officials with the knowledge, skills, tools and organizational structure necessary to revitalize their downtowns and neighborhood commercial districts into vibrant centers of commerce and community.
Main Street SC follows the National Main Street’s Four Point Approach – economic vitality, design, promotion and organization. Each year, Main Street South Carolina recognizes members’ achievements and successes in downtown revitalization. For more information, visit the Municipal Association’s website at www.masc.sc (keyword: Main Street).
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