For many, the day has taken on almost national-holiday status.
It’s a time when a lot people like to throw big parties for family and friends, where the emphasis may not be as much about blocking, passing and tackling as it is about buffalo wings, pizza and TV.
For retailers of food and electronics, the Super Bowl season is almost like a second Christmas season.
“Super Bowl Sunday is definitely one of our busiest days,” said Brandy Gunnells, a manager at Buffalo’s Southwest Café. “Last year we sold more than 6,000 wings over the weekend.”
Gunnells said the restaurant has some new TVs and a new bar area for patrons who want to watch the game, but most of their business today will be from to-go orders and party platters.
Pizza places stay just as busy, with a mad rush from late in the afternoon to early evening.
“We pretty much double our sales during the Super Bowl from our usual Sunday sales,” said Anthony Stallings, general manager at Papa John’s Pizza. “At about 4 p.m. we start getting a lot of orders, and it’s really busy until the game starts. Then we usually get another push at halftime.”
Stallings said they plan ahead by ordering extra supplies and having extra staff on hand, but it’s still one of their three or four busiest days of the year.
“Everything we have is made to order, so it gets pretty intense for a few hours,” he said.
Chad Hullander, co-owner of Jefferson’s Restaurant, said they also get a mad rush of business on Super Bowl Sunday.
“Our food order for this week was probably twice as big as usual,” he said. “I think last year we sold 4,000 to 5,000 wings, and we’ve already got over 1,000 pre-ordered for (today).”
Hullander said the restaurant has increased its dining room space by 50 percent this year, so he’s expecting big business from take-out orders as well as in-house customers.
“Definitely the best nights to work are during the big events when you get to interact with so many people, but the downside is that it’s so busy you don’t always get to enjoy any of the Super Bowl,” he said.
For those who plan to have parties in their house, having food is just one component. The other must-have item around this time of year also seems to be new televisions and electronic equipment.
Bo Walker, the general manager of Aaron’s Rental Purchase, said the Super Bowl is big for electronics retailers.
“This is absolutely one of our busiest times,” Walker said. “People seem to like the bigger units, anything 52 inches and up. LCD televisions and high-definition equipment are always hot items, too.”
Walker said some people go all-out, upgrading not only their TV sets, but their surround-sound systems as well.
“Some people see a big TV and home theater as a necessity,” he said. “We definitely see a big boost in sales around Super Bowl time.”
For food and TV retailers, Super Bowl weekend seems to get busier every year — and they know to plan accordingly.
“We have extra people and extra supplies on hand,” said Leigh Anna Beck, manager of Zaxby’s at Mount Berry Square. “We just try to get ready the best we can.”
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