Fourth not a holiday for all

People off work on the Fourth of July celebrate the holiday in many different ways: fireworks, barbecues and parades. And businesses open today are expecting to spend the holiday in different ways.

From restaurants and grocers to ice cream shops and malls, July Fourth can be a huge paycheck or a huge letdown for businesses.

Restaurants see differences in patronage throughout the day. Heavy daytime or nighttime patronage depends upon the type of restaurant.

"During the day, it's not as busy, but it picks up at night," Jeanne Thomas, president of the Pie Pizzeria, said of the holiday. "People grab pizza to take to the fireworks show. We get quite a rush in the end."

However, not all restaurants find this type of response. Hires Big H is expecting to be less busy this evening.

"Sometimes we close a little early because people are doing fireworks," said Mark Hale, executive officer and legal counsel for Hires. "Our locations in Midvale and West Valley will close around 9 if it's quiet and the streets are vacant."

Despite the amount of barbecuing that occurs during the Fourth, Hale believes people eat out more on holidays because they want to relax and take a day off.

"We provide food for people who are hungry and don't want to cook for themselves," Hale said.

Retail stores located in malls don't have the option to close on holidays, Tamara DeMilt, senior marketing manager for Fashion Place mall, said.

"There's a lot of people shopping on the Fourth," DeMilt said, citing the typical summer holiday turnout. "(But) it's definitely not one of the busiest days of the year."

However, malls containing cinemas draw more business for the other stores. Scott Hansen, general manager of the Provo Towne Center, said theaters in malls draw people, especially when it's hot outside.

Having a holiday in the middle of the week poses different problems — or different opportunities — for businesses.

"Business-wise, people aren't delivering," said John Winders, owner of Spotted Dog Creamery. "A lot of people are on vacation. It's really challenging. This week has been a mess."

Thomas, with The Pie, said business should be normal despite having a holiday on a Wednesday. "We get our food deliveries in and it runs as normal," she said.

Most grocery stores likely will remain open for the holiday as always and expect to see a bit of a rush today. Emigration Market believes that will be the case, mostly because of barbecuing.

"All the (grocery) stores are open now, so they can wait 'til the Fourth to shop," said Verna Dupaix, grocery manager and assistant manager for Emigration Market.

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E-mail: csmith@desnews.com