Clear Skies Mean Brisk Sales For Philly Vendors

Posted Oct 26, 2008 by Shannon Liston, News Channel 8

Updated Oct 27, 2008 at 05:34 AM

Thousands of Phillies fans crammed into the concourse section of Citizens Bank Park Saturday with nothing to do for an hour-and-a-half. They spent their time dodging the rain, waiting for Game 3 of the World Series to get under way. 

You might think concession and retail sales shot up due to the delay. But for at least a couple of vendors, sales are actually better Sunday. A young woman working the cash register at the Chickie’s and Pete’s stand tells me that business is much busier now with a clear night. Despite seeing Phillies fans snaking around in a line waiting for the famous crab fries early last night, the employee says there’s a more steady stream of patrons tonight. 

The same is true for the folks at Bull’s BBQ in Ashburn Alley. A woman there says orders are coming in fast and furious. She says Saturday night’s rain did not help sales all that much. She says that’s because there were few places to move to even try and sit down to eat.

Mitchell & Ness, known for its authentic throwback jerseys, has a store in Ashburn Alley. During the downpour, jerseys weren’t flying off the shelves. Instead, ponchos were the hot commodities. “We were even out of our emergency ponchos, the ones that look like trash bags,” a retail associate said. 

She admits, though, that sales Saturday night are so far better than tonight’s, but thinks tomorrow could be the big sales winner. “I can’t even imagine what it will be like tomorrow, especially if we can win the Series. The fans are going to be nuts. We’ll probably make a lot.”