By Donald Wittkowski
Qwen Bogan, Debbie Mahon and Kelly Newhouse peered into their shopping bags and began comparing all of the things they had bought Saturday at the Groovy Girlz boutique in downtown Sea Isle City.
“Boots, stretch pants …” Bogan began in a slow voice, as though she was making a detailed inventory.
“We’re buying all the stuff on sale,” Mahon interjected, while letting out a hearty laugh. “This is only our first stop. We have many more to go.”
Bogan, who lives in Sea Isle, had invited Mahon and Newhouse, her friends from Pennsylvania, to join her for a shopping extravaganza that is fast becoming one of the beach town’s most popular events during the off-season.
Dubbed “Girls Weekend,” it allows Sea Isle merchants to cater to women shoppers and generate extra business during a time of year when things usually slow down at the Jersey Shore.
For shoppers, there is also a big social component to Girls Weekend. After they are done hitting the stores, the women often spend a relaxing evening together having drinks and dinner.
“We have so much more to do today,” Mahon said of her busy schedule with Bogan and Newhouse. “We still have to complete our shopping. Then, of course, there are items to eat and drink as well.”
Some of the downtown shops were packed Saturday, with bargain hunters lured by signs offering steep discounts of 50 percent or more.
“How are you, ladies? The whole store is on sale,” Colleen Buch, owner of Groovy Girlz, announced while greeting customers entering her boutique at 39th Street and Landis Avenue.
Buch, one of the organizers of Girls Weekend, said the event showcases the entire business community and has helped establish Sea Isle as a year-round shopping destination.
“In 2009 or 2010, we noticed there were lots of groups of women coming down to the shore during the off-season. We thought, ‘Let’s see if we can circle them all together to have one big, event in Sea Isle,’” Buch recalled of how Girls Weekend was conceived.
Buch is a board member of the Sea Isle City Chamber of Commerce and Revitalization. She said she came up with the idea for Girls Weekend along with Jamie Heritage, owner of Heritage Surf & Sport. The event is held the weekend before Thanksgiving and again during the last weekend in April.
“We started with 18 businesses in the first year,” Buch said. “Now, we have over 40. It has been getting bigger and bigger. It shows that we’re not just a summer vacation town.”
Carol Maxwell, of Virginia Beach, Va., was one of the shoppers at Groovy Girlz on Saturday. She bought shoes, tops and sweaters while searching for bargains with her cousin, Janet Thiel, of Brick Township, Ocean County.
Maxwell, who admires Sea Isle, said she comes to Girls Weekend every year. The trip gives her a chance to do some early holiday shopping, but also allows her to reunite with family, including Thiel.
“We’ve been doing this for a number of years, just to get the family together,” Thiel said. “We’re also looking for some bargains. There are plenty of bargains.”
Milissa Walters, owner of the Kiwi Boutique on 40th Street and Pleasure Avenue, said Girls Weekend gives her shop a huge boost in business.
“It’s one of my busiest weekends. It’s one of my top three weekends,” Walters said amid a store crowded with customers Saturday.
Shopper Mary Roberts brought her 7-year-old daughter, Bradin, along to hunt for some Christmas gifts. Roberts said she has noticed that Girls Weekend has been gaining in popularity each year.
“This is like Black Friday in South Jersey,” she said. “It’s a chance to get away and do your Christmas shopping early.”
Sunsations, a women’s boutique on John F. Kennedy Boulevard, was another downtown store that drew a steady flow of customers Saturday. Even its dressing rooms were filled with shoppers.
Liz Essick, owner of Sunsations, said the store had cut prices between 20 percent and 50 percent on all merchandise. Bathing suits, sweaters and flip-flops were some of the hot sellers. Essick also included a free purse or wine glass with purchases to thank customers for their business.
“This is fabulous. It’s a great weekend,” Essick said during a rare break at the cash register. “It just gets people to see that we don’t roll up the sidewalks or close down the town during the off-season.”
