Room taxes and other economic indicators had a modest increase in 2024, according to the tourism director for the Shawano Country Chamber of Commerce.
Michelle Eron told the Shawano Common Council on July 9 that the total room tax was $216,189.13, an increase of almost 0.92% from the $214,208.82 collected in 2023. The room tax was collected from Shawano, Cecil, Pulaski and the towns of Belle Plaine, Wittenberg, Wescott and Washington.
Eron’s room tax report noted that visitors to the county generated $7.1 million in local and state taxes in 2024, a 1.5% increase from 2023. The total economic impact was up for the county at $116 million, she said, and direct visitor spending increased to $77.6 million, up 1.5%, as a result of the chamber’s tourism and marketing efforts.
“This was an increase from 2023, solidifying that the marketing being completed is creating an interest and awareness to tourists to visit and vacation to Shawano Country,” Eron said.
About $25.2 million in total labor income through tourism, up 1.2%, added to the economies for Shawano and Menominee counties, although that number is estimated because tribal tourism data is private.
Eron called 2024 a “record-breaking year.”
“Shawano Country Tourism is the official destination marketing organization that promotes the area as a recreational destination to increase travel with overnight stays and expenditures to both Shawano and Menominee counties,” Eron said.
Lodging, including short-term rentals and summer homes, make up the largest portion of the increases, according to Eron, followed by food and beverages, retail, transportation, and recreation and entertainment.
When it comes to marketing, the room tax made up 72% of the tourism bureau’s revenue in 2024, while another 27% comes from advertising dollars generated through the chamber’s annual visitor guide, Eron said, with design and implementation done in house.
“This community resource is a powerful advertising tool that strongly promotes the activities in all of Shawano Country,” Eron said. “Fifty thousand of these guides were printed and distributed to local businesses, organizations, events and festivals, etc. Thousands of these guides are also distributed via outside contracted vendors at the various sports shows and events that I attend during the year.”
The tourism bureau’s Facebook page saw visits almost double from 125,263 in 2023 to 240,513 last year. According to Eron, the bureau’s Instagram page saw 6,800 followers, an increase of almost 2,500 from 2023.
Eron noted that social media advertising was created to promote events and activities in the area.
Eron is estimating that 2025 tourism indicators could blow the previous year’s numbers out of the water due to the NFL Draft, which took place in April in Green Bay. She noted that the barn quilt program, which has been in existence since 2010, got exposure on a much larger level as the chamber collaborated with the NFL to build two quilts that looked exactly the same. One was on display at the draft, while the duplicate is on display in the chamber office.
“This brought national exposure to this project and to this regional area,” Eron said.
lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com
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