First photo, left to right: Kristi Martin (Director, Main Street), Thad Jablonski (Assistant City Manager, Columbia), Laura Bento (Good Grit Editor), Mike Wolfe (American Pickers), and Columbia Mayor Dean Dickey. Good Grit magazine recently contacted Columbia Main Street Corp about a cover story the publication planned featuring the City of Columbia'a historic Town Square. A production work group including American Picker Mike Wolfe contacted and collaborated with the Columbia Main Street Crop and City of Columbia to organize a photo shoot for an issue cover on Monday, March 13, 2017. In cooperation with the magazine, Columbia Main Street Director Kristi Martin communicated with Downtown shop owners on the Columbia Town Square regarding the shoot time, the shoot started before business hours at sunrise and lasted until around 11:00 a.m. The city gladly provided support requested by Main Street Director Kristi Martin, who contacted the City Manager's Office so that the areas shown in the photo (see photo to the left) of the project area to be photographed during the morning cover shoot. Folks who ventured into Downtown Muletown had the opportunity to be photographed, meet the production crew and speak with Mike Wolfe as they went about their morning in Downtown Columbia. Good Grit is known as an “elegant and progressive reflection of Southern heritage, committed to taking you on a thought provoking journey from cover to cover.” As shown in the marketing material shown in the pages below, the high-end, boutique magazine boosts a growing circulation reaching a high-income demographic with notable disposable income from Texas to Virginia and Florida to Kentucky. The magazine reaches households across the Southeastern United States as well as high-end hotels (Marriott's, Hyatt Regency's, etc.) throughout the Southeast market. This is a unique opportunity to share the city’s unique charm, amazing Downtown and the Muletown Experience with travelers and prospective visitors from across the larger Southeastern region. We were pleased to work with Good Grit magazine, Mike Wolfe and Columbia Main Street Corp. on the project. Ultimately, the city and the Columbia Town Square will be featured in the May/June issue of the magazine, distributed throughout the Southeast. During the shoot, the Mayor and I stopped by the Columbia Town Square earlier today to say hello during the cover shoot. Taking the opportunity to speak to Mike and the production crew, we were pleased to hear the group's enthusiasm and most kind accolades regarding the Columbia Town Square and the larger Downtown area. Prior to our stop to meet with Good Grit production work group and photographers, City Manager Tony Massey stopped in early morning to see the progress underway during the beginning of the cover shoot. Speaking to Tony afterwards, he recounted expressing his thanks to Mike Wolfe for his work in advocating the unique marketing opportunity for the City of Columbia. According to the City Manager, Wolfe commented that he could not have thought of a better, more interesting downtown or unique place to host the shoot, referring to charm, history and a high-quality destination that he (Wolfe) had come to know during his recent time in Columbia as a Downtown Columbia property owner. Mike Wolfe is the owner of the building where the Wheel Bicycle Shop was previously located with plans to open the Trek Bicycle Shop soon. We appreciate Mike for his advocacy and support of Downtown Columbia and Columbia Main Street Director Kristi Martin for coordinating between stakeholders, including the magazine, shop owners and the City of Columbia. A special thanks to Mike Wolfe American Picker for bringing the magazine to Columbia, TN, Columbia Main Street Corp. Director Kristi Martin for coordinating with the city and downtown merchants, and to the City of Columbia Police and Public Works Departments, each helping to ensure that the magazine's editor and team had an amazing experience in completing their work in Downtown Columbia the morning of the shoot to capture the Muletown Experience and share the city's one of a kind downtown with readers throughout the Southeast. To learn more about Good Grit magazine, go to the magazine’s homepage at http://www.goodgritmag.com/.
