Small Business Saturday to encourage you to shop small, shop local, shop female-owned, shop black-owned, to shop businesses this holiday season and throughout the year that really align with you and what matters most to you.
Shop Small is defined by shopping a business that has less than 1,500 employees and technically less than $40M in revenue annually… that doesn’t matter so much… honestly it was a bit hard to find concrete numbers online. Some places said less than 100 employees, some 1,500 and it depends on the specific industry that you are in.
Small Business Saturday is a movement to encourage you to shop local, keep your dollars local, support small businesses as we come into what is the busiest shopping season of the year when retail establishments, large and small, are doing their best to be the place you choose to spend your precious dollars this year.
Small Businesses exist in your community, on your Main Street in your town and also on the internet – you can support a mom, women, or minority-owned business anywhere in the world with the miracle that is the internet.
Here are 5 Reasons to Shop Small this year:
- SHOPPING SMALL BUILDS YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY
- IT STRENGTHENS YOUR LOCAL ECONOMY AND PROMOTES FUTURE GROWTH
- ADDS CHARACTER TO YOUR CITY OR TOWN
- FOSTERS COMMUNITY CONNECTION
- CUSTOMER SERVICE IS PERSONALIZED
ONE – SHOPPING SMALL BUILDS YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY UP
When you shop small, local businesses you are supporting your friends, family, and neighbors. You are pouring into local entrepreneurs who are sharing their goods and services with your community. Your dollars aren’t headed out of town, state or even out of the country to some massive headquarters of a huge corporation, they are headed to a local home in your community.
CEO vs. ballet
TWO – IT STRENGTHENS YOUR LOCAL ECONOMY AND PROMOTES FUTURE GROWTH
By shopping close to home you are increasing the taxes that stay in your town, township, county or state. These dollars are (ideally) used to rebuild neighborhoods, improve roads schools and the general quality of life in your community.
THREE – SMALL BUSINESSES ADD CHARACTER TO YOUR CITY OR TOWN
Small businesses have character. They have unique branding and value propositions that they add to your downtown, city, or community. They often have eccentric or interesting owners and employees. They add flavor and flare and their own unique texture to the flavor of your city or town!
FOUR – SHOPPING SMALL FOSTERS COMMUNITY AND CONNECTION
Let’s face it – we all want to feel seen and heard and to feel this sense of connection with members of our community – shopping small can help to foster these rich connections with owners and employees in your community.
Story about Target self check out vs. Shopping small businesss at the Arts Walk
FIVE – CUSTOMER SERVICE IS PERSONALIZED
Target, self-checkout vs. bagged with notes and specifics, paper bag etc.
Ultimately if you want to support small business, shop early. If you want tos
Shop female owned or mom owned businesses, seek them out.
If you want to support minority owned businesses
I get it, it’s SO easy to take advantage of 2-day shipping from giants like amazon and I’m a prime LOVER. Time is my currency and I LOVE to save time and have things delivered right to my door – did you know that you can search on Amazon to filter for female, minority or small businesses? You might pay for shipping, but if you are looking to shop from the comfort of your home without running out, think about filtering your amazon search results to divert your dollars to those you want to support the most!
