With the holiday season fast approaching, community business owners are encouraging holiday shoppers to join the frenzy, not on the Friday after Thanksgiving, but on Saturday as part of a nationwide movement to support the local economy.
Small Business Saturday is a movement started by American Express in 2010 as a way to encourage people to shop at small businesses on the day after Thanksgiving. This year, the big shopping day falls on Saturday, Nov. 29.
“They started the collective movement for people to really push for local, small sales not on Black Friday,” explained Llalan Fowler, owner of Main Street Books in downtown Mansfield.
The newfound shopping tradition gained traction in 2011 after endorsements from governors, mayors, and senators from across the country – even President Barack Obama. In 2012, American Express encouraged small business owners to take charge of the day, helping them promote their business through free, personalized ads, which appeared millions of times across the web. An estimated $5.5 billion was spent at small independent businesses on that day.
Last year, Fowler brought the Small Business Saturday movement to Mansfield as a unified group by signing the community up to participate. She received huge boxes full of doormats, balloons and canvas bags to help the downtown businesses look like a united front. Her plan was a huge success.
“It was one of our biggest days ever,” she said. “It was really exciting. So many people came in and said we really want to support our community and our downtown, so we came here first.”
This year, Fowler and downtown business owners are preparing yet again for Small Business Saturday. Tracy Graziani of the Be Focal, Buy Local organization stated Small Business Saturday ties in well with the Be Focal, Buy Local mission to engage the public about the impact their dollars have.
“When you buy at a business in your hometown, you’re not just buying that product, you’re also employing the person you bought it from, your sales taxes are paving the road you drove on to get there…when you purchase online or leave town to go shopping, all the ancillary benefits of your dollars go to somebody else’s community,” said Graziani. “In a town like Mansfield we have less destination shoppers than a bigger city, and so how people spend their money has a direct impact on the kind of town that we are.”
Graziani, who also owns Tog Loft, a downtown business, commended Fowler for her efforts to have Mansfield participate as a community and not just individual businesses. Fowler also encouraged shoppers to be mindful of making a difference in their community.
“You can make such a big difference in your community just by not leaving it, just by shopping there,” she said. “It’s more than just the tax money and the wages; it’s like community morale and being prideful of where you live.”
Both Fowler and Graziani pointed out there are many products available in Mansfield shoppers can’t find anywhere else, from gourmet coffees at Relax, It’s Just Coffee to handmade jewelry at Artspace. Other participating businesses include The Boot Life, Element of Art, Athens Greek Restaurant, Two Cousins and the Richland Carrousel, as well as Fowler and Graziani’s own businesses.
“You won’t find that in the mall,” said Fowler. “It’s all really cool stuff. It reminds me of living in one of the big cities because it’s really artful and unique stuff. Mansfield has plenty of character. And you’re not only supporting local businesses, you’re also supporting local artists.”
More than finding unique holiday gifts downtown, Graziani said she believes Small Business Saturday is part of a broader movement of people investing in their hometowns.
“People come because they believe in the idea,” she said. “Not everybody is going to come, and that’s OK. But I think a lot of people in this community love this community and they want to be a part of it in a very real way, and this is a way to do that. I think a lot of people want to buy locally and they don’t know how, so that’s what this does, it gives people the tools to see this is all that’s available.”
“The goal is to have people keep us in the front of their minds, think of us before you think of any of the big box stores because that money is not staying in our community and not helping us really,” added Fowler. “Buying from your neighbors is way better.”
