Downtown Morehead Inc., or DMI, has formed a new committee to enhance collaboration between businesses in the city. Officials said the group is already seeing some success with their initiatives. The Downtown Merchant’s Committee includes representatives from several establishments in Morehead.
Executive Director of DMI, Tony Pence, said the group has hopes of increasing revenue on Main Street.
“And it's just to bring people into town that normally might not come. And coordinate shopping hours and sales, that kind of thing, especially around the holidays and events like Shop Small Saturday. The last two were, in the entire month of August, was the back-to-school. I think it was pretty successful,” Pence said.
Recent efforts include a back-to-school campaign in August and a shopping passport program for downtown businesses. Pence added the new collaboration is mutually beneficial for DMI.
“We're funding, you know, their posters and the printing and their expenses. We handle that part of it, but we don't interfere with what they're trying to do because we want them involved. And I think that's probably the quickest way to get everybody involved is to let them have a project and run with it. It benefits all of them,” said Pence.
The Downtown Merchant’s Committee is a natural product of Downtown Morehead Inc., which itself was originally called the Downtown Morehead Merchant’s Association.