Now that Black Friday is in the rear view mirror, small business owners are hoping holiday shoppers will turn their attention to mom and pop stores for Small Business Saturday.
Created in 2010 by American Express, Small Business Saturday takes place the Saturday after Thanksgiving, and the idea is to urge consumers to spend some of their holiday budget with smaller retailers.
It appears retailers in the Gainesville area are doing their part to promote their special day.
Abbie Guthrie, the General Manager of J.R. Crider's, a clothing store with locations in both downtown Gainesville and downtown Dahlonega, said the company had a Black Friday promotion, but Small Business Saturday is also important.
"It's definitely very important to us because we do want to appreciate our customers who shop small with us because we know that's a choice that they make, but it's almost a continuation of Black Friday, so it's hard to distinguish between the two," Guthrie said.
As a result, Guthrie said the stores would simply extend their Black Friday sales and promotions into Small Business Saturday.
Judy Hulsey of Gainesville was shopping at J.R. Crider's Gainesville location on Friday, and she said she had done some shopping at big box stores, too, but she said she buys with small retailers when she can.
"They have the personal things that kids like my granddaughter wants," Hulsey said. "[The big box stores] have stuff that's not great quality...[Crider's] has high quality that I buy for a good price."
Guthrie agreed that small businesses have the task of making a shopping experience more personal for consumers.
"It is difficult to compete with those big box stores, but we do have different products and items to offer than those stores do, so that's what we really focus on," Guthrie said.
Tracy Waggoner, the owner of The Iron Rose on Dawsonville Highway, said she does the same thing for her customers who are looking for gifts and home decor - she makes the experience personal.
"I don't really try [to compete with large retailers]. I feel like I have things that are unique that you won't find there and I think customer service is huge, as well as having relationships with people in the community," Waggoner said.
Those personal relationships, said Waggoner, set her business apart from the large home decor stores.
"I have people who come in and ask for specific things and there are things that I can find just for them, that I can order for them personally that they couldn't do at a department store easily," Waggoner said. Also, I'm right here if you need to return it or there's a problem with it."
Waggoner said she is discounting items storewide for Small Business Saturday and she hopes that will be a reward for her customers who choose to shop small.
"Those folks who are out there on the road looking for a deal, hopefully they'll stop by and support small business," Waggoner said.
