F E B RUA RY
22,
2017
an annual report
automotive
l
retail
l
recreation
CNY awaits
Uber decision Residents, local officials discuss ride-sharing apps
by E.Jay Zarett
F
inding a way to Downtown Syracuse on the weekends is a hassle for Timothy Maalouf. Maalouf, 22, said it’s difficult to find a taxi that will pick him up at his home in Manlius. Often times, he must first go to his friend’s house in the Eastwood neighborhood before catching a cab downtown. Even then, a one-way ride into the city costs about $45. Because of this, Maalouf said that he’ll sometimes choose to go out somewhere closer to home, or stay in entirely. “I’m sure if it was an easier process, we’d go downtown more,” Maalouf
said. “It’s expensive to get down there.” Maalouf and other Central New York residents could soon have an easier and cheaper way to travel—by using ridesharing apps such as Uber and Lyft. Uber and Lyft are not currently operating in most areas north of New York City. But, on Feb. 6, the New York State Senate passed legalization that would legalize the use of ride-sharing apps statewide. The bill now moves to the state assembly. Robert Podfigurny, president of the Hanover Square Association, and Richard Sykes, president of the Armory Square Association, penned a letter to their local state representatives in June supporting the expansion of ride-sharing into Syracuse. Podfigurny, also a partner in the Evergreen—a restaurant and bar that opened in 2015 on East Water Street—said that ride-
sharing will allow more people access to Downtown Syracuse. “I think it brings people out from different neighborhoods, it will bring people out from the suburbs,” Podfigurny said. “No one is going to spend [$40 or $50 on a cab] to go out to eat down here. They are going to stay close to home or they’re going to stay in. I think it increases flow, it increases traffic— in terms of people—downtown.” Podfigurny added that ride-sharing will also benefit the expanding population of downtown residents. He said that it will provide them with the ability to travel outside of the city for groceries or doctor’s appointments. For some of those residents, the addition of Uber and Lyft may eliminate their need for a car altogether, reducing the cost of living downtown. Uber l Page 6
E-cny-commerce: Online sales a mixed bag for local businesses By Bridget Whitfield
Walking through store after store looking for the perfect outfit, window shopping with friends or running around a packed mall doing last minute Christmas shopping used to be typical shopping habits of many consumers about five years ago. However, as technology has advanced, the shopping experience has transformed. Most affected has been the way we shop, and where. E-commerce has become commonplace. This process, where companies and small businesses have developed websites and begun selling products online, has opened a whole new world for shoppers. Feeling the pressure of this competition, local retailers have opted to follow suit by also making purchasing
of products and services available online. Pride and Joy Shop, a store for baby products, opened in Skaneateles in 2014 and is co-owned by Kathleen Murray. She said, as a mother living in that area, she didn’t feel there were many places to find things a new baby would need beyond clothes and shoes and decided to open up her own store. Pride and Joy Shop had a website up and running when it first opened, with ecommerce available soon after. The idea behind the site was to give consumers a chance to see what the store was about and what products were available. Although they have had their website for three years, Murray said she doesn’t consider it a driving force of her profits, but feels she is gaining a wider audience by being available online.
“We’ve had a fair amount of sales out of state,” Murray said. “Really, our retail space is where we have a majority of our sales, but we’ve been surprised by getting some online orders from California, or Washington state or even Texas.” J-Michael Shoes, a local shoe and apparel store that was established on Marshall Street in Syracuse in 1983, has a four-year old IT department to keep up with the times that is run by Nils Wiklund. Wiklund was a part of the switch from analog to digital and developed the store’s website to make the company more competitive, but said what they were battling against was different four years ago. “It used to be, before I started working here, that the E-commerce l Page 6