Temps de Flors once again filled Girona with visitors, especially during the second weekend, but that movement did not translate directly into sales for downtown stores. The influx was concentrated in the Barri Vell and the commercial axis, with thousands of people who came to stroll, see the floral arrangements, and eat.
Therein lies the main paradox of the festival for local commerce. Although the city receives a large number of people, a minority enters to buy in the establishments. "People don't come to buy," summarized Mercè Ramírez de Cartagena, president of Girona Centre Eix Comercial.
The second weekend brought more people, but not more purchases
The restaurant industry does notice a high impact during the days of the event, while for stores the return is more indirect. The constant flow of visitors turns Girona into a showcase, but it does not guarantee immediate consumption in businesses.
Ramírez de Cartagena argued that this effect may be noticed later, when some of those who discover the city during the festival return on dates with fewer crowds. In this regard, she maintained that when so many people are moving around the city, it is a way for people to return.
The commercial dynamic, in fact, changes before the start of Temps de Flors. Many residents advance their purchases to avoid the crowds in the Barri Vell and the commercial axis, which shifts part of the activity to the preceding days.
"The week before we worked much more than normal" - Mercè Ramírez de Cartagena, president, Girona Centre Eix Comercial
Commerce asked for more recognition for the setup week
The president of the entity also focused on the altruistic work that makes many of the floral installations possible. In her opinion, the setup week deserves more recognition within the event as a whole, because it concentrates a decisive effort before the opening to the public.
Looking ahead to future editions, the sector plans to study whether some floral elements can be kept for a few more days in specific points of the city to extend the visual impact of the event. This option, however, presents maintenance difficulties.
Before the start of the festival, another factor that worried businesses was the cleaning strike. Ramírez de Cartagena stated that its continuation would have been a drama on the days of most attendance and valued that the conflict was resolved before the final stretch of greatest visitor concentration.