May 25, 2026

If you’d like to fly a South Dakota flag designed for this year’s national 250th celebration, there’s only one place to buy it, and you’d better move fast.

“I think we’ve sold well over 400 3-by-5 flags around the state, and we only ordered 500,” said Mark Nelsen, owner of Maximum Promotions.

“We’ve got a decision to make about whether to reorder.”

The Sioux Falls retailer at 705 N. West Ave. has been creating custom flags and installing flagpoles for homes, businesses, colleges, universities and high schools since 1982.

This year, it was awarded the exclusive contract to carry flags and banners for the nation’s 250th anniversary — a celebration that kicked off in Lennox in January when the first 20-by-30-foot 250th anniversary flag was raised.

Since then, “I think we’ve been in 10 or 11 communities where we’ve done an event to kick off the 250th, and people are able to buy the smaller 3-by-5 flags from us,” Nelsen said.

The South Dakota flag is the product of a working group, and “we all wanted it to be representative more broadly,” said Ben Jones, South Dakota state historian and chair of America’s 250th South Dakota.

“We liked the Badlands motif, and we had a few versions that were Badlands- or Great Plains-looking.”

Former Secretary of Tribal Relations David Flute suggested a buffalo, which the group agreed should face right as though looking toward the future, Jones said.

The flag was designed by state graphic designer Kodi Odean.

“Comments … have all been very positive,” Jones said. “And with Mark coming along and putting it on the flag and making this really big flag … it’s been great to see people respond to that.”

Nelsen already has spent plenty of time on the road this year — with more stops likely ahead.

“If a community has a big flagpole, we run it up, and we have tremendous experiences where we bring in the American Legion and VFW and we bring in kids, and … it’s a very, very fun experience to see this around the state and to see their patriotism,” he said. “It’s very cool. It’s just been really fun for me.”

After one stop in Spearfish, an attendee even was inspired to produce a patriotic song:

Nelsen said he likely will order more flags as he expects business to pick up more as the Fourth of July nears. They’re made by a vendor in Illinois. In addition to buying the flag in Sioux Falls, customers can order one online.

“People love that flag. They really love how it looks,” he said. “And we’ve had really good response to it.”

Beyond the big anniversary, consumers still buy flags, he said.

“It’s usually when there’s a major event and people are scared so they buy more,” he said. “A lot are older and they’re veterans, or they have someone going (to serve). We just got a call from a lady with a son going into the military, and she said, ‘Can you get a flagpole up at our house?’ There is still patriotism out there. No question.”

Maximum Promotions also sells the America250 flag and can provide banners for the celebration.

While most of the smaller flags have been sold to individuals, some businesses also have reached out about decor for the 250th.

“If someone wants (a banner), we’re authorized to do it, but all the interest has been in the flag,” Nelsen said. “We expect this to be a phenomenal time, but we don’t know.”