After pandemic-induced shutdowns and canceled events, Carmel retailers are bullish on 2021.

Tracy Delaney Odle, owner of Augustina’s Designer Boutique, has been working at her family business in Carmel since 1987, but nothing prepared her for 2020.

“We’ve outlived fires, earthquakes and recessions,” Odle says. “[But last year] was an experience that I can’t even fathom.”

When her business was forced to shut down for months due to Covid-19, she says there were times when she couldn’t make payroll for her employees, who nonetheless volunteered to come in and work for free.

Loyalty, Odle says, is also something she cultivates in her clientele, and why she’s got high hopes for this year’s Car Week.

“All these years, the same customers walk in the door,” she says. “It’s maybe only once a year, but every year, they come in this week.”

And she’s optimistic for 2021: “I’m hoping it’s the best car show I’ve ever had, because people have been locked up for the year.”

Suraya Cayen, owner of Carmel’s Cayen Collection, a group of three stores that sell high-end jewelry, home decor and art, is also feeling good about where her business is at right now.

“What we’ve found is that business is coming back very strong,” Cayen says. “We’re having a stronger year than we did before the pandemic.”

Cayen, like Odle, attributes much of that success to loyalty: “Once we got back to work, we felt blessed,” she says. “We had wonderful clientele that started reaching out to us, wanting to support our business and make a purchase.”

And like Odle, Cayen is also hoping for a big week during Car Week: Her stores ramped up their stock by about 50 to 60 percent.

“It’s a crowd with a high buying power and a very discerning eye,” Cayen says. “We make clients during Car Week, we form relationships that will last us a lifetime. We have clients we met during Concours that we have had for the last 10 to 15 years.”

Chris Winfield, who owns the Chris Winfield Gallery in Carmel, says his business “did OK” during the pandemic, but he’s more guarded in his expectations for Car Week.

“Some years are very, very good, and some years you throw up your hands and wonder what’s going on,” he says. “It varies so much. I’ve had years when people come in and buy a huge painting, and that’s made my week or month even.”

Rachel Dinbokowitz, public relations manager for the Monterey County Convention & Visitors Bureau, says the estimated economic impact of 2019 Car Week was about $67 million, and that “we’re hoping and expecting [this year] to be just as good as 2019.”

As of early August, she says, hotel occupancy in Monterey County was between 80 and 90 percent on weekends, and 70 percent on weekdays, numbers akin to 2019.

Jenny MacMurdo, president and CEO of the Carmel Chamber of Commerce, concurs: “Since the summer hit, especially after June 15, we’ve really seen great numbers throughout the summer. Restaurants are busier than they can even handle, and retailers are doing well.”