BOISE, Idaho — Small Business Saturday is a chance to shop locally, and some Boise businesses are looking forward to strong support.
“Not only is it exciting because we have lots of people coming in shopping, but it’s really a nice opportunity for us to reconnect with the community and thank the community for being so supportive of us especially over the last two years," said Rebecca Gottberg, events coordinator at Rediscovered Books.
Last year's Small Businesses Saturday, the store limited the number of people in their store and required masks because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
“We actually had a line around the block of people waiting to come in and shop," Gottberg said.
"So we are very pleased and appreciative of the customers who are willing to come here, come shop with us, come talk to us, and come be part of our success," she said.
Masks are still required to enter the store, but there's no longer a limit on the number of customers.
On Friday, Governor Brad Little encouraged Idahoans to support area businesses in a Facebook video.
"Small Business Saturday supports Idaho-owned businesses, boost the economy, and keeps your money right here in Idaho," Little said.
According to the National Retail Federation about 58.1 million shopperswill be shopping at small businesses this year based on a survey they conducted in early November.
The Record Exchange is also looking forward to strong support from shoppers.
“Black Friday is still a great day for us but it sort of plateaued over the few years. We can kind of know what to expect year to year. But we’ve seen a huge increase in support for Small Businesses Saturday," said Chad Dryden, co-owner and marketing director at Record Exchange.
Now that COVID-19 vaccines are available, they feel safe to welcome more customers.
“We are still requiring masks, we have hand sanitizer all around the store we are still very vigilant about cleaning. This year, we wanted to hopefully give our customers an experience that was as close to normal during the pandemic," Dryden said.
Dryden also believes small business Saturday has helped local businesses flourish.
“Not only for us but other downtown Boise businesses and just have people come out for it and buy local when they have plenty of opportunities to shop online or put their money elsewhere, so it's really nice to have that support and have people keep the dollars in the community," he said.
