The past several years haven’t necessarily been kind to the Phoenix Suns, but this season has been different and businesses have felt the effects.
The team started drawing larger crowds to the US Airways Center in the past few months as the Suns have played some of their best games of the season, surprising the NBA and fans alike.
The Suns’ success is also bringing more traffic to neighboring businesses where fans drop by before and after home games. Nearby restaurants and bars said they only made slight adjustments to accommodate the higher volume of people, such as ensuring more staff are scheduled on those busy nights.
But there’s one thing all of them are overjoyed with: the extra cash Suns fans are bringing to them during home games.
“There have been nights where we have doubled our gross,” said Matthew Due, co-owner of nearby restaurant Fuego Cityscape. “It has been a huge shot in the arm for our business.”
Other restaurants, like Italian eatery The Strand, implement different strategies to ensure service is efficient on game nights for Suns fans. Manager Ross Dafoe said they try not to reserve large parties during those busy hours and steer clear of offering menu specials to lower the risk of slowing things down.
“They have something to do,” Dafoe said of Suns customers, noting that staff keeps an eye out for game time when fans are in the restaurant. “So you know at 7 o’clock, everyone at the Suns game is going to want to close out.”
Older establishments such as Majerle’s Sports Grill are accustomed to welcoming the high traffic, but they are nonetheless thankful for the extra people who stay put at the bar for the games, according to manager Kristi Jo Galbreath.
“It did trail off for a little bit, but now that the Suns are doing so well, everybody is coming through,” Galbreath said. “The ones that don’t go to the arena stay here to watch the game.”
Although it hasn’t been too troublesome, another factor businesses have to consider is parking around the area.
Joe Newcomer, manager at comedy venue Stand Up Live and the adjoining bar Copper Blues, said he is conscious of game nights when they happen to fall on the same evening as a show.
“Parking here fills a little quicker,” he said. “We just need to keep an eye out for our crowd to make sure people can make it to the show.”
Others have considered drink specials for the game’s spectators.
On some evenings, Squid Ink Sushi Bar has offered customers who show their ticket for that night’s game their first bottled beer for $1.
Yogurt Time is even thinking of competing with the arena’s markup on energy drinks by possibly offering a “buy one, get one deal” or a larger “buy three, get one free deal.”
Larger crowds may be spilling into businesses closest to the arena, but the benefits have also made their way a little farther north.
Sports World sales representative Rafael Campos said that the apparel store, which is located in the Arizona Center, is running out of Suns gear faster than usual.
“I often re-order every two or three weeks,” he said of the increase in demand. “Normally I could go a month or two without having to worry about getting anything for them.”
Playoffs are just around the corner, and business owners are hopeful that the Suns will secure a position so that businesses continue to profit.
“The team does good for the city and the city responds to it,” Campos said.
Contact the reporter at Carlene.Reyes@asu.edu.
