Davis Downtown Business Association holds annual booth for orientation
By OLIVIA HOKR — city@theaggie.org
On Wednesday, Sept. 18 and Sunday, Sept. 22, the Davis Downtown Business Association set up their annual information booth to educate the transfer and incoming UC Davis students about the various businesses and opportunities available in the downtown area.
The Davis Downtown Business Association is a group that helps promote the businesses downtown. Brett Lee, the executive director of Davis Downtown, was one of the workers managing the booth and informing orientation groups about the downtown area.
“Dive into Downtown is a partnered event with UC Davis, and today [Sept. 18] the transfer students are having their orientation,” Lee said. “So part of their orientation involves them coming downtown and seeing some of the shops and getting a general tour. Sunday [Sept. 22] will be the orientation for all the freshmen, so groups will go and be introduced to various things on campus as well as off campus. We are very fortunate that part of their tour is of the Davis downtown.”
As part of Dive into Downtown, many businesses provide discounts and promotional deals for new students. Between Sept.18 and Sept. 29, locations such as Armadillo Music, Avid Reader, the Davis Food Co-op and Yesterday Vintage all offer different kinds of deals that can be found on the Davis Downtown website.
Armadillo Music is a popular store among students that is known for its wide selection of new and used CDs, vinyl records and more. Paul Wilber, the manager of Armadillo Music, shared that they participate in Dive into Downtown annually. This year, they offered 50% off bargain bin CDs and increased their inventory of popular genres.
“We have found that many students go through their college experience rarely exploring their downtown Davis area,” Wilber said. “We love the energy the students bring to our store and we feel the program brings them here.”
Armadillo Music is also known for hosting listening parties, in-store shows from musicians and bands and, most uniquely, serving beer on-tap to provide a fun and welcoming shopping experience.
The businesses of downtown Davis and those who run them put significant effort into ensuring the community has an enjoyable and exciting place to explore. From coffee shops to bars to vintage clothing stores, the downtown Davis area aims to provide something for everyone.
“As most of us know, for a while you’re on campus and it feels pretty self-contained, but at some point you’re like, ‘I want something different,’” Lee said. “So everyone eventually heads downtown and the idea is to give people a headstart so they can see where it is and all the different things that are available.”
Written by: Olivia Hokr — city@theaggie.org
