Downtown Ironwood First Friday

With much feedback, the Downtown Ironwood First Friday organizing committee is inviting artists and downtown businesses to collaborate on creating the Winter First Fridays series!

We are encouraging businesses to open their doors to host art vendors through the winter months and/or create a special, sale, activity, music, art, tasting event from 4-6pm as a part of the Winter First Fridays series running November 2022 through April 2023. We want more Downtown Ironwood businesses to participate to create more of a stroll through downtown experience than a specific store destination. Here’s an example of what we’re envisioning and finding success with:

The Northwind Naturals Foods Co-op has been consistently hosting a wine & tea tasting for the past 9 months and it has not only been a huge success, but offering a fun and consistent activity has taken the stress out of planning something new every month and has helped generate a following of folks who make a point to stop by. With this fun offering, consistency, promoting the events on their own, and getting our event information to the First Friday committee far in advance, the Co-op has not only seen new faces in the store, but on average, half of their sales for the day are in the First Friday time span! Occasionally, the Co-op has hosted artists as well, including Rozina Dee Handmade and Township Cookie Company.

The First Friday committee will support downtown shops and artists through the Winter First Fridays with a poster and online promotion. For a one-time $10 fee businesses can register as a Winter First Friday Business Partner and host artists interested in participating with monthly pop up shops. We are excited to partner with the December NoEL Holiday Market to offer online registration and a one stop shop for artists to register for NoEL Holiday Market and Winter First Fridays. This will create consistent promotion and maintain a year-round, art-infused First Fridays schedule of events. After registration closes on DATE, we will create print and online promotional materials that artists and businesses can use to build the excitement.

Businesses can sign up HERE

Artists can sign up HERE

We know there will be room for change and growth in the years ahead, and hope this is a step in the right direction in keeping a consistent year-round art market vibe to First Fridays pairing downtown businesses and local artists with an opportunity to show all the creativity Downtown Ironwood has to offer. At the end of winter, we will look to our First Friday business partners and artists for feedback on how to improve next year and how we can best proceed for the summer series in the City Square.

Though not required to be a part of First Friday, we also invite all downtown businesses and artists to join us in a monthly First Friday conversation the Tuesday following First Friday at 8am at the Co-op. We hope you find this conversation as exciting as we do and are willing to make the commitment to First Fridays and growing our downtown businesses, large & small.

With gratitude & excitement,
First Friday Planning Committee