Minnesota business owner hope fall will help tourism

MINNEAPOLIS — There’s a saying in Minnesota that when things go wrong you can blame it on the weather.

Lauren Bennett McGinty from Explore Minnesota said there is some truth to that phrase this year regarding the state’s travel and tourism industry.

“The weather this summer has been a huge factor,” Bennett McGinty said.

Explore Minnesota partnered with Hospitality Minnesota and the Minneapolis Federal Reserve to conduct a statewide survey of business owners in the tourism industry.

The survey included responses from 266 Minnesota business owners. About half of the respondents said their business saw fewer customers this summer. Around 48% of the business owners in the survey said the excess rain this summer hurt their business.

“When you look at many businesses involved in tourism, of course they are outdoor focused, and in the summertime especially. All the days of rain this summer, it was really challenging for them to have more people come and spend their time outdoors and experience all they have to offer,” Bennett McGinty said.

But weather wasn’t the only issue business owners had to deal with this summer. Around 60% of business owners say rising costs of goods and services was a major challenge this summer.

In the survey, business owners say their three biggest challenges this year were higher prices for goods and food, wage increases, and more government regulations.

Jami Olson is the CEO of the Centro Restaurant Group, which owns five restaurants in the Twin Cities. She said a lot of restaurant owners in the Twin Cities are seeing fewer customers and higher costs of doing business.

“Overall, we have seen a downtick,” Olson said. “I think in general the Twin Cities are going through a lot of things right now. I think we will continue to see a lot of changes within restaurants. A lot of things are getting more expensive. Minimum wage went up, so obviously that drives up prices.”

On the northeast side of the state, in the Brainerd Lakes Area, business owners were more optimistic.

Nichole Heinen with the Brainerd Lakes Chamber of Commerce said many hotels and restaurants did see a slight drop in revenue this summer.

“It’s been down maybe a tiny little bit, but it is not something that has been a really big worry for us up here,” Heinen said.

She is hoping the warm fall will help business owners earn back some of the revenue they lost this summer.

“We just got done with Crosslake Days in Crosslake and there was a huge turnout. So many people were out there, and the businesses I spoke with out there were just really excited for the Fall. They’re already seeing a lot of people coming up to see the leaves and change of colors,” Heinen said. 

Business owners statewide also say it was easier this summer to find staff to fill their positions. 42% of the business owners surveyed said their staffing levels are stable, which is higher than in years past.

The survey also showed very few business owners had to cut jobs this year, with around 8.5% of owners reporting job cuts in 2024.

Explore Minnesota is also hopeful for the future. Bennett McGinty said the Twin Cities metro is seeing higher hotel occupancy this Fall, and she is hopeful that trend will continue this winter.

“We’re very excited to just get back into those seasons and have people experience all four seasons in Minnesota,” Bennett McGinty said.