Small Business Saturday a win for both shoppers and merchants

And there was no better day than Small Business Saturday.

When you think about Black Friday shopping, you mostly hear about your friends and family going to big name stores and companies for great deals.

Slocomb said when people spend money at a local business, more than 60 percent stays in the community.

With the smaller setting, comes more attention. “It’s wonderful to see people out supporting the community”, she said.

“Outside the big box stores, it really does help”, says Mitchell. To date, more than 3.3 million Facebook users “liked” the Small Business Saturday page.

With happy employees, should come happy customers.

Edward and Pinson both hope the boost in business locally is something they hope continues after this Small Business Saturday concludes.

The association gave out gift cards to shoppers in the area Saturday to say thanks for helping out small businesses.

Some people say that they prefer to shop at local stores because of the unique things that you can find.

This shopping holiday was started by American Express in 2010 to encourage people to shop local.

Also on Saturday, shoppers were given reusable shopping bags for free and American Express card holders were given money back from qualifying purchases for participating in Small Business Saturday.

On the other side of town is the junk and disorderly variety store where folks were shopping small.

Dozens of pop-up shops and farms at Charlottesville’s Holiday Market, along with retailers on the mall celebrated the small business consumer holiday. Nelz said the community comes out for a number of reasons.