As the pandemic rages on, Small Business Saturday could be a make-or-break for local stores.<\/p>\n
The Michigan Retailers Association says retailers locally rely on the holiday season for up to 25% of their revenue. The effects of COVID-19 throughout the year haven\u2019t helped with overall income.<\/p>\n
Curvaceous Lingerie is taking 2020 one sale at a time. It hasn\u2019t been easy, but owner Lauren Palmer says she\u2019s grateful for every single sale.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do a little happy dance because you\u2019re supporting someone\u2019s actual home. You\u2019re putting food on my table. You\u2019re allowing me to feed my children and keeping my employees employed,\u201d said Palmer.<\/p>\n
Palmer says Small Business Saturday takes on new importance this year.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour support literally can in fact save a small business. It is very much like get out the vote for this presidential vote. Every vote counts. Every purchase that you make at a small business counts,\u201d said Palmer.<\/p>\n
Small shops like Curvaceous and Grace Boutique in Old Town Lansing rely on heavy food traffic, which has been complicated by the pandemic.<\/p>\n
\u201cI definitely think it will be a much more important year for a lot of small businesses this year. Not even necessarily that particular day, but I know a lot of us small business are really hoping that folks remember us during the holiday season,\u201d said Grace Boutique owner Summer Schriner.<\/p>\n
Schriner is a former practicing attorney with a passion for antique fashion. She\u2019s spunky, bubbly, and very optimistic about the power of the neighborhood shopper.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou spend that $100, that $1,000 whatever at Amazon. It\u2019s gone. It\u2019s gone from your community. It\u2019s not supporting anyone, you know. When you spend it in your community, it\u2019s helping keep that business there. It\u2019s helping keep that neighborhood vibrant. It\u2019s helping support those fundraisers locally that small businesses always give to,\u201d said Schriner.<\/p>\n
The Michigan Retailers Association is calling on shoppers to buy gifts this holiday season from at least three Michigan stores.<\/p>\n
Curvaceous Lingerie has taken it upon themselves to buy gift cards from every small business in Old Town and is gifting them to their customers as a show of support.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As the pandemic rages on, Small Business Saturday could be a make-or-break for local stores. The Michigan Retailers…\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2951,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[50],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n