Winter weather freezing out profits for business

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Michiana's cold weather has been a non-stop roller coaster for the past couple of weeks, but this unpredictable weather has done more than just make the roads bad. The snow and cold weather is keeping people home and spending less money.

Saint Joseph County businesses are finding this winter to be a battle for survival.  

“Sometimes it’s the difference between making it and not making it and things with the difficulty of the snow make it complicated for them to operate,” Jeff Rea, President of the Saint Joseph County Chamber of Commerce.

 

Many had to close their doors this season due to cold weather more than they have ever had to before.

"It’s been a real struggle in January in particular and particularly related to the snow emergencies and just kind of the limbo that puts businesses in," says Rea.

 

Even businesses that rely on the cold were not immune. Thomas Walker is the assistant manager at Howard Park Ice Rink and he says all these cold days are eating into their profits.  

 

“We have been closed a total of eight days because of it so we basically lost a full week in January of business which we rely on,” says Walker. 

This weekend brought a slight warm-up, so some restaurants in downtown South Bend are hoping more customers will come out.

 

"When it gets colder and colder outside especially downtown, I don’t think people want to come here eat, but when the weather got nice we got very busy this past weekend,”  David Meredith, Co-Owner Of Woochi.

 

“It really impacted us following that,"  Peg Dalton, Owner Of Le Peep.  "Obviously when we are closed business is not very good, but after that we have been just fine, we have really bounced back well.”