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'Stay positive' | Restaurant owners see slight boost in sales during second tax-free weekend

It's been a challenging year for the service industry, especially at restaurants and breweries. Lawmakers passed an addition sales tax holiday designed to help.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — For the bars and breweries of Knox County, 2020 has been a wild ride.

"This year has been very chaotic," said Courtney Barry, owner of the Token Game Tavern. "A lot of changes. A lot of things to adapt to daily, hourly, weekly."

First, the Knox County Board of Health ordered all businesses that make at least half their income from alcohol sales to close. Then, it revised the order, giving them a 10 p.m. curfew instead.

"We really just want to find ways to make people feel safe coming out right now," Barry said. "We are trying to do a lot of things ourselves to operate as a restaurant and not a bar and keep things running, but in a safe way."

From Aug. 7 to Aug. 9, the retail sale of food and drink by restaurants and limited-service was exempt from sales tax. Barry said the Token Game Tavern saw a boost in sales during the day, though it was harder to gauge at night.

"Around the time of when we would be getting busier, we were kind of having to say it's closing," Barry said. "I do hope that if they did another one, it would be once we're back to normal hours so we could really take full advantage of a tax-free weekend." 

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At Elkmont Exchange, owner Nick DeVore said this past Saturday was the busiest one in six weeks. He wasn't sure whether that uptick had to do with the tax-free weekend, but was appreciative of the business in such a trying time.

"We're all just kind of grasping at straws and trying to do the best that we can," DeVore said. "It's kind of hard to change up with the ever-changing rules that are put in place."

He said he respects the decisions being made, but that it's been a difficult year for him and all his colleagues in the industry.

RELATED: Knox County Board of Health passes proposal to allow bars to reopen with 10 p.m. curfew

"Both the city and county are in a tough position, having to make decisions that other administrations have never had to make," he said. "All we do is keep our heads up and keep moving."

He said he has advised his colleagues to try to adapt their businesses to incorporate the safety guidelines rather than fight against them. Things like face coverings and social distancing wherever possible can help their businesses stay afloat.

"The name of the game is to outlast the coronavirus," DeVore said. "Stay positive. The businesses you love and you want to see stay open past this virus, continue to patronize them because that's what it takes to keep us open." 

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