Maxine’s Owner Looking To Lease Business

Dell Hall of Fayetteville, whose family owns longtime Fayetteville business World Tresures, walks along Block Avenue Thursday, Dec. 17, 2009, past Maxine's Tap Room which is closed during December. Andrea Foren, owner of the longtime bar, plans to reopen Jan. 8.
Dell Hall of Fayetteville, whose family owns longtime Fayetteville business World Tresures, walks along Block Avenue Thursday, Dec. 17, 2009, past Maxine's Tap Room which is closed during December. Andrea Foren, owner of the longtime bar, plans to reopen Jan. 8.

Maxine’s Tap Room temporarily closed this month, but the owner said it will reopen in January and she hopes it will be under new management.

Andrea Foren said she is trying to lease the business while maintaining ownership of the building, handed down through the family since her great-aunt Maxine Miller opened it in 1950.

She said a few people expressed interest in running the Fayetteville mainstay at 107 N. Block Ave.

With a full-time job as a purchasing agent for the city of Fayetteville, Foren said finding enough extra time to manage Maxine’s is challenging.

“Maxine’s needs someone who can dedicate more time to the business,” she said.

Leasing the building or the business also is an option worth considering, in addition to finding new management, Foren said.

By maintaining ownership of the building, Foren said she can be sure the bar keeps its namesake. Selling the family business is out of the question.

“I don’t want Maxine’s to go away by any means,” she said.

However, if Foren can’t find someone to lease the business, she may have to close it — something she hopes to avoid.

“I’ll keep it as long as it takes. It also depends on how business is this spring,” she said.

Foren didn’t disclose the lease price while she’s researching how much similar buildings and businesses tend to draw.

Ongoing financial considerations pushed Foren to rethink the future of the business. The bar had extensive damage in a July 2006 fire, just two months after the death of Maxine’s founder. The bar reopened on Aug. 31, 2007.

Foren invested more than $100,000 of her own money following the fire to get the bar back to its original feel. “My resources are limited,” she said.

Although the building doesn’t need any work, Foren said routine upkeep and advertising is more than she wants to spend.

“I wish I could take that on as a career, but I need my job with the city,” she said.

Reduced Business, Hours

“Summer was really bad this year. In August when the (University of Arkansas) students come back you can breathe again,” Foren said. “(Business) got better, but it was not the normal breath of fresh air it usually is.”

Foren reduced the bar’s hours in October, only opening on Friday and Saturday. Maxine’s was open Tuesday through Saturday prior to the reduction. When the bar reopens Jan. 8, Foren said the hours will remain Friday and Saturday only.

“It’s just hard to justify being open during the week with less business, even when you have that loyal following,” Foren said.

If the business comes under new management, hours could change, she added.

Foren blames the economy, saying people likely drink more at home to save money.

Her assumption is backed by a consumer survey The Nielsen Co. performed in mid-November. The report showed 55 percent of bar patrons are going out less often and cut spending when they do go out. The report also showed nearly two-thirds of dining patrons were going out less often.

“Given the importance of the holiday season to restaurants and bars, these establishments will need to pull out all the stops to lure consumer traffic back, using a variety of creative incentives as a hook,” Richard Hurst, senior vice president of the Nielsen Company’s beverage alcohol, stated in the report.

Marilyn Heifner, director of the Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission, said spending in general is down in Fayetteville, but the amount collected in the city’s 2 percent hotel, motel and restaurant tax held steady compared with last year’s numbers.

“Retail is up slightly, which means people are taking their HMR money and using it for Christmas,” Heifner said, explaining why December can be a hard time for some hospitality businesses.

Foren hopes that turns around and spring business will be better.

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