It’s time to start celebrating! Holidays are all about taking the time to show appreciation for family, friends, and community. One of the best ways to do this is to shop local. Supporting local small business builds a real connection to your community and brings its own rewards that outshine any sale offered by a big box store. That something special you’ve been searching for can be found in a local shop. You might be surprised by the gems you find locally.
Now there is even more reason to celebrate local shopping because small businesses have their own shopping holiday too. Move over Black Friday.
Small Business Saturday, started by American Express in 2010, began as a campaign to encourage holiday shoppers to patronize local businesses instead of shopping at big box stores or online markets. Small Business Saturday not only celebrates small businesses but highlights the importance of shopping locally year round.
There are hundreds of reasons to shop locally on Small Business Saturday. For example, of every $1 spent in your local economy 0.67 cents will stay in the local community, and create an additional 0.50 cents, building more income and growth within your community. These small business owners are your neighbors, volunteer firefighters, and the Little League coach. They are active members of the community, working to create a better future. Take part in Small Business Saturday this year and support the community by choosing local.
If you are a small business owner you can be a part of Small Business Saturday too! A key step to being a part of Small Business Saturday is to ensure the community knows what your business has to offer and when you’ll be open for business. Make sure to let people know if you’re offering something special for the holiday season. Whether you advertise with a few quick social media posts, newspaper coupons, radio announcements, or a sandwich board outside of your business, let it be known what you have to offer. If you’re looking for a few quick tips on how to get started making your business Holiday Ready check out this article.
West Business Development Center (West BDC) is here to help support small businesses grow and become successful with free business advising and low-cost workshops. Our business advisors can assist you in almost any area of business you want to learn more about; from Quickbooks to marketing and eCommerce, West BDC has an advisor who can help you. In addition to free business advising, the low-cost workshops offered by West BDC gives you the chance for hands-on experience. You can book your first appointment here or check out our upcoming workshops here.
From the West BDC Team, we wish you all a happy and healthy Thanksgiving Holiday!
Free Business Advising at West Business Development Center
If you are a business of one or a company of 100 employees, at any stage from startup to established, WestBDC offers free business advising — on whatever topic you might be stuck on. If it’s finding the right loan to expand, staffing your business with the right people or even just wading through new minimum wage requirements, we have experts ready to help you right now.
Click here to sign up for free advising. We’ll schedule a free, thirty-minute call and then we’ll assign you the free expert advisor you need.
See how these successful businesses set up, grew and expanded with West Business Development Center Free Advising services:
Frosted: Cupcakes & Goodies, Fort Bragg
Peace and Plenty Farms, Kelseyville
Smithwood Mercantile, Mendocino
To see more Client success stories check out our Client Stories or our YouTube channel.
Are you a woman-owned business?
Please join us for our monthly networking events where you can meet other women entrepreneurs and share best practices, knowledge and make friends.
If you are a women-owned business and are interested in hosting Women’s Mendopreneurs Empowerment Night we would love to hear from you! Send us an email at events@westcenter.org
