1 post tagged “sidewalk sale”
Kudos (or as the kids now call them, "props") to the Merchants of Upper Market & Castro (MUMC) for a great Sidewalk Sale last Saturday! My memory of the last couple of these events has been that participation has been a little disapointing, but this time it seemed like almost every appropriate retailer (and a few inappropriate ones) had a table out.
Of course, it didn't hurt that it was both Cinco de Mayo and a rare sunny, warm day in SF -- and the boys were out in droves.
Officially the sale started at 9am, which struck me as odd because many stores don't open until 10 or 11, but the bargain hunters were out in force even before the opening bell, thus reinforcing that old saying: "Queens love bargains."
Here are some pictures of the festivities:
Chocolate on Castro had a table out, handing out samples and promoting the new store.
Rock Hard was one of a few stores with treats of a more adult nature. (No samples though.)
The comic book store Whatever had a big display and was quite packed inside. Saturday was also Free Comic Book Day (no joke -- check the link) and Whatever was particating with piles of free comics, author appearances, and raffles throughout the day. I grabbed one of the last copies of "Unseen Peanuts" and was seriously, seriously, unnaturally, disturbingly psyched about it.
Whatever is on the left in the picture above. On the right is AlwaysTan and they were definitely playing to their audience with a cute, buff, hairless, shirtless boy working the table. His sagging shorts were showing off his pair of Aussie Bum underwear. (I report that detail out of journalistic integrity only.)
The HRC Store was festive, and formerly insanely expensive designer t-shirts were going at huge discounts.
The Tibet Shop on 19th also got into the spirit of the day. (BTW, if anyone can please tell me how this store stays in business, I would really appreciate it.)
Under One Roof had a surprisingly small selection out front.
You know, good for Walgreens for participating and supporting the community event, but darned if they didn't have the most ghetto-looking display of the day. Their sale mostly consisted of beef jerkey, bottled water, and tourist t-shirts.
Thai Chef and Thailand Restaurant (below) both had tables out and were selling food and giving out samples.
De La Sole was packed when we went passed. I guess everyone wants cute shoes for the summer. I have to hand it to this store -- we weren't optimistic about them, but they seem to be hanging in there.
This is a broad shot showing (from left to right) American Boy, Cliff's (both the home store and the main store), and A Different Light, each with good-sized tables out. Cliff's gets the prize for the most merchandise out for sale, with items from a year's worth of holidays and some other dusty items that looked like they hadn't been out of the stock room since Fuzio was the Night Shift.
Superstar had a selection of porn and non-porn offerings.
Body had more sale tables inside as well.
In-Jean-ious had sale racks in front of their main store, as well as at their Lounge store up the street.
At Pottery Barn it was a veritable feeding frenzy. This was the first place I visited in the morning, and people were pulling merchandise off the carts before the employees could unwrap and price the items.
Coldwell Banker got into the spirit as well and had a table out. "Everything is 15% off!" was the realtor's opening line. Heh-heh, those witty realtors!
Books Inc. had a few racks and tables out. This was as far down Market as I got, so I'm not sure whether many (or any) stores on Church Street were also participating. But I was impressed with the participation rate in the area around Market and Castro.
Overall, I'd call the day a huge success, with stores, restaurants, bars, and coffeeshops all filled with people. I hope that this gave a good boost to the local economy, and that next year will be even bigger and better. Good job, MUMC!
