Wis. Fireworks Retailer Sees Holiday Business Boom From Minnesotans

SOMERSET, Wis. (WCCO) -- Big businesses rely on big holidays.

Retailers rely on Christmas, and like its namesake - Fireworks Forever relies on the 4th of July.

"It is very busy," said manager Marcus Berger. "We've been packed the whole past week of customers. Full parking lot."

Located just four miles from the border in Somerset, Wiscsonsin, the parking lot at Fireworks Forever is bustling. And most of the plates you'll find come from just across the river.

"I would say it's 60-40 Minnesota-Wisconsin," said Berger.

Some of the customers have been longtime patrons of the fireworks retailer.

"It's convenient. The prices are reasonable. We've come here a couple years in a row now and they have a good variety of stuff," said Ryan O'Donnell.

O'Donnell is among the boom of Minnesotans that head to Wisconsin for fireworks. It's the aerial fireworks most people are after, since they can't be sold in Minnesota.

"Obviously we keep them away from everything," O'Donnel said. "We go out on the dock and have a reasonable amount of safety going on."

And that's exactly what this Wisconsin business wants to hear.

"It's just like anything else they buy," Berger said. "What they do with it is their choice. I can't really be responsible for it."

Berger said that they do sell a lot of aerial fireworks, but a large percentage of their sales are still fountains and sparklers -- fireworks that are legal in Minnesota.