Support Local Commerce by ‘Shopping Small’
President Obama did it. Republicans did it. I did it. So did 103 million other Americans. We shopped at independent stores on Small Business Saturday, Nov. 26. We bought gifts in small stores, ate meals at small restaurants. Now how do we keep customers coming back to small businesses throughout the holiday season?
Small Business Saturday was the most successful “shop local” campaign I’ve seen in my 20 years of advocating for small companies. Yes, I know it’s a promotional campaign started and sponsored by American Express, but let’s give credit where credit is due. Small Business Saturday significantly raised awareness of the importance of patronizing small businesses.
According to American Express, about one-third of Americans shopped at an independent business on Nov. 26, and sales from Amex cardholders at those businesses increased 23 percent over last year’s Small Business Saturday. Over 2.7 million people “liked” the Small Business Saturday Facebook page; to put that in perspective, that’s more Facebook fans than NASCAR.
