Business is ‘buzzing’ as Jones College students return for new school year

ELLISVILLE, Miss. (WDAM) – Local business owners are excited to see the stream of students returning to Jones College as classes officially begin.

More students in Jones County means more business for storefronts like Hildy Pearls Boutique and Hill Street Bakery.

Connie Firman, the owner of Hill Street Bakery, said that her business does great when school is in session.

“Well, the town is buzzing when Jones is in session,” explained Firman. “When school starts, the regular schools like elementary and high school, it gets busier, but when Jones is back in session, it’s hopping! And the students come here, and we love the students.”

Business is so good that Firman says it actually doubles.

“Yeah, when school starts again, and Jones is back in session, it doubles,” she said. “Because the summer is pretty slow, cause it’s, you know, it’s just really slow. But when they’re back in session, it’s hopping around here.”

Staff members Hannah Johnson and Lindsey Smith at Hildy Pearls Boutique said they also get a big sales boost when school is back in session due to back-to-school shopping.

“I would say, like, a lot of the girls actually do love to come over here, back to school shopping,” said Hannah Johnson. “I would say that we do have, like, a lot of business. They like to come and try on clothes and see what we have.”

Staff at both businesses said they love Jones College because they are connected to the school in various ways.

“We love Jones ‘cause we have several graduates that work here,” said Firman. “My sister works at Jones. I used to work at Jones. I used to teach the Serve Safe class at Jones, and I worked in the GED department, so I worked at Jones for about six years. So we love Jones.”

Johnson and Smith are themselves Jones College alumni.

“Having all of our friends come in, you know, especially at Jones College,” said Smith. “We’re both alumni, so you know we know a lot of people there. So it’s nice having people come in that we recognize and are familiar faces.”

Firman, Johnson and Smith said they hope to see all these familiar faces again soon.

Want more WDAM 7 news in your inbox? Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

Copyright 2024 WDAM. All rights reserved.