Time for School 
Like many of you, we're beginning to gear up for 'back to school' time, and if you are anything like me you're not fully recognizing that it is already August - it seems that this summer has absolutely flown by! As we get ready for back-to-school time, that often means new clothing and shoes for the family, and Iowans have the opportunity to save a bit this weekend during the annual Tax-Free Weekend*! As you start to navigate your own back-to-school plans, please take a moment to support our small business retailers with your purchases.
We've taken the last few weeks to highlight some, albeit certainly not all, of our independent retailers via our Facebook page, and have been able to showcase some items you may not realize they carry in store. Before you head out to shop this weekend, swing over to our page to check out some of these videos and see some of the unique items our stores carry.
I encourage you to do as much of your back-to-school shopping locally, if possible. Shopping local for all these purchases really does make a difference to our small business retailers, and will help them immensely.
--Rachael Kinnick
*Tax-free weekend is Friday, August 6 & Saturday, August 7, 2021. For a full list of qualifying purchases, click here.