BUTTE — The Montana Folk Festival brought large crowds of people to Uptown Butte over the weekend and those people brought with them their money. According to some business owners, they were eager to spend it.
“People were more than willing to spend their money, especially with the artists. I felt like a huge outpour of support,” said Butte artist and Folk Festival vendor Chelsea Smith.
Myles Stricker owns a plant store located in the heart of the festival and was surprised at how much business he had done.
“Saturday night from about nine until almost midnight there was a consistent stream of people coming and I eventually had to shut the doors after people left because I just wanted to go home,” said Stricker.
The free three-day music festival is estimated to draw about 150,000 guests who bring between $8 to $10 million in revenue to the city.
“Butte is a very tourist-dependent city and we really push hard for big events like this,” said Miner’s Motel Manager Cassidy Smith.
Smith added, “Artists like me see a huge increase in sales during those kinds of events and it literally carries us right through the summer and until the holiday season.”
Business owners agree that events like the folk festival that bring many people to town are the best advertising for them.
“There’s 150,000 people in town, so instantly and good number of people know we exist now and that’s the most important thing for a business is making sure people know you exist,” said Stricker.
Organizers plan to bring it back again next year.
