Long Island eateries facing big sales dips ahead of weekend snowstorm, but some stores draw more shoppers

Hundreds of customers typically pack The Main Event's two restaurant and bar venues on Long Island to watch the NFL's conference championship games on multiple TVs in January. 

But this weekend's winter storm, which is forecast to dump up to 15 inches of snow, will reduce sports spectator turnout significantly and cut into the venues' revenue.

Also, the Main Event, which has locations in Farmingdale and Plainview, got cancellations for three events that were scheduled for Sunday, including a bar mitzvah and a post-funeral luncheon, said Mike Constantatos, co-owner and manager.

    

The business will lose at least 50% of a week’s revenue due to the inclement weather, he projected. 

“Some businesses, they recover because people reschedule, but in the restaurant business … you never recover that money you would make,” he said. 

Businesses across Long Island are preparing for the financial effects of a storm that is expected to begin dumping snow across the Island before dawn Sunday. More than 160 million Americans will be affected by heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain from the Southern Rockies to New England from Friday through Monday, according to the National Weather Service. 

'For us, it’s been very good'

Some businesses, such as restaurants, hotels and event venues, are already losing sales as customers cancel special events and other outings. But other businesses, including supermarkets and hardware stores, are seeing strong boosts in sales.

Already this year, weather in the metropolitan area has been “volatile,” including several days of rain and snowfall, as well as days when temperatures rose well above normal to the high 50s, said Evan Gold, executive vice president of global partnerships and alliances at Planalytics, a Berwyn, Pennsylvania-based company that quantifies the economic impacts of weather.

“And we are expecting conditions to get into the teens in the coming days. … This forecast for cold, snow, and 'traffic limiting' weather this weekend is already having an impact on businesses and consumer purchasing,” he wrote in an email Wednesday.

Consumer spending in the metro area before the storm is expected to increase 50% to 100% above normal on need-based items, including heaters, blankets, ice melt, shovels, scrapers, boots, outerwear, gloves and hand warmers, he said.

For emergency supplies, such as flashlights, batteries, gasoline, power banks/generators and canned foods, consumer spending is expected to rise 15% to 50% above normal in the area, while spending on food, including canned goods, milk, bread and eggs, will rise 5% to 25% above normal, he said.

The majority of hardware retailers’ annual sales typically occur in the spring, when consumers are buying paint, gardening supplies and other products to spruce up their homes.

But local hardware retailers are reporting strong sales of shovels, ice melt and other products this winter, which has brought four snowstorms with significant accumulation to Long Island.

Not only has the revenue boost this winter provided a financial cushion for hardware stores during a season that has been slow for the past few years due to mild winters, but it also will help with inventory purchases for the spring, said Chris Pecoraro, a manager of his family’s two stores, Schaefer's Ace Hardware in Commack and Bayville.

“For us, it’s been very good. I mean, you don’t want to wish for it, but it’s something that you [as a hardware retailer] really need this time of year to help you get ready for the spring,” he said.

'You just do the best you can'

Business has been busy for days at Greenlawn Hardware, where customers are scooping up ice melt, firewood, shovels and car snowbrushes in preparation for this weekend, said Jeff Nunes, manager and vice president.

Some of the shoppers came to the store after finding big-box retailers were sold out of the items they needed, said Nunes, who added the hardware store wasn’t experiencing any product shortages.

“We do have a couple of local wholesalers, or local suppliers I should say, who are able to help us out on a shorter turnaround than our regular wholesalers,” he said.

While some sales will shift online, such as groceries and on-demand movies, as people are stuck at home, other businesses, including restaurants and entertainment events, will not be able to make up the losses.

For Arooga’s Sports Bar & Game Room in Patchogue, this Sunday would normally be the venue's busiest day of the football season, even topping the venue's Super Bowl gathering, said Charles Gomes, co-owner and managing partner.

Customers have been canceling their reservations for Sunday, said Gomes, who expects sales to be down 75% that day and 30% for the week because of the weather — if the restaurant even opens Sunday.

“But we might have to close … I can’t put my employees at risk to get there,” he said.

Gellfam Management Corp., a franchisee for fast-casual burger chain Five Guys, is preparing for possible weather-related power outages or restaurant closings this weekend, said Bill Gellert, company president.

Gellfam has 95 Five Guys eateries in 12 states, including nine on Long Island.

The Columbia County-based company is cutting back on food orders from vendors and telling them they need more flexibility for last-minute changes, especially since the restaurants don’t have freezers, instead serving only fresh food, Gellert said.

Also, some deliveries may not arrive because of the weather, he said.

He expects to have to temporarily close some restaurants, particularly those in Arkansas and Tennessee, where employees aren’t used to traveling in snow.

“You know, you just do the best you can,” he said.