MOUNTAIN HOME, Idaho — Local shops and restaurants in Mountain Home are experiencing the typical post-holiday slowdown, but business owners are finding ways to attract customers during the traditionally quiet January period.
WATCH: How local stores adapt to a slower influx of shoppers
At Foxtail Books, owner Sandie Hall described the stark contrast between December's bustling holiday shopping season and January's empty aisles.
"Oh gosh, today we've had one customer," Hall said. "December is amazing, just because people are Christmas shopping."
The pattern is consistent across Mountain Home's business district. Jennifer Gilbert, owner of Dynamic Gal Boutique, reported similar foot traffic challenges during what she considers a predictable seasonal downturn.
"I've seen about two people, three people today, and it'll be that way," Gilbert said.
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Gilbert noted that even the holiday season was quieter than expected, forcing her to adapt her business strategy to maintain customer engagement.
"People are watching what they're spending on. They're not gifting as much anymore," Gilbert said. "I'm doing a lot of events." She said that the events help get her name and her business out there in the community.
Meanwhile, Hall is focusing on social media marketing to increase visibility for Foxtail Books, a strategy that Mountain Home Economic Development Director Dale King considers essential for local businesses.
"That's where people are gonna find them and make sure their Facebook page has lots of posts, new opportunities, new deals, just something that's a seasonal opportunity," King said.
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Local business owners also face competition from online retailers and larger shopping destinations.
"But what hasn't helped is everyone goes to Boise [to shop]. Temu's been very popular and all those kinds of places, also Amazon and all that good stuff. Gilbert said. "So it does slow us down a lot."
King suggested geo-fencing as a potential solution to help local businesses compete with larger markets. Geofencing creates a virtual geographic boundary around an area through GPS technology, allowing different software to trigger a response when a mobile device is registered within that area.
"We are an outlying area from Boise, so it's pretty legitimate for a local business to actually add their location on their Google Maps as Boise," King said.
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