Daily Reporter staff
Tucked neatly between the dual frenzies of Black Friday and Cyber Monday last week was Small Business Saturday, which deserves the same tradition as its hyped-up holiday season partners on the calendar.
In case you missed it among the post-Thanksgiving rush to officially begin the Christmas shopping season, Small Business Saturday is a campaign to encourage people to patronize local shops and restaurants. Officially, the initiative was a week ago, but the idea of boosting small businesses is one that makes sense no matter the day or the season.
Small businesses — not the Amazons and Googles of the world — are the real engines of our economy. According to an op-ed column last week by Linda McMahon, administrator of the Small Business Administration, two out every three new jobs in the private sector are at small businesses. About half of the country’s workforce, McMahon pointed out, work for small businesses.
Half a million people run small businesses in Indiana alone. These entrepreneurs — people like Jayne Hoadley, owner of Greenfield Chocolates; and Denna Gundrum of Penny’s Florist, who are stalwarts for Small Business Saturday here — once had an idea for a business and the nerve to take a chance on it. At some point, they told themselves, “Go for it,” and two more small American success stories were born.
We reward that spirit when we patronize their businesses, which are the lifeblood of our community. When we grab a latte at the Greenfield Grind or browse workout gear at McCleerey’s Sporting Goods just down State Street, we are connecting with neighbors. The attention you’re likely to get will be friendly and personal, because owners of small businesses are vested in the products they sell. Often, they have personally selected or crafted the items on their shelves themselves. Or they have perfected recipes that have been passed down for generations.
And, importantly, these businesses give back to the community because you support them. As the Daily Reporter’s Rorye Hatcher reported this week, a number of local businesses are using the shop-small movement to give back to nonprofits and charities right in their own back yard.
You might sacrifice a little convenience to visit these neighborhood businesses, but you’ll be part of a growing movement. A survey by the National Federation of Independent Business found that 108 million consumers reported shopping or dining at local establishments on Small Business Saturday in 2017. Hopefully, the experience will keep everyone coming back, and not just on the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
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