Downtown Springs restaurant shares struggles after opening with 50% higher rent & 20+ other businesses close down

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - Fresh on the heels of new data, KRDO13 is looking into the state of things in downtown.

Data is coming from an annual report published by the Downtown Partnership of Colorado Springs; a collection of developers and businesses working together to ensure the health of local commerce.

We've learned that despite 29 new businesses opening up in downtown in 2024, the net gain has only been two.

That's because last year we lost 27 businesses in downtown and the rising cost of both rent and raw materials are both part of the problem.

Owners and managers of Ówàmbè African Restaurant & Lounge along N. Sierra Madre St. say what they offer is so unique, people travel from all over to come try it out.

However, that hasn't minimized the struggles they've overcome since opening late last year.

"We have it on our table. Like, we might shut down because of the increase in prices," Owner Adejumobi Mobee said.

Manager Raymond Idemudia said, "It's a bit of struggle because we started in October. I think the inflation was already going higher at that time."

Mobee and Idemudia opened the restaurant, Ówàmbè, at a time when many downtown businesses were being hit with a 50% increase in rents.

"It's not cheap. We're really going through a lot. We're still fighting through, honestly, we're still fighting through," Mobee said.

Fighting and trying to hold fast for their customers.

"When it comes to food, everything is expensive. We're still selling at the rate of when we opened," Mobee said.

For many customers of the Nigerian eatery, the restaurant has become a home away from home.

"We are in the military, we see people leave the military, they don't really want to stay in Colorado because there's nothing they are used to," Mobee said.

Despite the city's estimate that Colorado Springs saw 16 million visitors in 2024, business has been hard to predict.

"Sometimes the turnout is very great and sometimes it's not," Idemudia said.

Through it all though, owner Mobee says the tough times are worth it, "Even though we're going through like, struggle and challenges... our customers, they're really like pushing us through."

Another thing pushing them to continue is the knowledge that Colorado Springs will only continue to grow and their plans for adding exciting new features to the restaurant just in time for summer.