MARQUETTE, Mich. (WZMQ) – What started as a ladies’ night of shopping during deer season has turned into a full-day event.
Thursday was Marquette’s Downtown Day Out, formerly known as Ladies Night Out. This year, the Downtown Development Authority chose to expand the promotion to include the entire day, allowing more people to participate. Michael Bradford, the DDA’s Promotions Director, says it’s all about getting people downtown.
“We want people to be aware of what downtown has to offer. It’s not just retail, it’s not just restaurants, but there’s also experience and service. It’s very diverse. It’s a quite large downtown,” said Bradford.
The goal is to get people to shop local. The money spent at local businesses tends to stay in the community.
“That money stays here and it does far more for your community than say, if you hit Black Friday and shop at the big box stores on 41 it’s very important to shop local,” explained Bradford.
At the Evergreen Market business was good, providing a much-needed shot in the arm during this historically slow time of year.
“We thrive in the summer, but we take a huge dip in that fall space, so it’s really helpful to get community back in here. Christmas is coming up. We have great products in here, and it’s such a great event to just be out and meet new people and see what everyone has to offer,” said Kailey Finch, manager of Evergreen Market.
Among the most popular elements of “Day Out” is the Passport. It lists all participating businesses and their day-out specials. The goal was to visit at least 10 places from the list, which qualifies you to win one of several large gift baskets. According to shoppers I spoke to, the Passport is a huge success.
“Almost every person I’ve talked to has a passport, which is also really cool because I get to look at where else they’ve been and be like, Oh, this place is really cool. I heard they have really cool stuff and I continue to tell people about other businesses in the area,” said Finch.
If you were unable to turn in your passport Thursday Night, the DDA will accept passports all day Friday at its office at 337 West Washington Street.
