SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Downtown Business Association (DBA) announced this week details of a new gift-certificate program for its members.
According to DBA President Maddy Zanetti, members have spent a lot of time in recent months to revise a program that was started back in the early 1990s.
After much discussion among members, Zanetti said, the DBA will be launching a new and improved program on June 1.
The program will still include paper gift certificates, but they can be purchased in three denominations: $10, $25 and $50, so businesses that have lower ticket values can still accept them without wiping out their cash drawers.
Merchants also will have the option to give back cash or store credit if less than the entire amount of the gift certificate is used, Zanetti said in statement.
The DBA is also hiring a bookkeeper to manage the gift certificates program, so members will be reimbursed in a timelier manner.
Zanetti indicated there would be no fee to DBA members due to the generous support of The Adirondack Trust Company, which is underwriting the gift-certificate program.
When merchants turn in a $50 gift certificate they will be getting $50 back, the full value. Plus, a 5 percent fee stamped on the back of older gift certificates no longer applies, Zanetti said.
The Adirondack Trust Company has supported the DBA gift certificate program since its inception. Zanetti said she values that partnership and all that bank officials do in the community.
Zanetti added that DBA members should benefit from a downtown Sidewalk Sale during Memorial Day weekend.
Ambrosino Design and Tonya Pellegrini-Lawrence, the DBA’s director of marketing and promotion, also have been putting together this year’s walking map for downtown. It will be larger to include two more blocks parallel to Broadway, so more DBA members will be visible, according to Zanetti.
For more information, visit the website www.saratogaspringsdowntown.com.
