Thank you to the merchants who attended this week's BSD Merchant Meeting. In case you missed it, here are some highlights from the meeting:

Upcoming Special Events
- Small Business Saturday / Santa Walk:  Saturday, Nov. 30th. 
Kicking off the Small Business Saturday shopping extravaganza, the  Birmingham Santa Walk  will welcome Santa to town during a celebration complete with ringing sleigh bells,  stops at various stores  with giveaways, and concluding at Santa's quaint home in Shain Park.  Merchants are encouraged to participate in the Santa Walk event. If your store would like to be included as a stop along the Santa Walk route, contact Jaimi Brook at 248-530-1254 or jbrook@bhamgov.org.

- Winter Markt: December 6-8
Shain Park will come alive with activity during the City of Birmingham's annual Birmingham Winter Markt event. On opening night - Friday, December 6th at 6 p.m., the community will come together with Santa and Birmingham's Mayor for live caroling and the lighting of a 35-foot holiday tree with more than 40,000 LED lights! Throughout the Winter Markt, attendees will enjoy European food and drinks, gift items, holiday greens, crafts, ice sculptures, live reindeer, warming stations, a Kinderhaus children's activity area, the popular Santa House, horse-drawn carriage rides and live entertainment. More than 60 vendors will be at the event. 

- Holiday Window Decorating Contest
The BSD is working hard to create a festive holiday season in Birmingham! With that in mind, the Holiday Window Decorating Contest is BACK! This year's theme is  Let it Snow.  Merchants who attended the meeting were included in a drawing to win complimentary snow for the contest. Congratulations to our snow giveaway winner - St. Croix!  We look forward to many businesses participating to 'dress up' Birmingham for the holidays. Keep an eye out for the contest registration form coming soon. Have fun and be creative!

- Holiday Shopping - Free valet parking, horse-drawn carriage rides and the Birmingham Santa House will be back in Birmingham throughout the holiday season! Keep an eye on www.AllinBirmingham.com for details.

Business Development
Upcoming Speakers - Subject matter experts will be at upcoming BSD merchant meetings to discuss business growth and expansion, plus assistance and tips for the upcoming construction project.

Marketing
- Birmingham Magazine Ads: There's still time to secure your ad in the NEW annual issue of the Birmingham Magazine. Download the media kit today.  If you already work with a representative from SEEN Magazine or The Jewish News, please reach out to them for ad placement. Otherwise please contact Keith Farber at Kfarber@renmedia.us or 248-351-5107. 
- Live in the D holiday promotion opportunity: The BSD is sponsoring WDIV's Live In The D 12 Days of Christmas Promotion. The first seven businesses that sign up to donate a prize worth $257.00 will be featured in the promotion. E-mail info@allinbirmingham.com if you are interested in this opportunity.
- "Social Media 101 - Strategy, Marketing, and Influencers": The BSD's social media consultant discussed effective social media strategies. Download the Social Media Presentation here.

Maple Rd Reconstruction Presentation
The City recently released a fact sheet and presentation regarding the Maple in 2020 reconstruction project. Learn more about the project at www.BhamGov.org/MapleReconstruction

We look forward to seeing you at the next BSD Merchant Meeting on Wednesday, October 23rd at 8:30 a.m. (location TBD).
Birmingham Shopping District  151 Martin Street  Birmingham, MI  48009