MARSHALL — The holiday shopping

season might be a busier one for

Minnesota retailers.

Based on recent consumer trends,

people are doing less shopping online,

according to the president of the Minnesota

Retailers Association

“The good news is, we’re going to

see just phenomenal in-store shopping

over Thanksgiving this year,” Bruce

Nustad said. “For retailers that have a

brick-and-mortar presence, you’re going

to see people come in, you’re going to

see door swings, you’re going to see

purchasing.”

Nustad was the keynote speaker at

the Marshall Area Chamber of Commerce’s

annual meeting Wednesday. He

gave Chamber members an overview

of retail businesses’ role in Minnesota’s

economy, as well as trends in consumer

behavior.

Minnesota has a population of about

5 million, which means there are about

5 million consumers in the state, Nustad

said.

“Consumers really drive what happens

in retail. You are sort of in charge

of what happens in retail,” he said.

Retail — businesses that sell products

to other people — accounts for

about 20% of Minnesota’s economy,

Nustad said. There are about 90,000 retail

businesses across the state, including

people with side businesses, he said.

Retail also accounts for about 1 million

jobs in Minnesota, or one in five jobs

statewide, he said.

Retail consumers play a key role in

generating revenue for the state of Minnesota,

and helping the state run, Nustad

said. Sales taxes account for $1 out

of every $4 in the state’s general fund,

“which is actually a pretty staggering

amount, if you think about it,” Nustad

said.

There are almost 250 verified retail

businesses in the city of Marshall, but

the actual number could be as high as

536, Nustad said. In Marshall, “a pretty

good chunk” of retailers are small businesses

with fewer than 10 employees.

“It’s like 60%. That’s a pretty good number. That’s a little higher

than the state average,” Nustad

said.

Small retailers help to

drive business in a community,

he said.

Nustad said it’s anticipated

that there will be more

in-person shopping at Minnesota

businesses during the

holiday season. Consumers

are also expected to spend

about $902 per person on

purchases like food, gifts and

decorations this year.

“People are spending

more money on bigger items,

and it’s a little bit of a pandemic

phenomenon,” Nustad

said. “We spent a lot during

the pandemic — we bought

our hot tubs, that kind of

stuff. Then we kind of reduced

our big-ticket spending

for a while. Now we’re

back into big-ticket spending

a little bit, so you’re kind of

seeing furniture and things

like that on the uptick again.”

Special experiences or

good deals are also likely

to draw customers to brickand-

mortar stores instead of

shopping online, he said.

However, Nustad urged

business owners to remember

that holiday spending predictions

included the cost of

inflation. While retailers anticipate

increased spending this

Christmas, it doesn’t necessarily

mean increased profits.

“You really have to sort

of factor that into those numbers.

This is sales numbers,

not real adjusted dollar numbers,”

he said. “That’s my

bad news for retailers. We’re

telling you people are going

to spend more, but actually,

you know, profits are probably

going to be kind of flat.”

Nustad said state laws

and policies are another area

that affects Minnesota retail

businesses. He said the

Minnesota Retailers Association

is watching to see how

businesses are impacted by

the rollout of Minnesota’s

new paid family and medical

leave, and the new retail delivery

fee that went into effect

in the state this year.

“That’s a 50-cent delivery

fee on a lot of items

over $100, with a bunch of

exemptions. So it’s kind of

confusing for retail,” Nustad

said. “We’re watching that

really closely.”

This year’s state elections

could also have implications

for business policies in Minnesota.

However, Nustad said

it could mean fewer new laws

for businesses to adjust to.

“I’m sure you’ve all heard

there’s a tied House, so there

isn’t an all-DFL, Democrat

majority across all of state

government. So that will

slow things down,” Nustad

said.