‘Just expands what we have’: First Fridays return to downtown Florence

FLORENCE, Ala. (WAFF) - First Fridays are officially back for the year in downtown Florence.

Small business owners said they could not be happier to welcome back the event, as it normally brings more customers to their doors. Organizer and Downtown Florence Alliance Director Chris Stangel said they have expanded in the last two decades.

They try to fit a small business or local organization into every spot they can. This year, there are around 110 vendors for the very first event of the First Fridays season.

“Come downtown and you’ll find it,” Stangel said. “There’s always something going on in our museums, in our shops, in our businesses, in the departments. There’s something for you going on in downtown Florence.”

Stangel said that the expansion is because of how many people have continued to come to support First Fridays, but also thanks to the small businesses that come back every year.

For nearly two decades, First Fridays has been a staple in downtown Florence.

Since the start, the event has stretched from shutting down one block to three blocks. Bringing people downtown to revitalize the area and kickstart the small businesses that are located here.

“Also just filters through our community and continues to grow and expand just what we have here in Florence,” Amy Balch explained.

Co-owner of an art gallery, Stella and Goose, Amy Balch said she loves seeing new people come in who might not even know what her store is for.

She said shopping local is more important now than ever.

“Events like this help us because there are people downtown that maybe aren’t always downtown during our regular business hours,” Balch explained. “Then if we have the doors open and people have the opportunity to walk through, they get to know a little bit about what it is that we do here and what we offer.”

Balch said she often gets people in her store that she normally doesn’t, and because of that, she can explain what her store is, all of the events they have and how people can sign up for art classes on top of just buying local art.

Balch said that shopping local puts back into your community in the same way that those local businesses also support the community.

There are several businesses located downtown that see more foot traffic during these community events, especially restaurants, like Señor Tequila.

Señor Tequila is locally owned and they have that they have to have anywhere from five to eight extra sets of hands during First Fridays alone. Employees and sisters Amayrani and Galynea Gonzalez have seen firsthand the impact that these events can have on a restaurant.

“I remember when we first opened and we were getting no people and then we had First Friday and that’s been the busiest that we’ve been,” Amayrani Gonzalez explained. “It was busier than opening day.”

Señor Tequila opened up in July 2024, and First Fridays go through the summer.

“It does make a difference,” Galynea Gonzalez explained. “Like a whole crowd of people will still come in here and talk about how this place is new and that they have never been here. People will take a sneak peek in here and fall in love.”

Both sisters said they normally have a wait time on First Friday nights, but for any other day, they do not.

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