Wausau Retailers Hope For The Best For Snowy Super Saturday

Retailers around Wisconsin are bracing for the big snowstorm, which is hitting on what is usually one of the biggest shopping days of the year.

So-called Super Saturday takes place on the final weekend before Christmas, when last-minute shoppers rush to the stores.

In downtown Wausau, Nancy Salli was rushing to get in out of the snow.

“Just running errands before the big snow,” Salli laughed, her breath steaming in the frigid air. “I don’t like all the snow that much.”

John Baker said he was shopping today, so he wouldn’t have to tomorrow.

“That’s kind of why we’re doing it right now,” Baker said, “So we can avoid the big snowfall that’s coming. And the fact that we’re going to have shoveling and snow blowing ready to do on Saturday and Sunday.”

Jane Janke Johnson, who owns downtown Wausau’s Janke Books, said she is hoping for the best.

“The meteorologists are just putting it out of proportion,” she laughed. “We’re not going to get that much. I think they’re trying to scare people.”

She predicted people will be shopping tomorrow regardless of the weather.

“This is Wisconsin,” she said. “We suck it up. We put our hats and boots and mittens on and we get in our SUVs and we go. And the street crews are great, they’re going to have the streets plowed and salted and they’ll be ready for the shoppers tomorrow.”

Janke Johnson’s bookstore has seen a lot of winter weather. They’ve been open in downtown Wausau for 97 years.