NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — This weekend marks the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season with Small Business Saturday sandwiched between Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Shopper Ashley Tomco said she’s making a conscious effort to shop small this year. “I feel like it’s very important right now that we give back and try to keep these small businesses going as much as we can,” said Tomco.
This Small Business Saturday comes during a tough year for businesses.
“So we have seen really good numbers, not quite as many as last year as you can understand,” said communications manager for White’s Mercantile, Clare Lundy. She said the store is still working to make up for lost sales during the COVID-19 shutdown. As for customer turnout, she said, “I think they certainly are a bit more hesitant”.
Data from the National Federation of Independent Business shows 20% of small business owners say they’ll have to close their doors if the economy doesn’t get better in next six months, making days like Saturday crucial. “In the retail space quarter four, the end of the year, is really where we make ends meet especially in a year like 2020,” said Lundy.
Down the street, Finnleys in 12 South is also working towards a holiday rebound. “It would definitely be hard to make up for the time that we did lose,” said store manager, Katy Reynolds. While store traffic has changed, shoppers are celebrating Small Business Saturday in other ways. “We have a lot of our customers that want to shop online or we do some phone calls and some virtual appointments,” said Reynolds.
Regardless of how you do it, business owners says when you shop small it can make a big difference.
