Settlers' Green breaks sales records over holiday weekend

By David Carkhuff

Forget Black Friday. Settlers' Green Outlet Village had its biggest weekend of sales ever during the Veterans Day weekend, reported Dot Seybold, general manager of the outlet center in North Conway."It was a record breaker, it was an absolute record breaker, most stores beat out previous years' Black Friday. This has become the biggest weekend for us," Seybold said.Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, traditionally boasts strong sales, but Veterans Day weekend has become a shopping juggernaut in North Conway."People will come up in early to mid-November for their holiday shopping and just to get away. It's still nice weather," Seybold said.As the weather grows worse, the number of tourists declines. Also, holiday schedules become busier at home, so visitors don't have as much time to travel."The closer you get to Christmas, the fewer people you have coming," Seybold said.Also, Veterans Day has come into its own as a respected holiday."A lot of people are seeing that as a significant holiday," Seybold noted.The fact that schools were closed on Friday allowed families with children to travel. During the entire weekend, Settlers' Green was packed, with vehicles parked on every available inch of real estate."There were lines out the doors, everybody was in a good mood," Seybold said."One of our bigger stores had a six-digit day. I know that's a record for them," she said.The outlet center also drew in customers with promotions and gifts to shoppers, handing out 1,000 shopping bags in five hours on Friday and offering other giveaways over the weekend.The 230,000-square-foot Settlers Green Outlet Village is home to 60 factory outlet retailers including Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, J. Jill and Aeropostale, the 200-room North Conway Grand Hotel, and a sprinkling of residential condominiums. One of the visitors was Marti Mayne, public relations manager for the Mount Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce."I have never seen it so incredibly crowded in my entire life. From what I'm told it was a combination of a Canadian holiday and our own Veterans Day holiday," Mayne said.Remembrance Day was celebrated in Canada on Friday. A 15 percent exchange rate fueled Canadian traffic, Mayne noted."When you have Canadians here they shop, especially in tax-free New Hampshire," Mayne said."Saturday morning, I know for a fact that the lines at Old Navy went all the way to the back of the store. People were out in force," she said."It seemed busy everywhere I went, it was busy throughout North Conway Village, it was a good weather weekend, at least on Saturday," Mayne added. "I know that lodging was pretty full this weekend, many of the bed and breakfasts were sold out."A Harvest to Holidays shopping-kit program through Mount Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce also attracted visitors. Promotions like this one and lodging packages have helped to revive interest in the valley after foliage season, making November a strong month, Mayne noted.Assistant editor David Carkhuff can be contacted at david@conwaydailysun.com.