Small biz Saturday promotions increase

TRI-COUNTY AREA--Shop small--shop local.
Small Business Saturday is now a nationwide retail event. Started back in 2010 by American Express as a way to promote their thousands of small business customers, area chambers of commerce and individual stores have turned the day into a special shopping day for many.
So look for the many businesses in Yates, Schuyler and Steuben Counties hosting special events for customers this Saturday, Nov. 30.
American Express estimates that two-thirds of every dollar (.67 cents) spent in a local business stays in that community. "What began nine years ago as an effort to support local stores during the holiday shopping season has become the Shop Small movement, bringing together millions of shoppers, small businesses of all kinds, civic leaders and organizations in thousands of towns and cities across the country," said Elizabeth Rutledge, chief marketing officer at American Express. "Shopping small has a significant and positive effect on local communities, and we hope Small Business Saturday will help to amplify that effect during the crucial holiday shopping season. When we spend local, small businesses thrive. And when small businesses thrive, we all thrive."