Today is Small Business Saturday, and Christina Smith is eager for consumers to visit her store and make purchases. Smith stated, “We want to see everyone there.” “There will be more personnel on duty,” Brylah Fashions, a women’s apparel business with a location in Spanish Springs, is owned by Smith. She said that business was brisk at the shop over the Thanksgiving holiday, particularly on Small Business Saturday. The Saturday after Thanksgiving is designated as the shopping holiday. It was established by American Express in 2010 to encourage customers to support regional merchants when they shop for the holidays. The staff at Brylah Fashions and other local small businesses including Ambrosia on the Square, Rustic Rose Home Accents & Gifts, and Rustic Rose Fashion Boutique began preparing several days before the holidays.
Small business owners in the area are excited to see customers out shopping and patronizing their establishments.
Owner of Ambrosia on the Square in Lake Sumter Landing, Laure Folland, stated, “I tell them every day I appreciate the local support.” “Over the years we’ve been at Lake Sumter Landing, our local support has been so important to the success of our company, and we appreciate everyone coming out.”
The Florida-themed gift store experiences more business on Small Business Saturday than it does on Black Friday. According to her, people often shop for bigger products at big box retailers on Black Friday, whereas Small Business Saturday is more of a social occasion when individuals buy smaller items.
Folland said that “Saturday could be the day when they kind of take things down a notch.” Based on how business has been going so far, she anticipates this year’s Small Business Saturday to be equally as busy as previous ones.
The National Retail Federation anticipates that 166.3 million people will go shopping during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, which started on Thursday and concludes on Monday. According to a news statement from the NRF, that represents an increase of 8 million consumers from the previous year and the biggest expected figure since the NRF started monitoring Christmas purchasing statistics five years ago.
While there is a lot of discussion about how inflation affects consumer behavior, Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the NRF, stated in a news release that this Thanksgiving holiday weekend will see strong store visitation and a record number of customers taking advantage of discount pricing. “Retailers are ready to meet customers wherever they want to shop with outstanding items at prices they want to pay, and we are hopeful that retail sales will stay robust in the weeks ahead.”
An estimated 60.4 million people are anticipated to shop on Small Business Saturday, making it the third largest shopping day after Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
Smith always has a busy weekend after Thanksgiving, and she anticipates the same for this weekend and today because it is Small Business Saturday.
Because I believe that more and more people are finally getting out and about, Smith expressed his hope for a larger and better weekend. “The busy period has arrived. In comparison to prior years, we have a lot more to offer.
Smith is having many deals, including one today where everything is 65% off the original price. She also mentioned the Friday deals.
Rosalyn Housley, the proprietor of Brownwood’s Rustic Rose Home Accents & Gifts and Rustic Rose Fashion Boutique, anticipates a fantastic day at her businesses. She said that last week, consumers had already begun to come in to buy for the holidays.
According to Housley, “people love to support their favorite little companies.”
