Businesses ready for total solar eclipse
NEW YORK — Eclipsethemed beer. Jewelry and ornaments. And doughnuts that capture the sun’s disappearing act with the help of buttercream frosting.
With April 8’s total solar eclipse right around the corner, businesses are ready for the celestial event that will dim skies along a generous path across North America.
There are oodles of special eclipse safety glasses for sale, along with T-shirts emblazoned with clever slogans and other souvenirs — just like the last time the U.S. got a big piece of the total solar eclipse action in 2017.
Hotels and resorts along the prime path are luring in visitors with special packages, and Southwest and Delta are selling seats on eclipse-viewing flights. Cities, museums and parks are staging watch parties to draw in tourists as well as residents.
Closer to eclipse day, there are likely to be more special products and promotions from national brands springing up, like Moon Pie’s “eclipse survival kit,” made up of four mini versions of the chocolate snack and two pairs of eclipse glasses.
Small businesses within the eclipse’s 115-mile-wide path of totality appear to be leading the charge. Online shops and local vendors have put together a full array of creative, limited-edition merchandise: earrings, baby onesies, ornaments, games, banners and more.
Some towns and business owners have been anticipating the event and crowds for years. After the 2017 eclipse, “I marked my calendar,” said Sam McNulty, co-founder of Market Garden Brewery in Cleveland, which is in the eclipse path and will see nearly four
minutes of dimmed skies.
Last year, McNulty’s team brewed a hazy IPA called “The Totality” to help capitalize on interest in the eclipse. The on tap debut was a success, and the brewery was soon approached by local grocer Heinen’s to partner for a canned collaboration. In the coming weeks, “thousands and thousands” of cans are set to hit store shelves, McNulty said.
The eclipse-themed beverages don’t stop at beer. Big Cuppa, a coffee shop in Morrilton, Arkansas, also has a full eclipse menu with a handful of specialty drinks.
And don’t forget the snacks. In Ohio’s Butler County, a shop called The Donut Dude will have an “Eclipse Donut Special” that shows the eclipse’s stages as the sun disappears behind the moon.