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Opinion-Editorial
RELEASE
Release Date: Nov. 21, 2024
Why
Shop Small? In Honor of Small Business Saturday
Have
you ever driven through an old desolate town that had seen better days? Where
it looked like it had once been thriving with a Main Street that offered hot
dogs and cold cokes on 4th of July? Where someone’s dream supplied
their neighbors with needed goods and ample food on a daily basis and friends
enjoyed a brief conversation on the corner? Where toy stores were a child’s
fantasy come true and the local bookstore was their mother’s?
As we
move into this holiday season, let’s remember the magical beauty of a lit
window showcasing its fare of décor and gifts that can be touched and held
before purchasing. Or a locally-owned eatery who caters to the tastebuds of
the town residents.
73% of dollars spent on
small businesses is reinvested into the community compared to 47% of that
spent at a larger chain or retailer. It also includes the efforts and
investment of the small business already shipping goods to be available,
hiring extra staff to serve you, and spending countless hours precisely
choosing what your wife would love best on that special day. Not only that,
but their revenues help pay for your police, your fire department and your
waste management services (you know, for the stuff that’s left over AFTER the
holidays).
So for the days ahead, let
us not forget the backbone of the American economy, whose owners bring great
prosperity to this nation and without whom our local towns would dry up
overnight. Their success breeds more success, like steel to a magnet,
thriving businesses can cause a chain reaction and draw additional
entrepreneurs to dare the risk of going it on their own and chancing the many
challenges that small business owners face simply to gain your patronage.
When you shop locally, you
are not just buying a trinket or a necessity, you are investing in a dream.
Not the shop owner’s dream, but your dream. A dream of the kind of place
you would like to live, to raise a family, to call your community. Small business
is not just for the Saturday after Thanksgiving, it is for every day and
everyone.
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About the
U.S. Small Business Administration
The U.S. Small Business Administration helps
power the American dream of business ownership. As the only go-to resource
and voice for small businesses backed by the strength of the federal
government, the SBA empowers entrepreneurs and small business owners with the
resources and support they need to start, grow, or expand their businesses,
or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an
extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and
private organizations. To
learn more, visit www.sba.gov.
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