Business

Some Businesses Fared Better Than Others For RNC

(WCCO) After months of planning and preparation, everyone involved with or affected by the Republican National Convention can now take a deep breath and relax. For some it has been a great week. For others, not so much. As with any convention, there were some winners and losers, and not just among the candidates.

More than 340 buses moved delegates and visitors during the RNC. Business was up for limousine companies too. But what about cab drivers?

"It just was a bad week, all around," said Linda Gjerde.

Gjerde heard that cab drivers in Denver made three times the amount of money they would normally make during the Democratic National Convention, so she bought an official RNC sticker for her cab. But her dream quickly turned out to be a "fare-y" tale.

"There was nothing over there. You couldn't get near the Xcel Center. Every cab stand was loaded with cabs," said Gjerde.

Those cab drivers who did get close to the Xcel Energy Center weren't complaining Friday.

"I had a couple that said they did real good, but they expected to. Nobody was really surprised at the tips they got," said Pat White of Red & White Taxi Service.

How did the RNC treat local restaurants?

"It really didn't meet our expectations. It was definitely much less people than we had anticipated," said Cossetta's manager Dave Peterson.

Peterson said roadblocks prevented customers from coming in. He enjoyed the RNC, but is happy to have the elephant off his back.

"We have kind of been saying we are looking forward to getting our regular customers back in here," said Peterson.

How well restaurants fared this week may have had a lot to do with strategy. Across the street from Cossetta's, Eagle Street Grille was closed all week, but still made money. That's because CNN rented their building. Employees still worked, serving CNN employees and staff. Owner Joe Kasel won't say how much his grille made, but he is happy tonight.

"I think we rolled the dice and it came out with a pair of snake eyes, so it actually worked out pretty good," said Kasel.

Hotels were also big winners this week. Occupancy rates in downtown St. Paul and Minneapolis were about 30 percent higher than a regular week. Another winner was the city of St. Paul.

"The coverage we've received so far is the equivalent of purchasing 122 Super Bowl ads," said Jeff Larson, CEO of the RNC Host Committee said.

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