It’s hard to imagine San Mateo without its lively, charming downtown. Serving as a common destination for hanging out, downtown San Mateo has a plethora of businesses that provide numerous options for dining and entertainment.
“In the restaurant business, there’s … turnover no matter what … but having said that, the good ones seem to be flourishing”
Many new businesses have found it difficult to keep up with the high turnover rate. New businesses are constantly popping up downtown while old stores cycle out.
Business owner Lew Cohen watched a number of business come and go from the window of his 10-year-old bookstore, B Street Books.
“For restaurants, there is a lot of competition. You have to really be on top of your game and you have to … get people what they want,” Cohen said.
Although many businesses have had trouble succeeding in downtown San Mateo, many long standing businesses have discovered their models for success.
“Our model … is working for us. Buying books reasonably and selling them reasonably,” Cohen said. “In the restaurant business, there’s … turnover no matter what … but having said that, the good ones seem to be flourishing.”
After only a few years since its opening, popular boba shop Teaspoon has become one of these thriving businesses.
Assistant Manager Carol Zhang sees creativity and innovation as essential to stand out in the sea of businesses.
“It’s just about creativity and how you advertise yourself to other consumers, making sure that … you’re not just another boring boba place,” Zhang said. “You have [to have] a lot of variety … like healthy [or] dessert boba. Some people [have] even decided to mix boba and alcohol.”
As far as retail businesses downtown, there is the same drive to constantly improve and cater to consumer preferences.
“Our stock [in] antiquarian books and rare books has gone up. As we’ve grown, people are bringing us better books,” Cohen said. “We’ve been becoming more educated on [the] antiquarian book trade and buying and selling from other dealers, and just in general getting more high end books.”
With unique, exciting changes constantly drawing consumers’ attention towards businesses and away from others, new stores must especially hold themselves to high standards.
“New startup[s] … might have a lot of popularity in the beginning month … because [it’s] a hot and new store,” Zhang said. “But as soon as more people become more used to [its] presence, if it’s … not special or notable, [they] will start to see a decrease in sales … It really comes down to how unique the store is and how good the value of boba is.”
“It’s just about creativity and how you advertise yourself to other consumers, making sure that … you’re not just another boring boba place”
The changing economy of San Mateo has kept newly established businesses on their toes.
After 13 years, Quickly closed its doors as part of their rebranding plan to keep up with the demands of the market.
“Quickly [is trying to] position [itself] as a hangout hotspot instead of a to-go boba shop,” said Quickly owner Raymond Knot. “Our plan is [to have] less … [but] bigger signature stores.”
Many businesses have also increased their prices to accommodate new minimum wage laws and inflation.
“Due to laws, we have to bring up the minimum wage … and there are other kinds of inflation going on in the Bay Area,” Zhang said. “We have to make sure that … we [can] buy supplies [and] that our employees are able to take care of themselves.”
Along with Teaspoon, Quickly has also changed to account for the workforce.
“It is extremely difficult to hire employees [these] days, so keeping [a] high quality store is the only solution,” Knot said.
The ebb and flow of rent prices plays an important role in the establishment of a business.
“I think new businesses could get a little help if … there’s a little [downturn] on the rent,” Cohen said. “Maybe it’ll be opportunity time for some folks that otherwise couldn’t get in if things settle down a little bit.”
In addition, with the online age, many old stores are finding a loss of business when everything can be done with a click on a computer.
“I think all retail has been hurt by the Internet. People are ordering lots more things online,” Cohen said.
All the hurdles and challenges of growing a business contribute to downtown’s diversity. With a strong commitment to the San Mateo community and the creativity to maintain customers’ patronage, each business has proven themselves to be capable of meeting the varying tastes of San Mateo residents.
“As long as we have this vibrant restaurant scene going on … I’m really positive about the future of downtown,” Cohen said.
