DES Moines, Iowa — While Iowans are getting ready to grab their wallets and hit up stores for Black Friday, don’t forget Small Business Saturday is just two days away.
“Small Business Saturday is the number one shopping day for small businesses,” co-founder and CEO for Member Marketplace Inc. Cherie Edilson said. “For some, it’s what makes or break their whole entire year.”
Small Business Saturday is right around the corner and it’s a chance for Iowans to give back to their communities and shop local.
The U.S. Small Business Administration said Americans spent $17 billion on Small Business Saturday last year.
Now, looking forward to the yearly tradition, Jena Best owner of Wandering Raccoon Books in Grimes said it’s a chance to support local shop owners and find unique items.
“All of us little indie stores kind of curate our own collection, kind of start to tailor it to our communities’ preferences,” Best said.
After starting online and as a pop-up shop in 2021, Best moved her business to brick and mortar in July.
While the deals and doorbusters may look different than what you see at major corporations, shopping small also supports your local community.
“I’m pretty new to Grimes but I have already started trying to help bring my support back to the community,” Best said. “I support the Dallas-Center Grimes fine arts program over here (and) the Dallas-Center Grimes PTO.”
If you can’t get there in person to shop locally Saturday, you can still participate online. There are over 700 Iowa businesses to choose from on Shop Iowa.
“A lot of them are doing their own mini doorbuster deals for the first 50 customers that come in that day,” Edilson said. “They’re really trying to do what they can as a small business owner to help bring in that same excitement that you might get on you know a bigger corporate store but you’re going to get a little bit more small business flavor and it’s going to be something more unique.”
This year may be even more important than ever to shop local as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce expects a $200 drop in spending per customer at small businesses this year. That’s nearly a 40% downturn from last year, due to rising costs and inflation.
“Small Business Saturday is really important for small businesses, like I said, but really, can we make every Saturday, Small Business Saturday too throughout the year,” Edilson said.
