SHOP SMALL with BIG PURPOSE. That’s really what it’s all about. Supporting small businesses in general is more critical than ever this year and more specifically, Small Business Saturday. Landing on November 27th, it’s situated nice and snug in between Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Shared by the Business Wire, 56% of participating small businesses in the American Express Shop Small Impact concur that this year’s Small Business Saturday is more crucial than ever for their business and 78% declare that holiday sales will significantly affect the survival of their business moving into 2022. To shop small with big purpose this 2021 holiday season could seriously save some local favorites and what’s better than shopping with a purpose?!
Small Business Saturday is not about one specific day. It’s a reminder and a creative form of encouragement for people to make a difference within their communities by shopping small and local. As passionate real estate agents, we value our local communities and strive to provide them with the support they need to not only survive, but to thrive. Happy, thriving communities mean happy, thriving families and that’s what we want for all our clients. While the pandemic has hit some businesses more than others, it truly has hit small businesses the hardest.
Our team lead, Ben Johnson, helps out with Interfaith Outreach’s Shop With a Purpose campaign in Wayzata which takes place this year from December 16th – 17th. This campaign has a pretty cool double benefit – by shopping and dining at certain local businesses who are donors for the cause, you are supporting small, local businesses who are in return helping to prevent homelessness. This campaign runs in conjunction with the Sleep Out campaign which Ben is known for taking very seriously and he’s at it again this year. Donate here if you can to help spread the word for an excellent cause. You can find details on that here.
Over on the east side of the river, Jen Forliti and Paige Vadnais have begun their own Shop With a Purpose in downtown White Bear Lake focused around these holiday events. Be sure to go visit them on December 9th from 2-4pm outside of The Anchor Coffee Shop for a cup of hot cocoa and a photo with Santa! Additionally, this is a great opportunity to bring a few non perishable items to be donated to the local food shelf if you are able.
If you don’t know the history behind Small Business Saturday or it’s real significance, we’d love to fill you in! American Express created Small Business Saturday back in 2010 during the recession as a plan to bring in more revenue for small businesses during the busiest shopping period of the year. It has since then taken off and become an entire movement on its own. With the first year being a success, in 2011 just one year after its inception, the Senate passed a resolution officially recognizing Small Business Saturday. Today it is observed in all 50 states and just this year, for its 12th annual and most critical Small Business Saturday, there are numerous specific initiatives within the small business umbrella according to Business Wire’s article of highlights including:
- A countrywide marketing campaign with free downloadable resources on American Express’s Shop Small website to help promote small businesses in your local area and encourage your local community to shop small for the entire season.
- Collab with Google Shopping to create buyable digital murals that feature locally sourced products in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Boston as well as a Grow with Google digital workshop for small businesses to improve their digital presence during the imperative holiday season
- The Shop Small x ByBlack powered by Showfields exclusive holiday collection of ByBlack certified brands which is a platform of an extensive Black business directory and certification program powered by the U.S. Black Chambers, Inc that supports and empowers Black-owned businesses.
- American Express is teaming up with nonprofit Main Street America to finance a grant program to support hundreds of struggling small businesses that need assistance to survive for at least another year.
Overall, the American Express Shop Small website is a great resource to get information about Small Business Saturday. By no means do not need an American Express credit card to support small businesses. Any purchase from a small business is an impactful purpose. Their website does however, provide a map listing all of the small businesses in your local area that except American Express. Bottom line is, shopping small and locally is always an excellent idea that will only help the economy of your community. Because most people do their highest volume of shopping during the holidays, it’s an excellent time to really make a difference and shop small with big purpose.