With stores like Micawber Books announcing its closing this week, due, in part to Internet and mall competition, drawing shoppers to downtown Princeton is all the more important for local merchants this holiday season. Which is why, to no one's surprise, merchants crowded the halls of Historic Morven Monday as the Princeton Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau launched its second annual "Holidays in Princeton" campaign, geared to promote "Princeton" — the name, the shops, the overall experience — to potential shoppers outside the region.
"Everything that you need is right here in one place, which, I think, is the most important thing about Princeton," said Karen Jezierney, chair of the board of directors of the Princeton Regional Chamber of Commerce, which oversees the Visitors Bureau.
The program, in short, is meant to promote Princeton's built-in assets with a list of programming and events to accompany the holiday season, all capped off with an extensive ad campaign up and down the Northeast corridor. Events include seasonal performances by the Westminster Choir College of Rider University, Morven's Festival of Trees, and horse-drawn carriage rides though Palmer Square.
Lori Rabon, chair of the Visitors Bureau and general manager of the Nassau Inn, stressed the importance of offering holiday goings-on in Princeton under one comprehensive listing, in addition to making that listing easily accessible to shoppers and potential visitors.
Nancy Byrne, executive director of the state's office of Travel and Tourism, remarked that kicking off the Holidays in Princeton campaign in the foyer of her childhood home was surely a good sign for Princeton. Ms. Byrne's father, former Gov. Brendan Byrne, was the last governor to live at Morven before the official governor's residence moved to Drumthwacket.
The Office of Travel and Tourism is at an "all-time high" in funding for not-for-profit cultural institutions. Listed at 40 organizations, Ms. Byrne said most of the funding this year would be appropriated toward holiday-related programming, including music and theater. "We're just really pleased to fund these non-profits who really need the money," she said.
Karen Colimore, president and CEO of the Chamber, said there was a 50- to 60- mile radius placed around Princeton in identifying target areas for marketing. Additonally, Ms. Rabon said Amtrak had donated about $10,000 of ad space along its Northeast Corridor line and at Penn Station in Manhattan and 30th Street Station in Philadelphia.
For more information, see www.visitprinceton.org and www.holidaysinprinceton.com.