To celebrate summer and give a boost to the local business community, shops on St. Armand Circle participated in the first "Circle the Date" promotion of the season on July 17.
Denoted by metallic purple and blue balloons, participating stores offered special sales, cookies, food samples, live music and more.
Café on St. Armands, one of the main proponents of the event, brought to the stage Bri Rivera and her band.
The summer shopping days are scheduled for the third Thursday of the month for the summer. Future opportunities include Aug. 21, Sept. 18, Oct. 16 and Nov. 20.
Bri Rivera and bandmates play at Café on St. Armands on July 17 for the first "Circle the Date" celebration of summer.
Photo by Dana Kampa
Eleni Sokos and Jared Fairley hand out beverages and small bites as part of "Circle the Date" on July 17 on St. Armands Circle.
Photo by Dana Kampa
Patrons take in the live music as part of "Circle the Date" on July 17.
Photo by Dana Kampa
Participating businesses, like Coldwell Banker Realty, signaled to shoppers that they were joining in the summer fun with metallic balloons.
Photo by Dana Kampa
Giving Tree Gallery invited "Circle the Date" shoppers to share what they appreciate about St. Armands Circle and potentially win a $100 gift certificate to the shop.
Photo by Dana Kampa
Shoppers Olivia Milani, Izzi Lewis and Giavanna Milani check out the latest beach-inspired fashion at Kismet for "Circle the Date." Visting from Las Vegas, the trio enjoyed a trip to Longboat Key before preparing to head off to university.
Photo by Dana Kampa
Taylor Smith, manager at Kismet, said the shop offered some stellar deals with an additional 15 percent markdown on "last chance" clothing items.
Salty Stich, a sister store on St. Armands Circle to Kismet, also offered special sales for "Circle the Date." Kismet manager Taylor Smith said the owners have previously participated and wanted to keep the tradition going at both stores.
Photo by Dana Kampa
Tina Cosme and Renee LeBlanc share what deals are available at Garden Argosy for "Circle the Date," which kicked off for the summer on July 17.
Dana Kampa is the Longboat Key neighbors reporter for the Observer. She first ventured into journalism in her home state of Wisconsin, going on to report community stories everywhere from the snowy mountains of Washington State to the sunny shores of the Caribbean. She has been a writer and photographer for more than a decade, covering what matters most to readers.
