Reciprocal Impact of Grandmas Marathon and Duluth

DULUTH, Minn. — Grandma’s Marathon is coming up quickly, kicking off the summer tourism season.

According to their economic impact report:

Last year the event brought around 40 million dollars into the community, nearly doubling their 2019 report of 21 million.

This year, at 9,000 participants, the race is one of the top 10 marathons in the US, while being hosted in one of the smallest communities.

“It’s become what it is, which is a worldwide event, because of the way the community opens its arms to the participants, the way that it supports us through volunteering, and to see that in the end, the race benefits the community by the money and the economic impact that it brings is a really positive thing.” said Zach Schneider, Marketing and PR Director for Grandmas Marathon.

One major highlight was the City’s support.

Duluth’s Public Works and Public Safety work hard to help with set up and security.

The city encourages its employees to volunteer and even participate in the races.

All of that effort goes back into the city.

“I think what a lot of Duluthian’s forget is we also have a 1% general sales tax. So anything you buy in Duluth generates 1% that goes to the city’s general fund. So, all those visitors, 10s of 1000s, that are here for the better part of a week, buying stuff actually helps us pay for things all year long.” said Duluth Mayor Roger Reinert.

Even if you aren’t volunteering or participating, Mayor Reinert encourages people to be ambassadors during the weekend.

People are new to the area, many streets will be closed, and having a little patience can go a long way towards supporting future tourism.