The quest for the "I Closed Wolski's" sticker in Milwaukee

David Clarey, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Updated ·1 min read

Just over a year after moving to Milwaukee, I arrived at Wolski’s Tavern with a singular goal: Get that damn sticker. You know the one. The ubiquitous capital-letter “I CLOSED WOLSKI’S” sticker plastered on dive bar bathroom walls and 20-somethings’ water bottles.

Even if you don’t know what Wolski’s is, exactly, it’s still likely you know about the stickers. The fantastic marketing strategy has worked wonders for the more-than-a-century-old bar.

When we arrive that night, we sit outside despite the evening’s light rain. I find myself tiring long before 1 a.m. But the lure of the sticker provides energy as the night goes on.

As 2 a.m. passes, a man urinates off a tree-shielded wall and an employee yells it’s time to go. A sloppy early-20s crowd, a few stray middle-age folks and I begin to filter inside. The crowd lingers, holding glass beer mugs and Miller High Lifes.

43. Wolski’s Tavern hands out “I CLOSED WOLSKI’S” stickers at closing each night. The marketing strategy has worked wonders for the more-than-a-century-old bar.
43. Wolski’s Tavern hands out “I CLOSED WOLSKI’S” stickers at closing each night. The marketing strategy has worked wonders for the more-than-a-century-old bar.

Ten minutes later, another call to leave rings out. This time, people form a line to a door guarded by a young doorman holding a stack of stickers. One in front of me doesn’t take it, but later reverses her decision. The doorman teases she can’t have one, and receives a kiss on the cheek when he concedes.

I give him a nod and thank-you, taking my prize.

I closed Wolski’s — now I just need to find where to put the sticker. Any ideas?

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: About the "I Closed Wolski's" sticker in Milwaukee