- Havana Pumpkin Festival will take place October 14th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- A and S Antiques opened its doors October 2020
- Check out the video above to learn more.
Celebrating three years of opening its doors during the COVID-19 pandemic. I'm Ashley Engle your neighborhood reporter in Havana. A & S antique store is not like others on main St. With Havana Pumpkin Fest right around the corner, they're looking forward to the opportunity to pour money back into the Havana community.
"We've done well"
Meet Scott Kent, he's one of the owners of A & S antiques. Him and his buddy AL started the business October 2020.
When you walk in you will see antiques, silver jewelry and most importantly ... grandfather clocks.
"That's kinda our niche."
Opening up a business during the middle of the COVID-19 was challenging for some in the U.S.
I checked with the U.S. Federal Reserve's Data and more than 700,000 businesses closed in the second quarter of 2020. However, this surge in closures included many temporary closures and was followed by a surge in third-quarter openings.
Scott tells me that during that time of uncertainty, he and AL continued to follow their passion.
"We were not worried the first couple month because it took us a while to put all the grandfather clocks in and get us really set up with the set up that we have now."
One of things that A & S Antiques are looking forward to is Havana's Pumpkin Fest.
"This is one of our biggest fundraisers."
Nancy Saunders, Havana Pumpkin Festival Chair tells me last year they had about 7,000 people walking the streets of Havana during the event. This year, they are expecting more.
Nancy says this event is a great opportunity for the city to raise money to increase the visitation of the town.
"We put it back into Havana. We put it back into having more events, more things happening in Havana and advertising. Trying to put ads out that we are still here, Havana is thriving."
With the increase in visitation in town during the festival, businesses like A & S antique will feel the effects.
"We have stores here that have incredible merchandise. Things you don't find in Tallahassee or anywhere else. So we are looking forward to having the stores packed restaurants packed."
Despite the bumps and the challenges, A&S Antiques is looking forward to another three years and beyond.
"We hope to continue, and we appreciate the customers support for the past three years."
To celebrate its three years, the A & S Antiques is having 20% off store wide for the month of October. In Havana, I'm Ashley Engle, ABC 27.
