DELMARVA - As the annual Sea Witch Festival and Sunfest return to Delmarva, some business owners and vendors in Rehoboth Beach and Ocean City are anticipating increased sales from the final festival weekend push of the shoulder season.
Witches and fall decor lined the streets of Rehoboth Beach when WBOC visited on Friday afternoon. Officials from the Rehoboth Beach-Dewey Beach Chamber of Commerce told WBOC that, last year, they saw roughly 200,000 visitors stop by for the weekend. Those city officials said they anticipate the same turnout for this year, if not higher.
All of those extra people mean extra shoppers for local businesses like Sea Finds. Owner Linda Abrams said small businesses like theirs rely on weekends like the Sea Witch Festival. Historically, Abrams said they've seen their sales roughly double.
"We've been in business now 17 years," Abrams said. "So we have a lot of people who are returning customers, so they come back for the festival every year. Hopefully, it's a good three days."
Down the Coastal Highway from Rehoboth Beach, Sunfest was in full swing in Ocean City when WBOC visited Friday afternoon.
According to Ocean City officials, tens of thousands of people attend the yearly event. For small business owners, like vendor Dana Jackson from Ocean Pines, events like Sunfest are crucial. Jackson said, thatas a vendor without a traditional store, the weekend helps to push her through the shoulder season.
"Financially it's huge," Jackson said. "Sunfest brings a lot of people to town, and repeat customers come back and get a chance to support us as a small business."
Ocean City's Sunfest runs from October 24th through October 27th. More information about the event can be found on the town's website.
Rehoboth Beach's Sea Witch Festival runs from October 25th through October 27th. More information about the festival can be found on the city's website.
