GRAND HAVEN, Michigan (WOOD) — Businesses in Grand Haven were gearing up for a busy weekend ahead of Memorial Day.
Business picked up in downtown Grand Haven’s shops as boats sailed near Lake Michigan on a sunny Friday.
“It’s a big weekend for us. I mean, this is kind of the start of summer,” said Caleb Berko, manager of MACkite, a store in Grand Haven that sells toys, games, clothing and kites. “Christmas time has been good for us here, but in a tourist spot you start to slow down in January and February. It’s getting cold (and) all the tourists are leaving. There are the locals who come to visit you but we look forward to getting back to business.”
Berko said the process of preparing for Memorial Day weekend — and the weeks that follow — began months ago.
“We have a few fairs that we attend as summer approaches,” Berko said. “So yes, our store is full, we have loads of products in there.”
Across the street at Kilwins Grand Haven, staff prepared to serve up lots of sweet treats to celebrate the holiday.
“We ordered about 115 cups of ice cream for this weekend. So our freezer is full,” said Paige Wilson, shift manager at Kilwins Grand Haven.
Wilson said events like the nearby Rib Fest are also good for business. By Friday afternoon they had already seen more visitors.
“There are a lot of families out here. I think we sent some kids on a field trip it seems,” Wilson said. “So we saw a lot of people on the strip today.”
Whether people are in Grand Haven this weekend to shop, dine or go to the beach, businesses said they are all benefiting from each other.
“I think people in this area like to walk and the shops are so close to the restaurants. People sit down to eat, they can look at our store and come in after they eat,” said Eva Taylor, manager of Grand Haven Big Fish stores. “And I think that’s great.”
All three companies assumed that the momentum would continue into the summer months.
