Bridget Neigum, owner of River Bee Books, poses for a photo.--NEWS PHOTO BRENDAN MILLER
bmiller@medicinehatnews.com
The glow of Christmas will shine bright Friday as downtown stores, cafes and restaurants treat Holiday shoppers to local deals and festive treats.
The Medicine Hat and District Chamber of Commerce has partnered with the Downtown Collective to host the annual Midnight Madness event. There are more than 50 businesses participating in this year’s “Madness.”
The large tree in BATUS Park will twinkle with Christmas lights as shoppers and families celebrate the season with seasonal activities that will include a petting zoo, live music, ice carving and a visit from Santa.
Frozen characters Princess Anna and Olaf will be at the Esplanade visiting children in an evening full of family activities. And as the name suggests, many shops and restaurants downtown will stay open until midnight.
“As time goes on, Black Friday has become bigger and bigger in Canada. So we do it before then so if people are after something for a family member for a gift they can try and find it locally,” says Darin McKay, chair of the Downtown Collective.
Midnight Madness is planned one week prior to Black Friday and encourages the community to support local businesses while shopping this Holiday Season. McKay says the event draws a lot of business and attention to local brick and mortar stores that have to compete with online retailers.
“For retail shops like myself, I have two retail stores downtown, it’s what gets us through those slow (months) like the tail end of December and January,” says McKay.
The owner of an independent bookstore that opened its doors earlier this spring says this will be her first time participating in Midnight Madness as a business owner.
“Midnight Madness has always been a favourite part of our family’s seasonal festivities, so we really look forward to being part of this in a different way where we are on the business side of it,” explains Bridget Neigum, owner of River Bee Books.
The bookshop is getting set to welcome visitors throughout the evening and Neigum says they will offer special discounts for that book worm on your shopping list.
“There’s some really great unique shops downtown that really are striving to make our community a better place, so we love being part of it,” says Neigum.
If you’re looking to warm up, restaurants will be offering a taste of Medicine Hat’s best dishes, as well Poolhouse Cafe and Roastery will be serving hot seasonal beverages.
“Everyone brings their families down here, lots of kids. Everyone can get nice and hot with lots of hot chocolate and eggnog lattes,” says Josh Borrows, owner of Poolhouse Cafe and Roastery. “Mostly everything down here is local. You also get to see what people are going to be launching for Christmas.”
Besides getting a jump on Holiday shopping, organizers say there are events planned Friday for the whole family.
“People that don’t go downtown every day, they can walk the streets and maybe find something they didn’t know existed, or something that’s new,” says McKay.
Midnight Madness runs from 4 p.m. to midnight downtown. Families Fun Activities at the Esplanade runs 4:30-8:30 p.m.
Ice carving will take place on the front lawn of the Esplanade from 4:30-9:30 p.m. Musician Rob Cook performing at the Ewart Duggan House, 7:00-9:30 p.m.
