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Plymouth Ice Festival
Page 1
Taking care of business
Festival organizer hopes to make businesses part of January event
JamesGeitzenunderstands business.
As a business owner himself, he knows just how tough
the early weeks of January can be for those who operate
their own retail and service shops. So when the opportunity
to organize and manage the Plymouth Ice Festival was pre-
sented to him, rather than looking at the changes forced on
the event as a challenge, Geitzen thought it was an opportu-
nity.
Geitzen, who now organizes and books the Friday night
concerts in the park in Plymouth and Northville, along with
concerts in Wixom, was approached by Wes Graf at the
Plymouth Chamber of Commerce and Tony Bruscato from
the Downtown Development Authority in August about the
possibility of an Ice Festival. Funding was limited and spon-
sorships were not guaranteed for the event, but Geitzen
thought it might be a chance to put some life back into town
during a particularly slow time and perhaps get a few folks
back into local shops.
“We took a look at the finances for the past two years to
see if it might even be feasible to try it,” Geitzen said. “We
decided to move ahead, but it will be different. I can't prom-
ise it will be the biggest ice crowds have ever seen, but I
hope to have bigger ice than we've seen in the past few
years. This is a rebuilding year.”
The volunteer committee that helped oversee and man-
age the Ice Festival disbanded after the event last year as
organizers attempted tomake it a for-profit event.
“We don't have a formal committee this year,” Geitzen
said, “although I really hope we can have a non-profit board
next year.”
A 2008 graduate of
Northville
High
School, Geitzen is
attending classes at
Schoolcraft
to
advance
the
Associates Degree in
business he has
already
earned.
Entrepreneurship is
a family trait, he said,
as his dad, Matt
Geitzen, owned his
own
businesses
while Geitzen was
growing up, including Henry's Service Center in Wayne and
a diabetic supply company. When it came time to choose a
career, there was really no other choice. Geitzen started his
own company in 2010 and JAG entertainment has been
growing steadily ever since.
“I love it. I guess entrepreneurship is in my blood,”
Geitzen said. “I love this business. I love putting together
events, managing the logistics. It is really the most fun thing
to do.
“The best part, however, is always looking back on
Sunday afternoon, near the end and seeing how many peo-
ple came and enjoyed the event. I think I just enjoy it
through them,” he said.
James Geitzen