Pikachu, Absal, Meowth and others have taken over Metuchen’s downtown and are capturing the hearts and phones of residents young and old.
While the Pokemon Go craze has only been active for a brief time, it’s been an exciting and innovative way to bring out residents into the streets as they search high and low for those elusive critters. The days may be hot and sticky, but that hasn’t stopped the droves of committed Poke-fans from hitting the streets. The Metuchen Downtown Alliance (MDA) announces that the borough has become a Poketown in a community event that coincides with the much-anticipated Restaurant Week.
Downtown Metuchen and many of its business owners pride themselves and their businesses on staying engaged with the community and social media trends. From Facebook to Twitter to Instagram, the expansion of interest in the Pokemon craze is just a natural result of this enthusiasm.
How does it work? Throughout the week of July 16-23, the MDA is purchasing lures to facilitate Poke-hunts throughout the downtown area to encourage further foot traffic, particularly around lunch and dinner times to attract patrons to Restaurant Week. Many businesses are hosting their own events based upon some of the official Pokemon Go hot spots downtown. These include Bagels-4-U and Buddha’s Loft (part of the Robins Hall hot spot), Borough Hall, the Post Office and The Forum Theatre.
For example, Runner’s High is offering 10 percent off all non-sale merchandise for showing off your best Pokemon capture. Said owner Rob DeFilippis, “We’re excited to be a part of the Pokemon craze! Those little critters are fast, and encouraging kids and adults alike to get fit and get out is a core component of our philosophy and business. Being able to participate as a business in getting people outside and on our Main Street is not just good for our business as an athletics store, it’s good for all of downtown.”
Other businesses, such as Metuchen Taxi, will be promoting Poketown by encouraging customers to use their services to visit Pokemon locations across Metuchen and in exploring the borough. Businesses like Buddha’s Loft and What’s the Scoop? will be offering free charging for updated battery life to their customers (“Recharge yourself while you recharge your battery!”)
Barry Montalto of Optique Unique, a longtime business owner and resident, is excited about ways to decorate his store for Poketown and showcase his store’s collection of adult and children’s glasses and merchandise.
No app, no problem! All participating businesses with the MDA program are handing out small Pokemon gifts to customers who come in and find out a fun fact about the business. Once you collect 10 Poke-facts from store owners, submit them to the MDA for a chance to win a gift certificate to a Main Street store. Submissions must be received by July 24.
While the Poke-craze may seem like a complicated computer app to some, the MDA hopes to create an opportunity for residents strolling the streets to get to know the business owners in town and create opportunities to walk into retailers, start up a conversation and to get reconnected with their downtown.
Greg Trowbridge, one of the owners of Carpet Maven II, one of Metuchen’s newest businesses, has this to share: “As a flooring and window furnishings store, we may seem like an unexpected participant in Poketown Go! However, we are excited to be part of the Metuchen community and look forward to the opportunity to encourage people to walk through our doors and look around, to talk to me and my colleagues at the store. Who knows, perhaps a quick visit in through this Poketown event may lead to a lifelong customer and, better yet, a local friend.”
Many businesses are looking forward to this opportunity to connect with the community, from convenience stores, to restaurants, to veterinarians and more. Just look for the Poketown sign in front of the store and come on in.
