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A group of downtown New Canaan merchants is keeping their doors open late every Thursday this summer, hoping to draw shoppers into town during the evening hours under a new initiative.
“Shop Summer Nights” is organized through the newly formed Shop New Canaan Association, more than one dozen independent retailers that began meeting in late May. Participating stores stay open from 5 to 7 p.m. each Thursday, with a different theme each week. Parking is free after 5 p.m.
Carl Franco, owner of Franco’s Wine Merchants on Elm Street and one of the participants, said the idea came from a recurring conversation with customers.
“A lot of times you hear from customers that there should be more stores staying open past five,” Franco said. “So we thought if we could designate a night where participating stores stayed open late, we could get people to come downtown, shop, park for free, do a little shopping and then head off to the restaurants.”
The association was largely organized by Patrick Keane and his wife, who own Found on Elm Street.
“They went around and physically knocked door to door, asking merchants to come to this meeting, and a really good core group of retailers continues to be involved,” Franco said.
Some 20 retailers are currently participating, Franco said, with everyone staying open on the same Thursdays.
“People are ready to let their hair down by Thursday,” Franco said. “And certainly summer nights are conducive to that.”
The group has had a slow but encouraging start, he said. Shoppers who have noticed the open stores have responded positively.
“People said it’s nice because they have dinner reservations at 7:30, and it’s nice to come down early and do a little shopping since the stores will be open,” Franco said. “Whether it’s window shopping or actual purchasing, it’s traffic.”
Weekly themes have so far included Father’s Day, the nation’s 250th anniversary and coming up will be the Fourth of July. The group is planning themes around the upcoming Sidewalk Sale and the Taste of the Town, Franco said, and will fill in others as the summer goes on.
Right now, information about the events is posted on the association’s Instagram page, and the group is working to build an interactive website where participating stores will be listed on a map along with any weekly promotions.
“If we can drive traffic there, it’ll just be a nice resource for people who either already live in town or might be visiting,” Franco said. “A lot of people who come out to the Glass House or Waveny on a Saturday don’t realize how accessible New Canaan is. Once you get off the train, you really don’t need a car.”
Though the new association is separate from the New Canaan Chamber of Commerce, the Chamber’s executive director, Laura Budd, said the organization supports the new initiative.
“With the restaurants attracting so many people into town, being open to attract some of the foot traffic during the early evening hours is a great idea,” Budd said. “We encourage our residents to stop into the open stores when they are in town. New Canaan is so lucky to have so many passionate and talented store owners lining our streets.”
An events committee is also forming within the Shop New Canaan Association, Franco said, with a goal of eventually adding music, food or other activities on Thursday nights. For now, the focus is simply on making the summer program a consistent presence downtown.
“I’d really be surprised if it didn’t go past Labor Day,” he said. “If you have some chocolate or gifts to buy, or just want to do some shopping for yourself, the stores are open late, so you can get out of work, get the kids fed, and then just pop down.”
Franco said the effort reflects something the merchants feel is at stake for downtown New Canaan as a whole.
“We really want to help reinvigorate downtown,” he said. “New Canaan has a very inviting village and we want to kind of remind people that they really have a jewel in their own backyard.”
Shop Summer Nights takes place every Thursday through Labor Day, 5 to 7 p.m., with free parking after 5 p.m. For updates on participating stores and weekly themes, follow @shopnewcanaanct on Instagram.