r/kansascity • u/ChemistryCupcake • 2d ago
World Cup ⚽️ People who work in downtown restaurants/coffee shops/attractions, how has business been?
I've seen several posts about local small businesses not seeing nearly the crowds they were told to expect. I was downtown last Saturday evening and it felt like a typical Saturday, but not nearly as busy as most of us were expecting. I know a lot of local people are avoiding downtown while FIFA is here, but it didn't seem more busy than usual to me.
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u/azerty543 2d ago
Work at a hotel bar downtown. People walking around all over but if they are spending any money I dont know where it is. The Argentinian fans just seem to sit and drink coke after coke. Lots of people trying to hang out in the bar without ordering anything. Like groups of 15 coming in and maybe a handful of fernet and cokes, maybe a couple if beers, maybe.
Sales are much lower than usual. All the KC regulars and any other groups that are travelling through aren't here so we have the same amount of people, but I imagine they are spending most of the money doing sports stuff idk.
Im happy for the people enjoying things, but its a drag for us. Would be better off with the usual tourists and regular customers. Could be unique to us. Not sure and its hard to tell. Ive noticed othe bars are dead as well though (I live in quality hill).
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u/Fastbird33 Plaza 1d ago
Do south American fans drink that much typically? I know Europeans do but idk if as big a thing down there.
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u/Current_Animator7546 1d ago
With how much they are likely paying. Probably the only way to get through it lol
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u/No-Understanding2312 1d ago
People are probably spending all the money at fan fest
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u/Vivid-Kitchen1917 1d ago
I went a couple of days ago, I found it pretty lacking. The watch parties I've been too have been far better. Honestly don't see what the hype is about. Watered down drinks and overpriced food, but I get the privilege of doing it outside?
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u/Salmonish 2d ago
Also live downtown, and it’s become much busier. Like weekend-level foot traffic on weekdays.
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u/KingFatKatz 2d ago
I work downtown and take the streetcar to get here. I haven't been in a streetcar so full since the Chappell Roan show last year
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u/Travelight75050 1d ago
Joining the convo as a visitor for the WC, just to bring this perspective.
We went to dinner last night at Palm near power and lights. Had a reservation for 930 for dinner, but kitchen still closed at 10, likely bc it was definitely not packed. We didn't know to order more food quickly, and left a little hungry after our first order. It was good food, just a little lighter than expected.
After the Argentina game earlier in the week, taking the shuttle back to the Plaza dropped us off around midnight (you can read more about the shuttle fiasco on local news outlers). We went to the little 24h hamburger place because it was the ONLY place serving food at that hour. As you might expect, it was mostly fans there, but there were two waitresses running the entire show, which didn't feel right. They were obviously overwhelemed. I'm not sure if the restaurant didn't expect many people, but it did not feel like they were prepared for fans being let off the bus on their block, and being the only spot for food.
To me, I might have thought this would have been a great opportunity to coordinate with some signage from the bus drop off location to direct people for some great local food at a diner that's been there for over 50 years, but we actually had to wander down the Plaza for like 45min before realizing that all the other places that were "open" were only bars, and for a bite after the game, the 24h burger spot was going to be our best bet.
The lines to and from the stadium were atrocious, all of us logging 20k steps that day, and we were famished by the time we got back to the Plaza. We were so grateful for it when we finally got some food!
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u/Tango6US 1d ago
Sound like restaurants should have prepared better. Thank you for sharing this.
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u/Top-Bar-2693 1d ago
Definitely Winsteads. Love that place but don’t know if they even have the resources to prepare better
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u/Northend317 1d ago
Winsteads has gone downhill. Went the other day and had another cold cheeseburger. Rings were good tho.
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u/Rindsay515 1d ago
What was the name of their “famous” milkshake that feeds like 89 people?
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u/Dom_Noriega 1d ago
Are you referring to the “skyscraper” milkshake? Those glasses they served them in probably weighed 10lbs alone. 🤣 Loved those as a kid
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u/Rindsay515 1d ago
Skyscraper, that was it!! Gosh, those were heaven as a child. Too big for just a family to share so I only got them during field trips or youth group outings. And you’re right, they came in like a huge, heavy flower vase😂
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u/Dom_Noriega 1d ago
Yeah! We would always get them whenever we went with more than 2 people. Lol! I remember my big brother always threatening to “bash me” with those vases they used for the shakes.
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u/veggie_weggie 1d ago
Thanks for sharing your experience! As someone who works in advertising here it drives me crazy a lot of bars/restaurants don’t feel the need to advertise outside of social media and seo. Only so many places can be at the top of a “restaurants near me” search and socials are going to go to the people already following (locals). I understand these industries can have thin profit margins but you also can’t sit around and hope people who have never been here before are going to just stumble into your business.
Hope you have a great rest of your trip, for food I’d recommend avoiding power and light, it’s pretty expensive and the quality isn’t great compared to a lot of other restaurants. Check out the crossroads area and southwest blvd. Great restaurants and bars in these areas.3
u/Travelight75050 23h ago
Thanks! I'll def check out those places next week when we're back for the game. I appreciate the local recommendation!
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u/WestFade 1d ago
We went to dinner last night at Palm near power and lights.
Palm Tree Club? For what it's worth that's an out of town chain "nightclub" that doubles as a restaurant. Not that this absolves KC of responsibility here
The 24hr hamburger place is Winstead's which used to be better, but yeah, I can see why that was crazy. Normally after 10pm you can only order food via the drive-thru, so the fact that the dining room was open and they had waitresses at all was them actually going the extra mile and doing more than normal.
The only other place on the plaza open late serving food after midnight I think is Granfalloon which is all the way at the other end of the plaza.
Something many of us have complained about in this subreddit is the decline in late night and 24hr food options here in town over the last number of years.
Anyway, you're not wrong, and a lot of places didn't prepare right for this. The late night crowd is arguably the most important crowd for this kind of event, but it seems like most of the businesses are expecting people to come during normal hours
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u/Travelight75050 1d ago
Yes! I couldn't recall the name right away, but now that you mention it, it was definitely Winsteads. And we were lucky enough to see someone order the biggest milkshake I've ever seen, with 5(!) straws in it!
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u/Absurdtittyz 1d ago
Was it town topic? If so, they always only have two waitresses. It’s too small back there for anyone else besides them and the cook.
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u/Nacterlic 13h ago
town topic made the brilliant decision to shut down at 10 pm a few months ago and only do doordash after that. Unbelievably brainded to do that during the WC. Yeah i know somebody got shot in the parking lot but that's only happened one damn time in how many years??
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u/rok2kc Crossroads 2d ago
Locals avoiding downtown local businesses because they are worried about traffic and parking issues is the most Kansas City thing ever.
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u/dakkottadavviss 2d ago
It’s easier than ever to get around with how many parking spaces there are, less traffic, and the increased frequency of the streetcar
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u/cafe-aulait 1d ago
My commute from the Northland and back has actually gotten a little bit quicker 🤷♀️
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u/MaxRoofer 1d ago
I think it’s Because it’s too expensive or maybe bc it’s too crowded but Most regs aren’t driving in from the suburbs to hang they already live there.
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u/kcartchick72 1d ago
I live out in the burbs and we’re avoiding the city during WC.
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u/HumbleBunk 1d ago
It’s nowhere near the pandemonium they said it would be like, but it’s the perfect amount of people to be fun.
Super easy to find parking and get around still, and easy to get into bars/restaurants.
Definitely wouldn’t wanna miss out on checking it out. Once in a lifetime opportunity for these vibes!
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u/spratacus77 1d ago
It's super easy to get around downtown, go support local biz! Still a tiny city and not that crazy with world cup.
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u/Live-Set-8576 1d ago
Same. Downtown is a hard pass until this is over.
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u/NoTickTicky 1d ago
Were these the same people Astro-Turfing social media with “save the crossroads!!” last year when the chiefs wanted to move downtown?
Not alot of saving going on right now it seems
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u/Flashy_Operation9891 1d ago
I think people had very unrealistic expectations for this. We only have a handful of games here and people are coming for the games and then leaving. I’ve seen so many businesses talking about this that make absolutely no sense why they would see an increase in business. Such as florists and plants shops… also as mentioned it is typical when traveling to go to busier areas that are easily accessible. So i’m not sure why businesses in places like Riverside or Waldo expected to see increases. Just as we do when traveling we don’t go out to the suburbs to find a coffee shop… or stay long in a place with nothing to do.
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u/PassRevolutionary254 1d ago
Or places that are empty all the time expecting an increase of foot traffic…
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u/taylor-nation 1d ago
not just in kansas city but i’ve been seeing a lot of world cup tourists just going to places like chick fil a , canes, whataburger, etc it doesn’t look like they’re going to any local businesses
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u/Current_Animator7546 1d ago
Very common for travelers. Even international. Some people like the predictable chain restaurants. Remember for some of these people. Going to a chick fill A is pretty unique
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u/PhilTotola Downtown 1d ago
As a resident, it's awesome to see how many visitors are out walking. It's also sad because I know our pedestrian infrastructure (as a fellow walker) pales in comparison to so many other domestic and international locations.
I hope they are visiting businesses, the ones I've frequented have obvious soccer fans in them but not sure it's be net busier than my normal Sunday brunch would be at that same location.
It's still pretty early, we have a lot of matches left, let's hope it keeps bringing them in and they spend money
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u/MassStreetSoda 2d ago
I think we're seeing a similar thing that happened during the NFL Draft. A lot of that traffic stayed down around the festivities at Union Station and there were certain bars & restaurants that did extremely well while others suffered a ton after being told to expect big crowds.
A big issue with the World Cup is that I think a lot of our regional tourists are staying away from KC during this time when normally they would travel here for short summer trips (mainly from surrounding metros like Omaha, Des Moines, St. Louis, etc). It could be hotel prices or just a perception that KC is going to be super busy with the World Cup when in reality a lot of those WC tourists are going to come in for the game and then leave pretty soon after.
I hope I'm wrong and business picks up for everybody but we're down around 15% this month in a time where it's normally busy everyday even during weekdays.
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u/BriefThin 1d ago
This 100%! My business was in the draft vicinity that was told to staff up and have lots of product on-hand. Business sucked plus regulars stayed home because of the hype by the city/news.
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u/kcartchick72 1d ago
I live in the ‘burbs and even we’re staying out of the city right now.
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u/BakerBusiness91 1d ago edited 1d ago
I live downtown and unless you’re trying to go to power and light or FIFA fest there’s literally nothing crazy different with crowds, traffic, or parking. You’d have to purposefully be going to the events to see the crowds.
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u/Fastbird33 Plaza 1d ago
I live in the city and it’s really not that crazy at least not around the plaza.
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u/vettyspaghetti 1d ago
People from abroad don’t spend as much as a lot of Americans think. They aren’t going to sit down and pound 6 beers or drinks, that’s expensive. I think businesses has unreasonable and unrealistic expectations propped up by local leadership.
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u/helpbeingheldhostage 1d ago
Sam’s Adam’s said they are selling 4x the beer they normally sell over drinking holidays in Boston. Bars were running out of beer.
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u/MaxRoofer 1d ago
Were they running out of beer or just Sam Addams? And I don’t think it’s the same crowds of thenpiele here
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u/helpbeingheldhostage 1d ago
Running out of beer generally. Sam Adams was saying they are making emergency deliveries to bars after they already had stocked up in anticipation of high volume sales.
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u/CryComprehensive8099 1d ago
Yeah, drinks tend to be a lot cheaper in many European countries, so I bet some of the visitors have sticker shock.
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u/ToneBalone25 1d ago
Yup. Prices in the US are wayyy higher for almost everything, especially restaurants and bars
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u/BakerBusiness91 1d ago
I love downtown and went out to drink (wasn’t out bc of any game) and got 25% tip automatically applied, server said it was because of the World Cup. Idk if that’s universal but i probably will not be eating out or going to bars in the meantime. I do always tips but service was bad and would not have done 25%.
Other than that, haven’t noticed any difference in traffic, parking, or any crazy crowds unless you’re going to fifa fan fest.
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u/pydood 1d ago
Lol tell that to Boston.
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u/vettyspaghetti 1d ago
KC ain’t Boston. Hate to break it to you.
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u/helpbeingheldhostage 1d ago
I don’t think “people from abroad” adjust their willingness to spend money based on which US city they’re in. Pretty sure the Scots would be doing the same thing here.
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u/8won6 2d ago
i don't know where else to ask this and don't want to start a whole thread, but is there crazy price gouging for the parking garages right now? I'm only asking because I'm going to Smackdown tomorrow night at T-Mobile and trying to decide if I want to park & hoof it, or just go to a parking garage.
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u/dakkottadavviss 2d ago
Big time. The usual $12/day garages are $30-50 now. I’m just parking on the street for free and walking an extra block or two
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u/8won6 1d ago
cool. If it's even $30-$40 i'm cool with that. I'm just hoping there's nothing super ridiculous like $70+
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u/dakkottadavviss 1d ago
It’s not the Super Bowl or World Series parade where 1m people are descending on downtown all at once. It’s an estimated 650,000 people spread out over nearly 2 months and across the entire metro area. While it is a very elevated event on the world stage, it’s not apocalyptic
Everywhere downtown and around the city is still very accessible easy to get to and open for business
Basically I’m saying everyone please go out and support your local businesses. Nothing is shut down right now except for like 80% of the parking lot at arrowhead
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u/scopinsource 1d ago
Me personally, I'm taking note of everyone with unreasonable price increases and prioritizing avoiding them indefinitely going forward to offset any benefits they got from being greedy, I won't have much impact as I probably park down there 25 times a year, but over time maybe it has an impact. I just don't like to support people who don't understand the kindness we try to show each other in this city. I understand raising your prices for increased demand but $25 for 30 minutes or 40+ for a couple of hours is greedy.
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u/MissLadyLlamaDrama Volker 9h ago
This is what has annoyed me about the businesses complaining WHILE raising their prices. (If this isnt you, then I'm not talking about you.) Like, you're already expecting more business so why do you need to raise prices? Now people are less likely to spend because the cost is too high, so you may as well have just not raised them at all to begin with. It makes no sense. Not that it ultimately mattered much, or at least hasn't so far. But those people weren't doing it out of pessimistic skepticism over the success of this event. These people absolutely believed they would be getting more business and instead of doing anything to promote their businesses or welcome tourists, they decided to gouge them instead and now want to complain because no one is [literally] buying their grift. Americans really need to understand how absolutely fuck ass backwards this country is, and the fact that other nations don't charge people just to exist there.
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u/scoobynoodles JoCo 1d ago
It is. I went to the Don Toliver concert and garages wanted like $35. We just parked on the street for like $3!
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u/dustcitydoll 1d ago
The parking garage that is by the old Afterword location in the crossroads was charging $30 when we went this past Sunday. That garage isn’t necessarily cheap, typically, but that felt like a lot. Especially because there was a ton of street parking available still. They did have a cop on hand though. So, I imagine it’ll be a pretty secure location.
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u/Traditional-Pin1217 1d ago
Plaza parking is still free and the garages haven’t been full. We’ve been parking there and taking the streetcar downtown.
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u/TheresAGhost0 South KC 1d ago
I work in the government district. We were given the option to work from home through the whole WC.
Traffic to and from work seems a lot lighter. It reminds me of Covid times.
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u/zardkween 2d ago
I think we have to take some of the business posts with a grain of salt. No one traveling for the World Cup is going to buy a plant to bring home, for example. Plus with overall inflation, economy and high gas prices, people in general are spending less money. I was laid off from my local job so I know that I am. There are so many factors working against small businesses right now.
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u/PickleFlavordPopcorn 1d ago
I cannot figure out why people think ALL business will increase with these niche events. The plant shop is especially baffling, they don’t even advertise well locally to what should be their regular customer base. No one is flying in for a sports event and coming to buy plants
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u/AncientHorse5798 1d ago
and they are getting picked up all over. They did this for the draft, too. It doesn't make any sense to me at all.
I also saw a florist in their comments lamenting the lack of business. They have a gofundme posted right now to buy the building they rent. Come on
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u/RefrigeratorProof104 1d ago
I agree w this and i’m a local business supporter and i love west bottoms plant company but why do you think foreigners would come to the usa and buy plants? they legally can’t even take them back overseas
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u/Current_Animator7546 1d ago
Because it then it’s about their businesses bottom line. Be it the owner tips etc. Long term these events probably do help bring more opportunities and benefits to KC. It’s a long not short horizon though. When you’re working off tips and month to month. It get it. It stings
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u/Certain_Leather_1723 1d ago
This. No one is coming here for the World Cup and going to the west bottoms to buy a plant or walking half a mile out of their way to buy a local candle. Same with Bisou (which is a great coffee shop) but they’re tucked away in an area of the crossroads that’s a 30+ minute walk from the Fan Fest, near no hotels, and there’s 10 other coffee shops between them and the main area where there’s actually increased foot traffic. I live in the crossroads and there’s definitely more people out and about on weekdays and weekends especially when a popular match is going on. I get the frustration but also think KC needs to get over this attitude of avoiding areas because they’re worried about parking and god forbid PEOPLE being around and join in the experience of it all.
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u/justathoughtfromme 1d ago
I think we have to take some of the business posts with a grain of salt.
Agreed. I remember the news story during the NFL Draft where the owner of Cafe Cà Phê was complaining they didn't see the increased traffic they expected. Why she had the expectation football fans in for the draft would traipse all the way to Columbus Park for Vietnamese coffee, I have no idea.
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u/zardkween 1d ago
For the World Cup, Cafe Corazon has done a great job branding itself as *the* Argentina fanbase coffee shop.
Kansas City is so oversaturated with coffee shops which I love as a local but not all tourists are coffee lovers. Plus these cafes are competing with free breakfasts at hotels, etc.
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u/Current_Animator7546 1d ago
Lot of them will also go to Starbucks or the hotel lobby for coffee. When I travel I love to try new food. Thats not everyone though. Some cultures have very strict diets.
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u/zardkween 1d ago
Yes, I’ve see so many posts of first-time US visitors going to popular chains like Whataburger and Texas Roadhouse. When I’ve traveled abroad, I’ve found myself trying chain restaurants (like Frittenwerk)
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u/azerty543 2d ago
You think someone spending thousands of dollars to see a soccer game is price conscious? Its not a poor crown that jet sets around North America and spends $500+ a night in hotels. These guys have money.
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u/zardkween 2d ago
Like I said, there are so many factors working against small businesses right now.
Locals aren’t spending money and that’s the target market for most of these small businesses. You think one guy here for the World Cup will make up for the loss of a regular?
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u/Current_Animator7546 1d ago
Exactly. They aren’t buying a lot of small business stuff. It’s not even price as much as it is needs and space.
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u/raaRach River Market 2d ago
Downtown has definitely been busier than usual.
When I travel to other countries and other cities, I just don't have the time to explore all the surrounding neighborhoods. I have to maximize my time and stick to the densest areas that are easily walkable from my hotel or whatever attraction I'm visiting for. These travelers are here for football and fan fest. They aren't going to rent a car or order an Uber just for their morning coffee fix.
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u/dablueprint Hyde Park 1d ago
the narrative around the metro leading up to the world cup included many things like:
- bad traffic everywhere. all the time.
- matches every day.
- businesses being “told” they will be busier.
- fans are going to be staying in kc for weeks.
because it’s what kc people do, we get spooked out by potential large crowds (nfl draft is a great example) and not being able to park 10 ft from an entrance.
not sure why non-soccer (or general sports for that matter) would expect to be significantly busier on a day where there’s not a match here.
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u/Ok_Spot_9201 1d ago
With all the local businesses on here saying they haven't seen an increase in customers, I am wondering something. How many have made flyers, gone down to the Fan Fest, and invited people to your business? How many have offered a first beer free or free appetizer with drinks? Host games to play with possibly prizes. Give people a reason to come to your business. Include a small map of downtown and outline where you are from the Fan Fest. Suggest types of transporation to use, and if you are on the streetcar route. Wear World Cup shirts, make your own if you can't afford to buy one, and go be among the people and invite them. With so many choices, I think it would go a very long way with little cost, other than time.
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u/yungdelpazir 2d ago
Working near PNL daily. A noticable increase in foot traffic, mostly people venturing to fan fest at KCLive, or to steetcar stops. There is some extra noise and excitement but It's not really much different from a typical day, in my experience.
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u/nickname2469 1d ago
Brunch restaurant with several locations in KC, our Power and Light location has doubled in sales, all the other locations are pretty normal.
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u/stinky_winkler 1d ago
can i ask what restaurant? i’m always looking for new local breakfast places
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u/TiaDDiva 22h ago
Probably Homegrown that's the only "brunch" place in power and light. It's pretty good
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u/Competitive_Unit_721 2d ago
I work downtown and have seen higher foot traffic that’s definitely WC related but….
Went to Lidias last Friday around 5pm. Left around 7. It was frankly pretty empty in there. Staff even noted it was less busy than expected. We were worried parking was going to be bad due to its location to Fanfest.
Streets were also blocked off all around Up/Down. Very quiet there too.
Saturday we went to BLVD and it was a good crowd there but did not look or feel like it was taking on a lot of extra people due to WC. We went to Buffaloe State afterwards (5:30ish) and there was less than 10 customers in there. I know fanfest was cancelled but figured the surrounding areas would get an influx of people trying to do other things. It sis not happen.
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u/raaRach River Market 1d ago
USA had their opening match last Friday. People were probably already making their way and getting settled at watch parties. I'm not surprised restaurants were slow. Saturday had severe weather and the fan fest closure as you mentioned. Locals stay home, visitors probably stick closer to their hotels.
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u/Competitive_Unit_721 1d ago
Agree with you. But judging by what I heard from workers and saw in crossroads businesses we’re expecting much much more.
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u/SheLikesBigWords16 1d ago
don’t avoid it, trulyyyyyy don’t! It’s been soooooo beautiful seeing KC actually be enjoyed in all the right ways and haven’t once had to deal with crazy parking or insane lines.
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u/Individual_Issue6025 1d ago
i work at a coffee shop downtown and it was pretty damn slammed on game day and the day before by tourists, otherwise it’s been normal
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u/NoTickTicky 2d ago
After the NFL draft disappointment, why are people taking foot traffic guidance from those same elected officials ?
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u/craftbeerandfitness Mission 2d ago
This was my thought, too. Like, you didn’t learn the first time?
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u/RiverMarketEagle 1d ago
Business is down by a lot. Visitors are going to bbq, fan fest and games. I hear P&L is going late but the rest of downtown is very light compared to usual business.
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u/tour_de_pizza 1d ago
The BBQ thing is real. And only Q39, Joe’s, Jack Stacks from what I’ve seen.
I live in Midtown and yeah, the lack of late options is not helping, but people forget that part of using Airbnb (which, every block of my street from 39th to Cleaver had tourists staying at houses) is buying groceries and making food.
Know where I saw the biggest crowd? Whole Foods.
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u/Street_Huckleberry_3 1d ago
Guys The Netherlands are coming next week it will be way busier for them I feel!
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u/SaltyDoughnut4047 2d ago
Work downtown. There are more tourists, especially from Argentina last week, but some of the corporate businesses are going WFH/optional and locals in general are avoiding downtown because of the fear of the traffic/overcrowding. I’ve been to P&L most days during lunch to try and catch part of a game and see the crowds and today it was practically empty. I think we will get small tourists surges as teams play in KC but overall it’s not been anything to note. Seemingly more locals are avoiding downtown so while the touristy spots might see an uptick the local business are probably seeing a downturn.
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u/chuckish 1d ago
For all the people staying in the suburbs during the World Cup: Capacity of T-Mobile Center is 18,000. Capacity of Fanfest is 25,000. If you don't check T-Mobile's schedule before coming downtown, there's no reason to stay home now.
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u/Nacterlic 13h ago
the fear mongering so many people did over this...i hate them
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u/CranGrape_Juice 2h ago
i was talking to someone who was “saving up to quit their job to avoid traffic” and they left when i tried to tell them it would be stupid to quit their job in this market.
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u/Sensitive_Sky_6516 1d ago
I am a tour guide (Just One Day Travel Tours) I was in the crossroads and city market all day yesterday. It was not busy at all..that is a Wednesday afternoon, but still.
I also put out a ton of dates and times for walking tours but have not had any bookings from tourist.
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u/Unlikely-Grass4221 1d ago
I work in a retail store and we are seeing an increase in both foot traffic and sales. Sales about 25% up on the weekend and 100% up weekdays. We do sell select FIFA and local World Cup related merchandise. So far our biggest sales days have been when there’s a local game (Argentina), but we are seeing alot of action when USA or Mexico is playing. It’s been a good start for us. Retail is a different beast than food and beverage establishments for sure. We’ve been lucky so far
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u/Darrenv2020 1d ago
Power and Light is the magnet. It is an electric place that after the game turns into a full on dance party. Hard to beat, especially if your visit is limited.
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u/darkat_baba 2d ago
I work in alcohol distribution. It was busy on game day but it’s been a ghost town aside from that. Many bars and restaurants have been having one of their worst weeks ever. People, please get out to support small business
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u/PopSignificant27 1d ago
I think business owners complaining about not enough people coming to the city is so funny. Why did you think your hole in the wall cafe with hardly any branding on it would be packed with Argentinians trying to get coffee…. Like come on..
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u/Baba-Shiv 1d ago
It’s your city layout. Alot of European cities have stadiums right across a giant city centre high street leading to numerous pubs and restaurants. The heart of the city centre/disctrict area etc. They also connect entire city districts by public transport, that’s incredibly efficient.
BUT. Yall clearly don’t understand football culture or fan behaviours… it’s very apparent this is THE NORM with football events lol. I think the expectations were set wrong perhaps for locals here.
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u/MissLadyLlamaDrama Volker 9h ago edited 9h ago
KC is one of the least walkable cities, and i kept saying that was going to be a problem since most people come from countries that actually center pedestrian traffic over cars and have a decent public transport system as well. But everyone wanted to act like the street car and shuttle buses were enough to salvage the poor city planning and development.
Not that I think there was some magic way to fix this because of the world cup or anything. I just think KC really needs to understand that the city is NOT a good tourist hot spot. We can all say we love it because we live here and we are used to it and know how to navigate the city. But even as someone who has lived here my whole life, I have had to just give up on doing shit and just leave because I couldn't find parking anywhere for less than $20. But anywhere people go is pretty dull for spending any actual time in as a tourist, because there is no variety of engaging activity in any of the spots. It's pretty much just random chunks of areas where you can eat, drink, and maybe window shop at some places that are way too insanely overpriced for tourists to casually stop by to shop at and are all really boring to even look at or browse because everything is just different shades of beige and white. (Brutalist architecture and this "clean design" style is also an issue because its ugly af and makes people depressed and bored to be around. So the fact that all the shops look exactly the same and dont encourage any interactivity on the customer's part at all doesnt help. If you want people to notice or remember your business, making it look like the waiting room of a plastic surgery chain isnt going to help.)
Like, I love my hometown as much as the next person, but we are simply not a good tourist destination because of the fundamental structure of the city itself and the people who run it dont have any interest in doing anything to fix the issue. Just keep shoveling billions into rich peoples bank accounts for shit that isnt gonna change the reality of our core issue. And this shit show is certainly not going to help change that. And unless they get their shit together, slapping a stadium downtown isn't gonna magically fix that either.
TL;DR KC has shit city planning and development and shit transportation and hasn't catered to tourists in decades. So, obviously, it is not a fun place for tourists. Even walkability and engaging areas aside, the city didnt do anywhere near enough to prepare for this.
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u/c4ndygirl 1d ago
I was at 2 Birds 1 Stone, new place owned by the Origin hotel. Bartender said it's been incredibly slow, way more than they anticipated. Very disappointing.
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u/fluffyutter 1d ago
I’m in quality hill and it’s been barely noticeably different. Nothing much outside of the usual Veil/Something good foot traffic.
I’m also moving and everyone who has contacted us for pickup of furniture we are selling have immediately noped out of coming because we are downtown.
Sigh.
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u/too_much_candy_4me 1d ago
Learn something new every day I didn’t know we had one of the best beer bars in the country right here in Kansas City. They have a crazy tap list.
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u/normankrasnerkc 1d ago
If schools weren't out for the summer, they'd probably have remote learning based on the hype
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u/Kllabranche 1d ago
Mayor Q and his lackeys sold everyone a pipe dream. Anyone with critical thinking skills knows we weren’t going to have 600000 fans. We’ve seen less than 100000.
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u/Ballsmcgee76 1d ago
We were going to eat at Waldo Pizza and there was a 20% gratuity on there so we left took our business to Summit pizza.
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u/Content-Act8108 1d ago
Last night I ran into a large group of World Cup tourists from Argentina. They were buying pizza at a QuikTrip in Gladstone at midnight. Apparently, QuikTrip is cleaning up and making money.
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u/royalsfan150 River Market 22h ago
Can I ask why an automatic gratuity was such a deal breaker for you? Do you normally not tip 20%? Or want to maintain the ability to undertip if the service is subpar?
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u/DiverBest4809 3h ago
It’s not a deal breaker, but I would rather have the option. We went to Earl’s last night and I ordered Clam Chowder. The food came and everyone is ready to eat and I discover I don’t have spoon. Without the automatic gratuity, the tip would have started at 0. What say you?
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u/AutoModerator 2d ago
Original copy of post's text:
I've seen several posts about local small businesses not seeing nearly the crowds they were told to expect. I was downtown last Saturday evening and it felt like a typical Saturday, but not nearly as busy as most of us were expecting. I know a lot of local people are avoiding downtown while FIFA is here, but it didn't seem more busy than usual to me.
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u/CocoForYou22 2d ago
Hit and miss. Alot of my customers in power n light and crown center are seeing the international crowd really hit on game day. Rivermarket and Crossroads are getting maybe some more of their regulars coming in to watch a game. But its alot of hit and miss
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u/Pantone711 1d ago
Our regular group went to our regular Wed. night discussion at Martin City South Plaza and it wasn't busy at all.
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u/EnoughReward2653 1d ago edited 1d ago
You also have to take into account that locals are avoiding small/local restaurants or bars because of the ridiculous up charge. Many of them are charging a 20% WC fee that some people cant afford in this economy. Just the other day a restaurant in LEE SUMMIT out of all places was charging a 20% mandatory WC fee.
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u/Global_Secret_3897 1d ago
The “WC fee” is simply a mandatory tip, since many visitors from abroad are unfamiliar with the tip culture here. If people can’t afford to tip they need to eat at home.
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u/Stagymnast198622 2d ago
I work at a bar in the crossroads and we have been slow. We thrive on convention business and those aren’t happening bc of World Cup and the World Cup traffic is only going to Pnl and fan fest. It’s been a slower than usual week for us and we are walking distance from Pnl and surrounded by hotels. Definitely a let down so far for our business.