Anyone who has spent some time in the Midwest can vouch that us northern folk are a resilient bunch that embrace the chill and come up with ways to entertain ourselves during the winter months. 

Ice fishing jamborees, snowmobile races, frozen lake curling tournaments, cross-country ski races, ice sculpture contests and winter carnivals are just a few examples of common occurrences. These events draw people and as you know, where there are people, there’s a need for restrooms. 

I get it, winter hits differently across the country. Not every corner of the U.S. has a November through April like we do here in Northern Wisconsin. But many states experience a time period when cold temperatures and snow impact the way they do business. 

Difference in the details

We often cover festivals, music concerts and similar events in the On Location column of this publication. In my opinion, these articles are some of the most beneficial to companies looking to expand business to larger service offerings. A detailed account of how another industry professional handles the logistics of not only getting the gig, but the setup, teardown and maintenance in between is invaluable.

Those processes change in the winter and early spring. Snow, ice and ground-thawing conditions create obstacles and require different planning for operators. PRO magazine has not had many On Location stories over the past few years that cover winter events, and that’s something I’d like to see change. 

Let’s cover winter events

Over the next few months while you’re lining up your winter work, I ask you to please keep PRO in mind. 

Whether you’re a longtime industry veteran, or only a few years into a new venture, I want to hear from you. People will often respond that they need more time to get experience or that they don’t think their small business is worthy of being featured, and while I respect the modesty, I believe that everyone has something to learn from anyone. 

Please do not hesitate to have a conversation with me about where you are in your business and be proud of what you’ve achieved thus far. Let’s go over the details of your next winter event and share with others how you got the job done.

Beyond business happenings, please call or email me just to chat. The more I hear from you, the more I learn and the better I can do my job. Tell me about things you observe in the magazine, problems you see in the current state of the industry or projections of concern for the future. Talk about what’s good, what’s bad, what needs to change and more importantly what we can do to see those changes happen.  

Thanks for reading this month’s issue of PRO!