A group of store owners will be in Lansing this week to talk with lawmakers about how they contribute to the economy and help the state.
The trip to the state Capitol is part of Independent Retailers Week. Midwest Independent Retailers Association President Bill Wild says inflation is still the main challenge affecting local retailers.
“We’re fighting inflation,” Wild said. “Coming out of COVID, there were a lot of labor issues that were affecting our retailers. The supply chain was disrupted. We’ve seen the supply chain repair itself and labor has kind of balanced out, but inflation’s high and it costs people a lot of money to go grocery shopping. With the high cost, we’re moving fewer and fewer goods every week.”
The state of Michigan says more than 900,000 small businesses employ nearly two million people in the state, roughly 48% of Michigan’s employees.
