NEW ALBANY, Ind. (WAVE) – Just over the river from Louisville in New Albany, the hype and excitement are real as Indiana residents wait for the Hoosiers to take on the Miami Hurricanes in the college football national championship on Monday night. Several business owners said IU’s success on the gridiron is translating to success for their businesses, too.
“Oh my gosh, it’s been amazing. It has just been such great energy,” said Courtney Byrne, owner of the Mercantile New Albany. “And just our sales are up substantially for January. January is a scary month in retail, and this has really just given us such a great boost to know everything’s going to be okay for January.”
Byrne’s store has a mix of vintage IU gear and brand new clothing items and gear, some sourced from local designers.
Across the street at Floyd County Brewing Company, employees said they are preparing for a huge Monday night watch party in The Enchanted Forest & Music Hall.
“We have decorations, we have candy-striped table runners, we have balloons, football balloons, we have popcorn displays – we have it all,” said server Lesley McPhillips.
Then, there’s Sweet Stuff Bakery, where everything from cookies to cakes are decorated with IU football sayings, quotes and crimson and cream icing.
“Oh, my gosh, it’s just been so exciting,” said owner Diane Christopher. “There’s plenty going on here, and we have been loving it because we are all excited. We’re opening late on Tuesday. I can’t remember a time we ever did that for anything. We want everybody to be able to stay up and watch it and come in the next morning and be ready for a parade or something.”
Lanesville Community Schools will be on a two-hour delay the Tuesday after the game. The district promised extra sleep for the kids if they could raise a little under $2,000 for Riley Children’s Hospital.
School officials confirmed just under $4,000 had been raised as of Thursday afternoon. The last day to donate is Saturday.
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