By 8:15 a.m. Friday, the parking lot at Wade Designs Jewelry was packed with shoppers eager to get 30 percent off a single item during a special one-hour morning sale.
“It was a mad dash to get everyone rung up,” said Rita Wade, who owns the business with her husband.
They offered a number of discounts and incentives for Black Friday shoppers throughout the day, including breakfast and a drawing giveaway.
Today, their business is participating in Small Business Saturday, a national initiative aimed at supporting small businesses during one of the year’s biggest shopping weekends.
Business and community leaders teamed up to promote the event by encouraging people to shop at smaller, independent businesses. Often those businesses are overlooked this weekend as people clamor for big ticket item sales at chain stores or online sales that are part of Cyber Monday, local business leaders said.
American Express started Small Business Saturday last year. Businesses throughout the United States participated. The initiative has gained momentum through social media networks. More than 2.5 million people “like” a Facebook page dedicated to the event.
To help fuel interest, American Express is again offering a $25 credit for qualifying people who use their American Express card to make a purchase of $25 or more at a local business today. People must register online to qualify for the credit, and registration is limited. For more information, go to smallbusinesssaturday.com.
About 48 percent of businesses in North Carolina are small businesses, said Sherry Johnson, interim CEO of the Rocky Mount Area Chamber of Commerce. Small businesses have generated about 65 percent of new jobs during the past 17 years, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Johnson encouraged people to look within their own communities first for their shopping needs.
“You can make a difference if you spend your dollars locally,” she said.
Shopping locally helps support the community and promotes job and economic growth, Johnson said.
Many local business owners also support community organizations and charities, said Clint Williams, director of membership development for Freedom Credit Union. About six years ago, he helped establish a marketing campaign called Shop Local.
“We were seeing money bleed out of the area,” Williams said.
Small businesses often are overshadowed, Williams said. He encouraged people to take notice of the local stores around them.
“There are a lot of great treasures in the area that people tend to take for granted,” Williams said.
Wade said small businesses have faced many challenges during the economic downturn. She said Friday was a good day, and she was hoping for another good turnout today. “We’re seeing people we haven’t seen in a long time,” Wade said.
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