Published: Sunday, Jul. 05, 2009

Updated: Sunday, Jul. 05, 2009

Businesses trying to ease your economic pain

MANATEE — Sandy Andrews recently placed a large, hand-painted sign in front of her Southwind Hair and Nails on 14th Street West.

It reads: “To Help The Economy: Haircut $6.00”

“I just have a lot of clients that were losing their jobs,” she says. “Part of our stimulus to the economy was offering lower-priced haircuts. Other people’s prices are like $10 to $15 and I thought, that would be like $60 for a family of four to get haircuts.”

Andrews says her customers have been appreciative of the break.

“People, they immediately came in and were telling us how much it’s helped them,” Andrews says. “They can afford to get a haircut now, where before they couldn’t.”

Other local businesses also are trying to help those who have been caught in the sweep of the downturn.

With more and more people losing their jobs in the nation, some people like Andrews are hoping to help ease the pain.

Steve Wilson, owner of four Hide-A-Way Storage facilities in Manatee County and three in Sarasota County, is offering two months of free storage space rent to local residents who have been displaced by foreclosure.

“What prompted me is, we all know people who are hurting right now,” Wilson says. “It may take them a year before the foreclosure comes through, but it will come through and they’ll need some storage,”

Rent at the Hide-A-Way Storage facilities ranges from $25 to $130 per month, depending on the size, Wilson says.

Those want to take advantage of the deal have to bring in copies of foreclosure paperwork and are required to put down a deposit equivalent to one month’s rent. The deposit is refunded if belongings are moved out before the end of two months.

“If you only stay five days, you aren’t going to pay us anything” Wilson says. “If you only stay a month, you aren’t going to pay us anything.”

Wilson also is offering displaced families an additional two months’ rent at half price.

“As long as there are people being foreclosed on en masse as they are now, we’re going to try to help them out,” Wilson says.

Shelter Hawkins, assistant manager at the Royal Palm Cinemas 20, says the movie theater’s Stimulus Tuesdays have been well received.

Each Tuesday the theater offers a 46-ounce popcorn and a small drink, each for $1.

“Our small drink is normally $3.90 and the 46-ounce (popcorn) is only a Stimulus Tuesday item, but our 80-ounce popcorn normally costs $5.40,” Hawkins said. “We’re doing quite a bit of business with it. People seem to respond well.”

Dave Cotrone, co-owner of the two Smoothie Kings on 53rd Avenue and Manatee Avenue, said he’s been delivering free smoothies to local businesses as part of a pick-me-up effort for the down economy.

“That’s kind of what we’ve been doing – kind of like our own stimulus to try and help out,” Cotrone says. “We probably can’t afford to do it, but we kind of feel like we can’t afford not to do it. The thing that keeps us going is just giving to the community.”

Cotrone doesn’t rule out that the gesture might also bring his Smoothie Kings business.

“We might get a guest or two come in,” he says. “If that works and that comes back to us, it’s just a blessing all around.”

Lynn Wade, owner of Wade’s Carpet and Interiors, 2911 Cortez Road W., has been running special deals on hardwoods, laminates and carpeting, discounting prices as much as 40 percent as part of a stimulus package ad campaign.

But so far, traffic has been minimal, Wade says.

“We gathered up several different laminates and several different hardwoods and some carpet and got the best price possible and ran it through a stimulus ad campaign,” Wade says. “They really are good deals. But so far, it’s not been stimulating a whole lot. I think mostly it’s a sign of the time and when they’re going to buy, they’re going to buy.”

During the real estate boom sales were nearly effortless, Wade says.

“Now we’re on the opposite end of the spectrum,” she says. “People have money to spend. They’re just afraid. We’ve been through this type of thing before. It’s just a little different than I remember when times were just slow. This atmosphere has a fear factor in it that I don’t remember from past years.”