City of Great Bend Community Coordinator Christina Hayes was given a huge task when she came on board just over a year ago. In addition to hosting festivals that would energize residents and visitors to shop locally, she was also asked to create a greater collaboration among local retailer businesses. Creating the Retail Roundtable group, which meets on the 2nd Monday of each month, was the first step. The second step was creating the Thank-You Thursdays shopping promotion, which gives consumers an opportunity for extended hours until at least 7 p.m. on a Thursday night. Many businesses even kick in special deals or refreshments during the evening hours. After a year of experimentation and branding, Thank-You Thursdays will be changing formats from a weekly event to a monthly event on a larger scale. "Small businesses devote a lot of time and financial resources to staying open late for Thank-You Thursdays, so we want to make sure they are getting the most bang for their buck," Hayes says. "Our goal is that putting more marketing into a monthly event on the third Thursday will create more buzz around town and give the businesses the chance to make it more special."Thank-You Thursdays will kick off its new third Thursday format on Thursday, January 17th from 5-7 p.m. Local businesses who plan to participate need to contact Hayes to ensure that they are included in promotional information. "Retailers, restaurants, service businesses, and anyone else who wants to benefit from the added exposure of participating in Thank-You Thursdays is welcome to get involved," Hayes says. "We are going to do a big push for the NEW Thank-You Thursdays, with hopes of creating a meaningful shopping experience for local consumers." For more information or to get involved, contact Hayes at 620-793-4111 or chayes@greatbendks.net. Date - Jan 17, 2013 Time - Between 05:00 PM and 07:00 PM Type - Community Event Community - Great Bend Location - Participating Stores Address - Great Bend, KS Contact - Christina Hayes, 620-793-4111 Email - chayes@greatbendks.net