by Michelle Boudin

Lindsay Anvik, owner of charcuterie spot Babe and Butcher, is known for her creativity. This past month, that creativity has been put to use as she looks to make up for two consecutive weekends of lost business due to winter weather. Even the charcuterie store’s second birthday celebration had to be rescheduled after mother nature’s one-two punch of ice followed by snow.

“We lost five days of crucial weekend business between the two storms but it actually turned out to be a very big month for us thanks to all the thinking outside the box and making lemonade out of lemons,” Anvik says.

When newscasters first started talking about the ice storm, Anvik immediately pulled together a DIY snow day charcuterie kit complete with themed boards and all the accoutrements. 

“It was a priority for me to think of something quickly and within two days we had a solution.” she says. “Businesses that survive are really great problem solvers. We had some cute winter boards that I’d hoped to use during the holidays and I was thinking about what I had in stock because I had a day and a half to plan. I thought, ‘What can people do while they’re at home?’ They don’t want a board, they’re not entertaining and people don’t spend as much after the holidays.” 

She created the charcuterie kit, sold at a more attainable price point than a composed board. The boards sold out and generated some unexpected buzz.  

“It was a great way to connect with the community and the customers when everyone was staying inside.,” she says. “It was fun because people would post and send photos sharing their creations. I loved it.”

The following week, the record snowfall cancelled her planned birthday celebration, but even that had a silver lining.

“There was a line outside the door when we opened despite how cold it was, and the special fondue cheese we did in a baguette sold out,” she says. ” and “It was such a hit we’re doing it again for Valentine’s Day.”

Lost Worlds Brewing is betting big on Valentine’s Day as well, hoping to recoup their losses during what general manager David Hamme says has already been a tough stretch.

“It’s been a really challenging time for anyone in the hops industry,” he says. “Gen Z isn’t drinking as much in general and we were shut down four full weekend days — and that’s 50 percent of our revenue and during dry January. The fixed costs, rent, insurance, electricity… all those costs are there regardless of whether we have a busy taproom. It’s also really bad for our employees who are compensated though tips and not having the ability to come in, so that’s why we’re all going all in on Valentine’s Day.”

Hamme is hoping couples will want to grab a drink before dinner in either their Cornelius or midtown Charlotte taprooms. “We’re doing some special drinks and really leaning in to Valentine’s Day after such a rough few weeks,” he says. “We’ll also have Galentine’s day with pop-up vendors in Cornelius and drink specials for single ladies, and then we have another special event on the 15^th that’s a four-course meal and beer tasting.”

 Beloved bakery The Batch House is also counting on couples celebrating Cupid.

“I hope it’s going to help us get back on track,” says oner Cristina Rojas-Agurcia. “To be honest, Valentine’s Day being on a Saturday is like another super bowl for us.”

The West Charlotte sweets shop will offer vintage Valentine’s cakes and heart cinnamon rolls as well as a full pastry case for last minute shoppers. Rojas-Agurcia is hopeful a little love for sweets will go a long way toward saving her business.

“We’ve never had to close a Saturday before and never two back-to-back,” she says. “Our sales were pretty bad for the month. I haven’t even looked at January numbers; I’ve been ignoring my accountant.”

Tom Sasser, the Owner of Burke Hospitality Group that includes Harper’s Carfe and Mimosa Grill, says restaurants will have a tougher time coming back from the back- to-back closures and points out that Valentine’s Day on a weekend is not necessarily a good thing for that side of the industry, as it takes away a potentially busy mid-week dinner service.

“You don’t want Christmas to fall on a weekend, you want it to fall during the week. A holiday is a busy day and it would be great if it was during the week, and then the weekend is busy too.”

Still, each of the restaurants will be offering specials in hopes of bringing even more customers in and making up for lost revenue.

“We used to have more bad winter weather that hurt sales and when it’s happening every year you budget and plan for it but then it quit happening,” Sasser says. “We’ve had robust Januarys for awhile and then this year to have two weekends in a row is really rare and really tough. But you can’t sit there and be bummed out by the weather; you just have to make sure everybody knows we’re open now and the weather is great. Come on out and patronize your favorite local restaurant. Anything you can do is really helpful.”