County’s New Tourist Research Consultant Gets Intro

By Lisa Neff

Manatee County’s new tourism research consultant is a familiar face — in Sarasota County.

Joseph St. Germain is the president of Downs & St. Germain Research, the firm newly hired to collect data and chart tourism trends in Manatee, reporting to the county tourist development council and guiding the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Joseph St. Germain, president of Downs & St. Germain Research. Courtesy Photo

The firm also has a contract for similar work in Sarasota.

Manatee had contracted with Research Data since 2009, but that firm went out of business.

Germain made a presentation to the TDC during an April 21 meeting in Bradenton, following an introduction from BACVB executive director Elliott Falcione.

The firm, Falcione said, is a leader on tourism research in the state while Germain is a “humble guy.”

Germain said the firm, based in Tallahassee, dates to the 1980s and has been working in tourism since the 1990s. On the firm website, dsg-research.com, the client list includes Visit Greater Palm Springs, Visit St. Lucie, Visit Gainesville, Visit Jacksonville, Visit Tallahassee and many more tourism bureaus.

The company will be conducting tourism impact studies, as well as track visitors and identify trends. The firm’s work elsewhere in the state means they bring to Manatee a regional understanding of issues.

“It’s not just about the numbers,” Germain said. “It’s about providing context” to “better market the destination.”

Germain said their team would get out in Manatee to talk with visitors, collecting information on iPads in real time rather than in post-travel surveys “to get the best data you can get.”

Elliott Falcione, executive director of the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, addresses the Manatee County Tourist Development Council during an April 21 meeting.

Falcione said the effort might involve college students, who would be dispatched to talk with tourists at island beaches, Bradenton’s Riverwalk, the outlet mall in Ellenton, the convention center in Palmetto, the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport and more.

Germain didn’t review any data during the TDC meeting but council members did receive some numbers, including tourist development tax collections for March:

• Total: 3,537,218.03

• Anna Maria: $554,017.39, up 31% from 2024

• Bradenton: $334,432.30, up 7.18% from 2024

• Bradenton Beach: $79,179, down 50.47% from 2024

• Holmes Beach: $691,143.28, down 3.01% from 2024

• Longboat Key: $262,702.60, down 12.53% from 2024

• Manatee County: $1,519,269.86, up 10.64% from 2024

• Palmetto: $96,472.80, up 892.93% from 2024.

The declines in revenue reflect the continued impact of hurricanes Helene and Milton on the tourism industry. The increase in Palmetto reflects the operation of the new Palmetto Marriott Resort & Spa, 600 U.S. Highway 41, Palmetto.

The next TDC meeting will be June 16 at the Center of Anna Maria Island, 407 Magnolia Ave., Anna Maria.