Small Business Saturday:
Why it is important to shop small by patronizing local boutiques and restaurants this Saturday…and beyond.
Think Big. Shop Small. When shopping small and local, you get that unique, boutique feel as well as individualized pricing. When independent businesses thrive, they add to the vibrancy and uniqueness of the community in which you live.
Living in Fairhope has allowed me to shop almost exclusively small and local. Here are some of the things I have learned:
1. You will help create jobs in the community
Small local businesses are the largest employer nationally. Additionally, local businesses that are owned by people who live in this community are less likely to leave, and are more invested in the community’s future.
2. Your tax dollars stay local
Local businesses in town centers require comparatively little infrastructure investment and make more efficient use of public services as compared to nationally- owned stores entering the community.
3. Small businesses are more likely to give back to the neighborhood
Non-profit organizations receive on average 250% more support from smaller business owners than they do from large businesses. When fundraising for your favorite local charity, you are much more likely to receive donations from the mom-and-pop shop down the street than you are from a big box store.
4. Small independent businesses affect the community
Several studies have shown that when you buy from an independent, locally-owned business, rather than a nationally-owned businesses, significantly more of your money is used to make purchases from other local businesses, service providers, and farms — continuing to strengthen the economic base of the community.
Shop Small + Shop Local: Online
Coming from three generations of small business owners, I greatly respect the impact of shopping locally. This year, more so than the past, it seems that shopping online is increasingly tempting this holiday season.
Thanks to advances in both marketing and technology – consumers can now shop small online. Small businesses utilize Instagram and Facebook to post outfits for you to purchase. Some of my favorite stores that make it very simple to shop online from your couch while supporting small, locally-owned businesses are listed below.
Small Business Saturday Roundup: Shop Online with some of our Fave Boutiques
Shop their Instagram:
Birmingham
Stella Blu: Clothing
P2 Platinum Pilates: Active Fashion
Bohemian Bop: Clothing
Destin/30a
Kiki Risa: Clothing
Willow: Clothing
Fairhope/Mobile
Sway: Clothing
Hemline Mobile: Clothing
Tuscaloosa
Kara Strope Designs: Jewelry
Montgomery
Chandler Hines Art: Art/Home
Shop These Small Businesses Online:
Birmingham
Aviate Brand: Hats/Clothing
Cotton + Quill: Home Decor
Elle Boutique: Clothing
Arden Ward Upton Fine Art: Art/Home
Carrie Pittman Art: Art/Home
Fairhope/Mobile
CK Collection: Clothing
Destin/30a
Beau Home Interiors: Art/Home
Other Ways to Shop Online: ETSY
You can even shop small on etsy – for example, artist-turned-activewear designer Ruth Penton Polson has ditched the canvas and is printing her art on yoga leggings. Shop her Etsy store here: RP ACTIVE ART Luxury Activewear
McRach Art makes beautiful one of a kind plaster sculptures; you can shop her etsy page by clicking HERE.
Other etsy sites to shop:
Digital Joy Studio || Handcrafted with Joy || Bee YOUMonograms || Herring Design Co.
Eat Local. Eat Small.
An important part of shopping small that is not marketed as well as the rest of Small Business Saturday, is eating at local, small restaurants. Today, get your coffee from somewhere other than Starbucks. But further than just your daily java-stop, consider where you eat your meals. My husband and I prefer to avoid eating at chain restaurants and instead give our patronage to small, local restaurants that are owned by our neighbors and friends. We find the service is better, the food is more-often sourced locally, and the strong feelings of family and community make a much more enjoyable experience.
Small Business Saturday can be celebrated by visiting just one business or by making a full day of it and visiting a variety of small businesses along with friends and family. Either way, don’t forget to #shopsmall Saturday and support the local business owners that are so important to our communities. Hopefully, shopping small today will encourage patrons to shop small more often – and to make a conscious effort to support local businesses from this Saturday to beyond, not just one day a year.
Here is some more great information about shopping small: Click here to learn about Fairhope Local‘s shop small movement.
Let us know in the comments below: what is your favorite place to shop small?
