Now that the most wonderful time of the year is finally here, we need to get that holiday shopping ready, and in 2020 especially, it's important to think about shopping small. This year has been a tough one, and a lot of small businesses are struggling — we've all noticed our favorite local places closing down over the last several months. But those of us who are about to spend money on gifts can play a part in helping to keep our favorite establishments open by shopping small, and there are a lot of benefits that come with helping out local business.
Not to bash bigger businesses — sometimes, there's nothing that can really replace the convenience of Amazon Prime, especially with little kids at home during a time when we're avoiding making too many errands in person. But even making the conscious decision to buy at least some of our gifts from smaller businesses this year can make a big difference for so many reasons.
Read on for all the good things that come from shopping small. Hopefully, we'll be able to help these businesses thrive well into 2021 if we support them — and we can feel good knowing exactly where our money goes and helping our community at the same time.
Help Businesses Stay Open
According to data collected by Yelp, as of September 2020, almost 100,000 small businesses that had closed temporarily this year ended up closing permanently. The impact of this on communities has been huge, but by shopping small, we can help the remaining businesses continue to thrive at a time they need it most.
Support Someone Directly
When we shop small, we can support people and their families directly, instead of making big corporations even more money. It can definitely feel all warm and fuzzy to know that our purchases are helping a family pay their bills — that same feeling isn't something we can get from Amazon, as convenient as it is.
There's a More Interesting Selection
Let's face it: If we want to be able to surprise our loved ones with truly personal gifts, there's almost no other option than to shop small! There's not much we can't find somewhere like Target or Walmart, but there's nothing like the kind of interesting selection that a local, smaller business will have in stock.
Feel Good About Where the Money Is Going
Many people have reservations about spending their money with bigger corporations, wondering if their hard-earned cash is just going to line the pockets of already wealthy execs. But when shopping small, it's easier to feel good about where that money is going without contributing to the often harmful cycle larger businesses can be a part of.
Create a Sense of Community
By supporting small businesses, we can help the community continue to thrive … and make those who open their own businesses feel supported. These are people who will remember us each time we shop with them, and it can be nice to see a friendly face while grabbing gifts for our loved ones.
Better Customer Service
Along with shopping at a small business comes a better customer service experience. It can mean having a real person to talk to if an issue comes up with a purchase … and the people helping us will be invested in making sure we're happy as a customer and want to return.
It Helps Create Jobs
When small businesses in our communities are thriving, that means they'll be able to hire more people — assisting in job creation during a time when we need it most. These businesses succeeding also help the economy in general, which leads to even more jobs.
A More Personal Shopping Experience
Shopping small means a more personal shopping experience than we'd get at a big box store or a chain. If we have any question, the perfect people to ask are already working in the store, and they're personally invested in us having a good experience.
We Can Reinvest Our Tax Dollars Locally
When we shop, we're paying taxes on what we buy … and if we're shopping with a bigger business, those tax dollars don't always go straight back into our communities. But shopping local means our tax dollars stay local and help the area where we live continue to thrive.
It Can Be Better for the Environment
Helping local businesses can also help the environment while we get cool gifts for our families and friends — it's a win for everyone! Shopping small can mean less transportation of goods and less packaging, making it a more environmentally friendly option.
It Encourages More People to Become Entrepreneurs
When people see small businesses succeeding, they're more encouraged to start their own small businesses. This can help our economies continue to thrive, make our communities more interesting places to live, and help people follow their dreams of becoming entrepreneurs themselves.
Better Quality Products Are Offered
Shopping small can often mean better quality products. Sure, shopping on Amazon might be cheaper, but this way, our money will go farther, and we'll know that we're buying something that might last a bit longer, too — not to mention the fact that it will be sold by people who will stand behind it.
Our Gifts Can Be More Personalized
Looking for something unique that's truly tailored to the recipient of the gift? Small businesses are perfect for offering that kind of thing. They're more likely to be able to personalize our purchases to our needs … and they can use their own expertise to help us make the right choices while shopping.
We Can Make Someone Really Happy
Chances are, each purchase when we shop small is making someone really excited to make that sale — and now, because of our purchase, they're able to pay for something they want or need. That feeling just doesn't come with shopping with bigger businesses, so we should allow ourselves all those happy feelings this year.
It Keeps the Community Diverse
We all want to live somewhere fun and interesting … but that requires small businesses to be successful. If we don't want to live somewhere that only offers chain stores as options, that means supporting these smaller ventures so that they can stay open and make our areas a cool destination.
