Southside businesses struggle as consumers recover from holiday spending

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — As consumers recover from holiday spending, small businesses on Tucson’s southside are seeing the impacts. For owner Ruth Matheson of Yaya’s Alterations, it’s been months since she made a profit.

“The past couple months have been pretty severe. We’ve just been able to cover our expenses of our payroll, our utilities and our rent,” said Matheson.

Loyal customers like Rachel Bracety are the reason she’s able to keep her doors open.

“I live in Marana. Getting here, I mean it’s 45 minutes, but I love her so I’m here again,” said Bracety.

Still, the support has only gone so far. Times like this remind Matheson of when she first took over the business during the pandemic. She had to get creative to expand her customer base.

“For doctors and nurses and things like that, that’s what keeps us busy when we’re not selling our high end dresses or doing alterations for weddings,” she said.

She found a need in custom uniform alterations and focused her marketing on that through social media. She added that using her platform has allowed her to bring in new customers.

“That’s been phenomenal for us. We get a lot of different people coming in for that."

There’s another piece to the puzzle that’s kept business afloat: Her ability to build a loyal customer base.

“If I can give back to a small business to make sure they sustain, versus going into a department store where they’re going to be there no matter what, I’d rather give to a small business,” said Bracety.

While Yaya’s Alterations is just one example of a business that faces challenges, it’s also an example of common solutions.