Bob Hendrickson, IOHT

ISHPEMING — Throughout the months of November and December the GINCC will be promoting “Shop Local for the Holidays” initiatives.

This will not only help the local business owners, but also benefit our local economy. Money spent locally has a multiplier effect. For every dollar spend locally it is estimated that nearly three quarters of that gets spent again within the community.

Ladies Night Out in Ishpeming will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 18. It’ll be a scaled down event where individual businesses participating will be offering discounts and specials. There will be no punch card drawing this year and the typical festivities will be limited, but still looks to be a fun evening out on the town to find some great deals.

Small Business Saturday is on November 28. This is a day set aside for shoppers to focus on supporting small businesses in their community.

The GINCC has applied and been accepted as a 2020 Neighborhood Champion sponsored by American Express. We’ll be receiving promotional materials soon and sharing more details in the coming weeks.

Although things will be different than in past holidays, we expect we can have a successful retail season by just using proper precautions.

These are: stay home if you are sick or quarantining, social distance a minimum of 6′ where possible, wear a mask while shopping indoors or not able to social distance and wash your hands frequently. By using simple precautions, we can help slow the spread of COVID-19 and keep our economy open.

If you are a business owner looking for some new ideas on how to handle this season, we invite you to register for “What to Expect this Holiday Shopping Season” webinar tomorrow (Nov. 10) from 11 a.m. to noon. The webinar is hosted by the Lake Superior Community Partnership and is free to participate. To register go to www.marquette.org, put the cursor over Participate on the menu bar and drop down to Events Calendar, click here.

The featured speaker will be Matt Wagner, Vice President of Revitalization Programs for the National Main Street Center.

Topics will touch on social media promotions, managing safety protocols, and how to still create a positive shopping experience for customers.

The webinar is being presented in collaboration with the Greater Ishpeming-Negaunee Area Chamber of Commerce and the Downtown Development Authorities of Marquette, Negaunee and Ishpeming.

To learn more about the GINCC, visit our website at www.gincc.org, give us a call or stop in. Our hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday through Friday. We are at times out of office on chamber business.

Please call ahead to confirm we’ll be in office, 906-486-1111.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Bob Hendrickson is the executive director of the GINCC. He currently resides in Negaunee with his wife, Laura, and daughter, Sierra. He enjoys mountain biking, skiing, fishing and hunting along with family time.