Small Business Saturday more important than ever this year, industry officials say
Photo / Maureen Milliken
Downtown Augusta is ready for Small Business Saturday, which will include promotions beginning Friday and lasting until Dec. 21. Towns, cities, organizations and businesses across the state are hoping Maine shoppers focus on supporting local businesses hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic this year.
Small Business Saturday was started by American Express in 2009, in the depths of the Great Recession, to help boost local economies. Since then, the day has become almost as much of the holiday shopping tradition as Black Friday, which focuses more on retail in general.
Last year, American Express estimated that 110 million shoppers took advantage of Small Business Saturday, generating a record $19.6 billion in spending nationwide. But no year has it been more important to support small local businesses than this year, industry leaders said.
"The holiday shopping period is make-or-break for many stores and restaurants as they head into the slow months of January into springtime," said David Clough, state director of the National Federation of Independent Business. "Without the typical influx of tourists this summer and fall, shops are relying more than ever on the patronage of Mainers for help in making it through the long winter months."
Because of COVID-19 restrictions, but also to help boost participation in general, many communities and businesses are spreading promotions over a wider period of time than just Saturday.
"Apart from responding to the Maine CDC health guidelines for employees and customers, store owners are encouraging people to think of Small Business Saturday, and shopping at small stores, broadly to encompass more than just Nov. 28," Clough said. "Customers are welcome regardless of what day or days they visit."
There are no statistics available on Small Business Saturday's impact on Maine, but studies show that, in general, 68 cents of every dollar spent at a small business stays in the community, as opposed to 43 cents for a national chain. American Express, in its 2019 insights study after last year's Small Business Saturday, said that 70% of shoppers say they are aware of Small Business Saturday.
"Customers are key to the financial health of small stores and restaurants," he said. "Those small businesses are key to a thriving and vibrant community. Money spent at a local small business stays local, is invested locally."
Clough said the NFIB is urging shoppers to "browse nationally, but shop locally."
Jennifer Boutin, of the state's Small Business Development Centers, said that every dollar spent at a local business makes a difference to a real person in the community, and their employees. "The pandemic has challenged small businesses this year, and there is a lot of uncertainty," she wrote in a recent SBDC blog post. "Your purchases will make a huge difference in the lives of those right in your community."
The Small Business Administration, though SCORE and the SBDC, is providing last-minute advice for businesses that want to promote shop local events, including getting listed on the official website, offering discounts or promotions, focusing on digital outreach, providing a unique in-store experience, coordinating with neighboring businesses and reaching out to regular customers.
Local promotions, new twists
The promotion began with American Express offering a $10 credit for those who spent $10 or more at a local store the Saturday after Thanksgiving. It's grown in the decades since, with towns, cities and organizations building events around it in order to get people into the stores.
Those events have taken on some nuances with this year's COVID-19 restrictions.
That includes in downtown Augusta, where the Augusta Downtown Alliance Hometown Holidays promotion will last from Friday to Dec. 21.
This year's offerings that support downtown businesses include the traditional tree lighting and visits with Santa. But with a COVID-19-era twist.
The 6 p.m. Friday tree lighting will be available to watch on the city's local access channel and the alliance's website. Parents who want their kids to actually meet with Santa have to make an appointment for Saturday or one of several other days available. He's also talking to kids by phone this year.
Anyone else who wants to see him live, though, can look out their window or get in the car — he'll stroll through the city Saturday on a planned route that will take him through a number of neighborhoods on both sides of the Kennebec River..
Augusta's Small Business Saturday will conclude with a drive-up fireworks display at the Augusta Civic Center that will also be livestreamed.
In Gardiner, a raffle for those who shop at local businesses will be held weekly through Dec. 28.
"This holiday season will be different," Gardiner Main Street said in a message to shoppers this week. "While Gardiner Main Street is disheartened to cancel several of our traditional holiday events this year, we have created some fun activities to safely celebrate the holidays in our downtown."
Other towns and cities across the state have dedicated promotions, including Bangor, Brunswick, Caribou, Farmington, Lewiston, Portland, Skowhegan and more are offering similar events and promotions. American Express has an interactive map that lists participating businesses by location.
Organizations, too, are getting on board. The Maine Federation of Farmers Markets, for instance, has a list on its website of farmers markets expected to be open Saturday.
Food Fork Lab, in Portland, is offering "A Taste of Fork," on its online marketplace beginning Saturday featuring small-batch specialty food products made by members and alumni. Customers of the food retail incubator can order online in advance, then pick up at the lab at a pre-arranged time.
“Starting a business is challenging under the best of circumstances,” said Bill Seretta, Fork Food Lab’s executive director. “The pandemic makes it that much harder on our entrepreneurs because we’ve had to cancel most of our public events where they could sell directly to customers.”
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Please remember when you are visiting a local business, that we are limited (by the Governor) as to the number of patrons we can have in our shop at the same time. We are doing the best we can to keep things moving. Patience and kindness go a long way in helping both of us get through these different times. Thank -you
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