Royal Oak offering $400,000 in gift cards to draw customers back downtown

ROYAL OAK, Mich. – The city of Royal Oak is offering residents hundreds of thousands of dollars in gift cards to downtown businesses in an effort to give the economy a boost.

Royal Oak, like many cities, is taking a major economic hit due to the coronavirus (COVID-19), and downtown manager Sean Kammer said there’s a plan to get customers back into stores and restaurants by giving them money.

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The normally packed bars, restaurants and stores downtown are struggling to survive.

Royal Oak is working to get people back downtown by offering more than $400,000 in gift cards to those who sign up for the city’s website on visitroaloak.com.

Each person who signs up for the newsletter will receive a $20 e-gift card to use at one of more than 50 locations in Downtown Royal Oak, Kammer said.

Some businesses, such as HopCat and Town Tavern, have already closed. Other, such as Fifth Avenue, are investigating in outdoor spaces, hoping to get customers back.

You can hear from Kammer in Hank Winchester’s full video above.

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