MUNISING, Mich. (WLUC) – Uncle Ducky Outdoors is being celebrated as one of the 2021 awardees for the Michigan 50 Companies to Watch award, presented by Michigan Celebrates Small Business. Uncle Ducky Outdoors will be honored at an awards ceremony during the 17th annual Michigan Celebrates Small Business gala event on July 20th.
Uncle Ducky Outdoors is a tourism-based company offering daily guided kayaking tours in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. The company also has two campgrounds that focus on glamping experiences in Upper Michigan: Au Train Beach Campground and The Paddlers Village.
“We are very appreciative to be honored by the MCSB. Last year started full of uncertainty with many new and unforeseen obstacles,” said General Manager Greg Scott. ”Early on we decided to focus strongly on our employees and their comfort and safety during a pandemic. We knew that if we took an approach to provide our staff with any and everything, to be safe the at work, that attitude would be passed on to our guests. The implementation of massive changes to the way we did business during a pandemic was embraced by our staff and everyone understood from the start that it was not going to be black and white but an inevitable gray area that was constantly changing to better serve our guests as we learned more and more through out the summer. This honor is the result of the hard work and dedication that every member of our team gave every single day this summer and we know that without them none of this would have been possible. We will be celebrating this award with them this summer and look forward to the warm weather and the guests that come visit us this year.”
The Michigan 50 Companies to Watch are known for making a substantial economic impact and have proven that with this year’s nominations totaling 559. This year has challenged businesses due to COVID-19, but many have proven to be valiant and continue to impact Michigan’s economy despite the challenges they have faced. Out of the applicants for this year’s gala each demonstrated innovation and growth, helping their small business create change in communities around Michigan. “Small businesses create significant economic impact in communities all across Michigan, said Josh Hundt, Chief Business Development Officer and Executive Vice President at the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. “We are excited to acknowledge and celebrate more than 80 small businesses this year who have been selected by their peers, communities and small business support organizations and demonstrate the resiliency and impact of Michigan small businesses.” Companies nominated for the Michigan 50 Companies to Watch award must be second-stage companies, defined as having six to 99 full-time-equivalent employees and generating $750,000 to $50 million in annual revenue or working capital from investors or grants. Additionally, the companies must be privately held and headquartered in Michigan.
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