Azalea Festival crowds good for business

WILMINGTON — Hundreds of thousands of tourists and residents are expected to take part in this year's Azalea Festival. Big crowds translate to big bucks for local business. It's estimated that 250,000-300,000 locals and residents will take part in this year's Azalea Festival, adding up to millions of dollars for local merchants. A UNCW study looked at April retail sales in Wilmington over a seven-year time span. Business in the city is up two percent in April compared with the typical month. Economists assume one half of that is attributed to the Azalea Festival — that equals about $2 million. Kevin Kozak at the Front Street Brewery said, "We know our numbers are going to be good and we know our people are going to be packing in this place. You know the parade's down here and everything goes on right here so we know we definitely look forward to it." Even with talk of a recession looming, at the Riverside Hilton. Early indications are that business might event be up over last year. Bookings are up fifteen percent. Many local businesses consider the Azalea Festival weekend the un-official beginning of tourist season.