As national retailers pull out all the stops for Black Friday shoppers, locally-owned stores are promoting Small Business Saturday for the third year in a row. It's part of the growing "buy local" movement, and supporter are asking people to consider taking their business to independent retailers in addition to hitting the mall or the big box stores during the start of the holiday shopping season.
Mike Durant, the director of the New York chapter of the National Federation of Independent Businesses says that shoppers might be surprised to find out that it's not just those chain stores that are offering promotions -- he says about 70 percent of the businesses in New York state his organization surveyed are offering deals or sales this weekend. They just might not have advertised them as heavily as the larger stores.
"And while you're focusing in on Black Friday deals, to also maybe get up on Saturday and grab a cup of coffee and and go visit that small retailer or boutique or whatever in your community, because of how important that small business itself to the economic viability of communities all across New York," said Durant.
He says that small businesses are responsible for about three-quarters of hiring in the United States, and are big supporters of local community activities and organizations, and says that's another good reason to support them.
The holiday shopping season often can make or break a retailer's yearly profits. And Durant says that while any economic activity in upstate New York is good for the region, local businesses often re-invest their profits back into their communities.