Myrtle Beach shopping days set for Easter weekend, business participation unclear
Grand Strand residents and tourists are encouraged to head to Myrtle Beach businesses this weekend for 72 hours of sales during “Myrtle Beach Shopping Days,” but it’s unclear which businesses are participating.
Businesses in Myrtle Beach can participate in the city-wide shopping days event – from Friday to Sunday, where certain regulations are relaxed to allow businesses to promote three days of sales.
City spokesman Mark Kruea said since permits are not required to hold the sales this weekend, he was unaware how many businesses plan to participate, if any.
“It’s still new enough that the business community has not seized on the opportunity the way the city would have liked it to,” he said.
According to a resolution approved by the Myrtle Beach City Council in July, the “Myrtle Beach Shopping Days” will be held Easter weekend and the weekend after Thanksgiving.
During the shopping days, businesses are allowed to have outdoor displays and sales on portions of private walkways, sidewalks and parking lots as well as up to 32 square feet of additional signage, according to the resolution.
The dates were suggested by the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce’s Small Business Council and Membership Committee, according to the ordinance.
It is unclear how many businesses are taking part in the shopping days because the chamber also does not track participation, said Diana Greene, executive vice president of membership programs and services for the chamber.
The council approved an ordinance in 2012 that relaxed business regulations for two 72-hour periods each year, which could be held at any time of the year. Businesses must apply for a free permit with the city in order to hold the three-day sale, Kruea said. These two 72-hour periods are in addition the city-wide shopping days.
Though more likely during the Thanksgiving holiday, the resolution also allows shoppers to camp on site for up to 24 hours before the first shopping day in each of the two sets of Myrtle Beach Shopping Days, as long as the property owner allows it.
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