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MARQUETTE -- From Tibetan singing bowls to worry dolls from Guatemala, Panara in downtown Marquette works to sell goods you can't find anywhere else.  And not only is that the theme of the shop, it's the business model that's kept them open for 20 years now, preventing competition with surrounding stores.

"We're getting by, we're getting by, we're making enough money to keep restocking our inventory and, of course, to pay our bills and our employees," says Panara owner Leanne Larsson.

Panara features luxury items like incense and beads.  They beat the odds in the tough economic times by keeping prices low and offering discounts to nearly anyone who walks in the door.

"I seek out small vendors that will sell me small quantities so I'm able to not have to mark things up very high," Larsson says.

Dennis West of Northern Initiatives says business success stories like Panara's are more common than you may think in the U.P.

"Well, I think what's happened to the market is that there's been a premium placed on local, natural, and authentic, and if you have those kinds of characteristics, there seems to be a growing market," says West.

Northern Initiatives conducted a survey last year that showed improvements in profitability for U.P. businesses.  Because tourism has gone up, they plan for that to continue through 2011.