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National honor for MRA member
Bill Golden of Golden Shoes in Traverse City is recognized for his advocacy for independent retailers. Page 2
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Advocacy in Washington
Members travel to Capitol Hill to express retailer concerns with the Michigan Congressional delegation. Page 4
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Scholarship winners
We announce 14 students from Michigan high schools and colleges who will receive Michigan Retailers Foundation scholarships. Pages 6-7
® August 2017 Vol. 42 No. 4
The official publication of Michigan Retailers Association
6 ways to promote I Buy Nearby Weekend Oct. 7-8 Help us celebrate the fifth anniversary of our Buy Nearby campaign! You can do so by participating in I Buy Nearby Weekend on Oct. 7-8. At Michigan Retailers Association, we want to help however possible in making this year’s weekend a success. We’ll put on a full-court press to get shoppers through your doors. But we need your help. Here are six resources you can use to get more shoppers in your store: Publicize our contest Like last year, we are sponsoring a contest for your customers to win a $500 gift card. They can enter by: • Sharing at least one photo of their purchase or a selfie as they shop during I Buy Nearby Weekend on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram
www.Retailers.com
Delayed: OSHA rule to publicly report injuries
Promote the I Buy Nearby Weekend event page You can direct customers to our Facebook event page (bit.ly/buynearby2017) by clicking the “Going” button on the page and also sharing it on your social media. This is the page you can use to connect with shoppers and share your deals as the weekend nears.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has put a pause on a requirement that would have required businesses to electronically report worker injury and illness records to the public starting July 1. OSHA has delayed the requirement until Dec. 1 to allow more time to review and reconsider the rule. You may recall that The Retailer reported in its February edition that businesses had concerns about the public shaming aspect of the rule, especially since the reporting method doesn’t allow businesses to provide fuller explanations. OSHA, which falls under the U.S. Department of Labor, said the rule is meant to encourage employers to increase efforts to prevent worker injuries. The public reporting would mean businesses would
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• Including the hashtag #buynearbymi in their post so we can enter them in the contest
Goldman Sachs ‘mini-MBA’ program helps businesses leap to next level Summer Schriner, owner of Grace Boutique in Lansing’s Old Town, recalls feeling insecure as she walked into her first session of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program a year ago. She was one of 23 participants to nab a $50,000 fellowship for the prestigious program – a mini MBA of sorts that will hold more four-month sessions in Michigan for at least two more years. The program, called 10ksb for short, targets promising business owners who are ready to leap to the next level. Schriner worried she’d be the only participant who didn’t know how to get a grasp on her inventory or deal with her financials (“I’d just hand them to my accountant”). “A lot of us have the impostor syndrome,” Schriner said – a fear that you’ll be discovered as a fraud. But Schriner, who has grown a loyal customer base for her eclectic mix of purses, hats, dresses and men’s ties at her boutique, discovered that her 10ksb peers had similar fears. It was a reassuring discovery. In November, she completed the program and has since purchased a point-of-sale system and Continued on page 8
Summer Schriner, owner of Grace Boutique in Lansing, talks about all that she learned through the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program.
Ways to drive customers to your back-to-school merchandise - Page 3