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Winter Melting Small Business Profits

During one stretch this month, Connecticut was hit by 7 storms in 16 days, which impacted local businesses. But there is one industry, outside of plowing contra...

During one stretch this month, Connecticut was hit by 7 storms in 16 days, which impacted local businesses. But there is one industry, outside of plowing contractors, that has not melted under the weight of winter.

The auto industry, in general, has fared well this month because a great deal of their business is coming from digital shoppers.

“When storms happen, people are at home. And people are spending more time online. And, when spending more time online, they can shop,” says Christan Miller, Director of Marketing and Communications for the Hoffman Auto Group.

Miller then referred to a saying in the auto industry, noting that “it’s not business lost. It’s business delayed. We’ll see it. And, it might be this weekend or the following weekend, but we’ll capture it.”

But, those results are unique.

The day before Valentine’s Day is typically a big one for Glastonbury Jewelers. But, this year, a snow storm on that day reduced their business by 90 percent compared to the previous February 13th.

“Then, on Valentine’s Day we made it up. And so, we were down maybe 40 percent from last year,” said Antonio Panebianco, who has owned Glastonbury Jewelers for 32 years.

Last year, we endured a February blizzard that dumped three feet of snow on many municipalities. Three years ago, 60 inches of snow fell during the month of January. So, how do those winters stack up to this one?

“I can’t remember having a winter like this where there’ve been so many storms. And surely it’s impacted business. But, we choose to be in New England and we just roll with it,” said Mike Ski, Owner of Hair Today in Glastonbury.

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