Stop and Shop Local Showcases Local Vendors

Small Business Saturday Drives Sales, Local Economy
Published: Nov. 27, 2022 at 12:26 PM CST

LAWTON, Okla. (KSWO) - Texoma business owners set up their stock in the Hilton Garden Inn Convention Center in Lawton for the annual Stop and Shop Local Small Business Saturday event.

The day encourages people to do some of their holiday shopping with local retailers.

“We’d just rather support handcrafted small businesses,” Christina Lee said while shopping at the event.

The group said they want to give local vendors a chance to make sales on Small Business Saturday.

“Everybody’s doing their big box shopping yesterday, people are going to be ordering things online so we want to be able to have the small businesses showcased for Lawton,” Stop & Shop Local board member Angela Schertle said.

This year, Schertle said, they got to connect the public to more businesses than ever.

“This is one of our biggest events that we’ve had to date. We have almost 90 vendors here today so It’s grown a lot, every year we have more and more people,” Schertle said.

Schertle said some of those businesses have been around for decades, others started more recently.

“During Covid I started working on my business, started knitting... it was very stressful because I am high risk and I’m a single mom and me going to work or anything outside was really scary because I didn’t know how it would effect me,” Balkan Beauty owner Marijana Sabados said.

Since then, Sabados said she built a strong clientele.

“Now every time at an event I post where I’m going to be and a lot of people stop by just because I’m there,” Balkan Beauty owner Marijana Sabados said.

Shertle said relationships like that are what set apart the small businesses.

“It’s a lot different than walking into a store and grabbing a pre-made something off the shelf and you know you’re just kind of checking the block. Here you’re really individualizing what you’re getting for that person,” Schertle said.

Lee said that difference is why she shops local.

“I think just something more unique, out of the box that you wouldn’t think of for yourself. It’s more of a something extra instead of something you need,” Lee said.