Friday’s Summer Sidewalk Sale in downtown Picayune gave small businesses a chance to engage with the community once again after many had been forced to close for extended periods of time due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Alice Counts of Yune Nutrition said the business saw many customers on Friday.

“It’s really exciting to be back,” Counts said.

Counts said it felt good to interact with the community again. She said the most popular menu item of the day was the Captain America loaded tea.

Tanya Tomei of Dancewear Connection also said Friday was a busy day for the business. She said due to the pandemic, the business was forced to close for about two months, and it was only able to reopen in late May.

Though Dancewear Connection has only been reopened for a few weeks, Tomei said it is good to be back.

Many of Dancewear Connection’s customers have recently been able to return to their dance activities.

“Business has started to pick back up,” Tomei said.

Stephanie Miller, a shopper at Friday’s sidewalk sale, said she thinks supporting small business is important.

“I just think it’s good to support [small businesses],” Miller said. “It’s good to see people coming out again.”

Angie Smith of Stonewall’s BBQ and Catering said though the business never closed completely due to the pandemic since it has a takeout option, there were plenty of customers on Friday.

“It’s awesome,” Smith said.

Smith said members of the Magnolia Model T Ford Club of Mississippi came from Ocean Springs to enjoy the Summer Sidewalk Sale and have some barbeque.

“It was good to see [people] getting back to normal and interacting,” Smith said.

More than 17 local businesses participated in Friday’s sale.