HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral)— Shopping small does not only contribute to family businesses’ but also help to create jobs and boost the local economy.
Small businesses range from various categories such as, crafts and decorations to services and restaurants, there is always a new place to discover and support.
On Saturday small business hope to encourage shoppers to visit more local businesses when doing their holiday shopping. It is celebrated annually on the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
“We have, we need the community, and we need the valley. We have a lot of customers from throughout the valley, but without them, you know, we have to close our doors,” owner of Jackson Street Antiques, Carmen Garza told ValleyCentral. “We’ve been very fortunate that we’ve had a lot of support, a lot of support from people.”.
According to Civic Economics, on average, 48% of each purchase at local independent businesses is recirculated locally, compared to less than 14% of purchases at chain stores.
More than half of the jobs in the U.S. since 1995 have been created by small businesses. During the pandemic, some businesses took a hard toll due to the quarantine.
Social media has been a game changer for many businesses since it allowed them to continue selling their product and keep interacting with customers despite the circumstances.
“We actually took our product home, and we sold from the house, and we delivered to the front door. And then we shipped, so we kind of still stayed active,” store manager of Luxe Boutique Fido Guillien said. “It actually helped us because we grew our social media account and because we’re working pretty much from 6 pm to about 10 pm. So we work different hours.”
So when you are planning your holiday shopping, consider shopping small and locally.