LYNCHBRUG, Va. – Graduation season is upon us, and that means thousands of families are flocking to our area to celebrate.
Servers are busy behind the bar and parking lots are packed, as people travel to Lynchburg.
Amy Corbett, owner of All Belong Co., operates 25 Airbnbs in the region. She says she has spent months preparing to help those searching for places to stay.
“This is it! This is go-time!” said Corbett.
It’s go-time for The Water Dog restaurant, too.
Owner Dave Henderson says after dealing with COVID-19 the past two years, he looks forward to a busier season.
“Graduation during COVID looked a lot different than graduation this weekend. So, we’re expected to see some exponential growth in revenue,” said Henderson.
With Liberty University’s commencement May 5-7, Sweet Briar College holding their ceremony May 14, the University of Lynchburg celebrating May 19-21, and then Randolph College May 28-29 — business is booming.
City leaders tell 10 News they’re expecting 60,000 visitors for Liberty University’s graduation alone.
While they’re excited about the boost, these businesses have struggled in recent months.
“We’ve had challenges with staffing. We’ve had to scale back our hours on certain days; but we’re trying to empower our staff, give them the best tools possible to do the best job they can,” said Henderson.
Corbett relies on cleaning companies, which are short-staffed.
“It’s just so many properties. Everybody’s packed full,” said Corbett.
These owners say the extra work is manageable and worth the hassle — to serve those moving their tassels.
“We’re really looking forward to being open, having a great graduation weekend and serving the community,” said Henderson.
“We are so ready and excited,” said Corbett.
Some restaurant owners we spoke with declined to be on camera because they’re so short-staffed.
One manager even says that on top of his job vacancies, several of his servers are graduating college students, which will make these busy weekends even busier.