The Brief
- The 53rd annual Sunrise Sale kicked off at 6:43 a.m. Thursday in downtown St. Petersburg.
- Forty-seven locally owned businesses are participating, with special promotions along Beach Drive, Central Avenue and the 4th Street corridor.
- The tradition began in 1973 to help small businesses through the slower summer shopping season and continues more than 50 years later.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Shoppers traded sleeping in for savings Thursday morning as downtown St. Petersburg’s annual Sunrise Sale returned for its 53rd year.
The longtime tradition began at 6:43 a.m. — the official time of sunrise — with 47 locally owned businesses opening their doors early and offering special promotions across downtown. Participating shops stretch along Beach Drive, Central Avenue and the 4th Street corridor, making the event one of the city’s largest annual celebrations of small businesses.
St. Pete Sunrise Sale
The backstory:
Known by many as St. Pete’s largest pajama party, the event encourages shoppers to wear pajamas if they choose, though organizers say everyone is welcome.
The Sunrise Sale dates back to 1973, when the St. Pete Downtown Business Association created the event to help locally owned businesses during the slower summer shopping season.…