Shop & Stroll kicks off Thursday in downtown Greensburg

Shoppers hoping to explore locally owned stores in downtown Greensburg will have additional opportunities to do so thanks to a new “Third Thursday Shop & Stroll.”

For the event, which kicks off Thursday, participating businesses will stay open until 8 p.m. on the third Thursday of each month.

“We’re trying to get businesses to stay open and offer the public another opportunity to shop. Anything we can do to encourage the public to shop local,” said Amy Beeghly, president of the Greensburg Business & Professional Association.

The special shopping night will allow the community to explore locally owned boutiques, shops and restaurants during the evening, when those businesses otherwise might be closed.

The idea for the event piggybacks backs off a national push to shop local that has occurred over the past several years as consumers responded to the covid-19 pandemic, which forced stores to shutter, and supply chain issues. Beeghly hopes that push will trickle down to the local level. Several other areas such as Irwin, Ligonier and Latrobe host similar events.

“We’re hoping the community will respond,” she said. “We know that it will take a little bit of time for people to get used to it and to have the mindset that we’re open.”

To help make the event more festive, each month will have a different theme. This week, the theme is Taste the Green in honor of St. Patrick’s Day.

Other themes:

• April 21 — Spring fling
• May 19 — Patriotic
• June 16 — Kick off to summer
• July 21 — Summer in the city
• Aug. 18 — Dog days of summer
• Sept. 15 — Harvest pie
• Oct. 20 — Halloween
• Nov. 17 — Holiday window unveiling
• Dec. 15 — Stuff your stocking

Starting in April, participating businesses will have a sticker indicating “Third Thursday Shop & Stroll” placed in their store windows.