Sunny skies and super sales

Cedarhurst village shopping event is a win-win event for merchants and customers

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As evidenced by the more than 10,000 people who converged in Cedarhurst to shop at over 80 stores during the Business Improvement District’s 28th annual Summer Sidewalk Sale, the four-day shopping extravaganza showed no signs of decline and proves to be a win-win for both customers and businesses.

Shoppers not only come from the Five Towns but nearby communities, including East Rockaway, Far Rockaway, Long Beach, Lynbrook and Valley Stream and occasionally New Jersey and Connecticut, BID officials said.

“At the end of the season, we can make good sales,” said Pinny Teller, owner of the women’s clothing store, Legacy on Central Avenue. His store have taken part in the sales event since 2007.

From July 20 to 23 and July 24, shoppers browsed at many of the stores that had a wide variety of discounted items such as books, clothing, jewelry, pocketbooks, beauty products and an array of other merchandise. “People love bargains,” said Mindy Engelberg, a Woodmere resident who was shopping on Spruce Street near Central Avenue.

Michael Gleaton is a full-time salesman at Emporio, a men’s clothing store at the intersection of Spruce Street and Central Avenue, and works at the Brooklyn location. “I think the best part of it is you can offer customers a price break,” he said. Gleaton came to the Five Towns location to help out during this busy time. “This seems like a close-knit community,” he said of his recent experience in Cedarhurst.

At Secret Me, a lingerie store at 415 Central Ave., employee Tania Hammer, said the best part of the sales event on the first day was the weather, which included sunny skies and a warm breeze that appeared to create an enjoyable shopping experience for many.

Oceanside resident Joanne Rizzo, who has worked in Cedarhurst for 25 years, said that Lulu's Gallery of Gifts and BJL (In Infinity), both on Central Avenue, are among her preferred places to shop. “I love the sidewalk sale, every year we wait for it," she said.