Shop local this weekend

small-business-saturday

Small businesses in Indiana are hopeful that Black Friday’s shopping momentum will carry into Saturday. Tomorrow is Small Business Saturday, a day encouraging holiday shoppers to patronize the little guys.

Jacob Schpok with the Indiana Office of Small Business and Entrepreneurship says small businesses are the backbone of Indiana, making up almost 50 percent of the employment in the state. He adds that visiting locally owned stores and restaurants pays off for Indiana communities.

While small businesses do not have the resources to advertise as widely as the big guys, Schpok contends that the little guys’ sales promotions should not be discounted. He says locally owned stores typically have unique offerings and services.

He says 45 dollars of every 100 dollars spent in a locally owned store is returned to the community – compared to just 14 dollars at big box retailers.