With move-in day set to take place Wednesday at Mississippi State University, businesses around Starkville are bracing for an influx of students.
Traffic is set to increase on Highway 12 and other major arteries; visitors to Walmart will encounter packed aisles, as they have on every other move-in day in recent memory; and businesses that saw sales drop during the hot summer months are preparing to welcome back a significant portion of their customer base.
“We really do rely on the college kids,” said Oooh-La-La manager Kim Taylor, who has worked at the Main Street boutique for three years.
Taylor and other business owners in town estimated sales typically increase 50-60 percent when Mississippi State students return in August for the fall semester.
“It”s like three different seasons,” Taylor said. “Spring is good, summer is bad and fall is great.”
The students and their influx of money play an integral part in the city”s economy.
Sales tax receipts this year in the city of Starkville totaled approximately $448,312 in March and $450,470 in April, then dropped down to $423,737 in May, after the spring semester concluded at Mississippi State. Figures for June and July are not yet available, but in previous years, sales tax totals have decreased throughout the summer and then increased again in August and September.
In 2009, sales tax figures totaled $427,565 in March, $428,268 in April, and then dropped to $387,521 in May, when the spring semester concluded at Mississippi State. Sales tax totals then increased in June 2009 to $416,409, dropped to $413,089 in July and then increased to $458,061 in August, when students returned for the fall semester.
Previous years show similar trends. In April 2008, sales tax figures totaled $418,889, then dropped to $409,541 in May. Figures continued to drop in June, with only $406,565 collected, before rebounding in July and August, with $443,649 and $447,356 in sales tax collected, respectively.
In 2007, sales tax figures dropped $25,411 between April and May, from $417,670 to $392,259, and then increased by more than $90,000 between July and August, from $388,505 to $480,902, when students returned.
Local businesses are hoping for a similar trend this year.
At Sundial Boutique, owner Christy Cater has ordered additional maroon and white Mississippi State apparel, is increasing hours on Thursdays to coincide with the Greater Starkville Development Partnership”s Downtown at Sundown business campaign and is offering discounts on many items. Cater already has seen business pick up throughout the past week as MSU students begin to trickle back into town.
“Our business almost doubles when students get back into town,” Cater said.
Brian Kelley, co-owner of Restaurant Tyler, Zorba”s, Bin 612 and Rock Bottom Bar and Grill, shared a similar sentiment. He expects business to increase 50-60 percent at Zorba”s, but increase by 15-20 percent at Restaurant Tyler, where fewer college students dine. Business at Bin 612 and Rock Bottom has been steady throughout the summer, but should increase, as well, Kelley said.
“(Business) is starting to pick up now that people are coming back,” Kelley said. “We think when everybody gets back, the sales will be back up to where they were in the spring.”
Greater Starkville Development Partnership CEO Jon Maynard said it is important to make MSU students feel welcome in the community, not only so they frequent businesses, but so they may stay and find jobs in the Golden Triangle after graduation.
“Our extended Starkville family that is the student body at MSU is critically important to our growth and economic health,” Maynard said. “Our students contribute economically to our community as well as adding to the character of our city. The high caliber of student that MSU attracts adds to our ability to market ourselves as a smart and progressive Southern community. We value the students who choose MSU and want them to feel welcome and at home here. If we do our job right, these same students will be able to find jobs and a long future in the Golden Triangle.”
The U.S. Census Bureau estimated a 2008 population of 24,187 for Starkville. This year, Mississippi State expects enrollment to top 19,000. In fall of 2009, MSU had an enrollment of 18,601.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.