TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Businesses along University Boulevard in Tucson are preparing for a surge in customers as University of Arizona students return to campus.
The summer slowdown hits local retail stores and restaurants hard. When snowbirds leave and most students head home, foot traffic and sales drop significantly. But when classes resume, so does the cash.
Pitaya, a clothing store on University Boulevard, is already seeing the energy shift.
"We get so many sales. I mean, people are coming in whether it's like for resumes, they're still browsing or a lot of parents, families, they like to shop for their kids while their kids aren't there or maybe at their dorm. They'll ask us a lot of questions. They love the game day. They love the cute little dresses and stuff," Jayde Simms, a retail associate at Pitaya, said.
Simms is a student herself, which gives her insight into what shoppers are looking for and helps Pitaya connect with its clientele.
"It's nice because we're all in the age range of the college. So our style is kind of like a current style. So, it's nice that we get a little bit of say," Simms said.
Pitaya is also hosting a Welcome Back Wednesday promotion on Aug. 26. Doors open at 10 a.m. The first 30 people in line will receive $30 gift cards, which can stretch far in the store.
"All these basics are like $10. You can get shorts for like around $20. Our shoes are pretty cheap, they're like $50 and below," Simms said.
Pitaya also accepts CatCa$h.
A couple of doors down, Agave House serves modern Mexican cuisine and sits in a prime location for student traffic. General Manager Alexa Curell says the restaurant is ready to take on the crowd and chaos that comes with it.
"I think that there's no world where you can say that 21-year-old kids and a little bit of alcohol isn't rowdy, but you know we love them. We're happy to have them. We turn into a nightclub at night from 9:30 to 2:00 a.m. Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and some Tuesdays," Curell said. "So we're prepared for it. We have a great security staff, amazing bartenders, and we are ready to go. Plastic cups are a must for sure."
Many of Agave House's employees are students themselves, and Curell is excited to welcome them back.
"Next week we've got a show at Centennial Hall and we have all the kids moving in with their parents, so we are staffed to the brim. We wanna make sure everybody gets the best service, so we definitely overstaff," Curell said.
Curell says their team knows how to market to the right audience.
"We love doing Instagram reels. We have a team of college promoters, so they come out with their friends, they make cute little videos, they hang out. I mean, it's the most fun job you could ever have," Curell said.
The restaurant is also making sure Wildcat fans know Agave House is the place to watch games this season.
"It's so exciting and such a great opportunity to meet new faces, hire new people, incoming freshmen, see who's going to be around for the next couple of years, party, make money, and just like have an all around good semester," Curell said. "Come to Agave House. We have everything, but most importantly, we have the best margaritas in Tucson."
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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Vanessa Gongora is KGUN 9's Westside reporter.. Vanessa fell in love with storytelling by growing up in sports. She was fascinated by how sports reporters go beyond the x's & o's to tell players' stories, and how sports bring people together, inspiring Vanessa to provide the same impact as a journalist. Share your story ideas and important issues with Vanessa by emailing vanessa.gongora@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, Instagram, and X.
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