I learned about Small Business Saturday 3 years ago when I saw someone walking around with a Shop Small canvas bag. What is Small Business Saturday? The quick history: In 2010, small businesses are hurting from an economic recession. American Express deems the first Saturday after Thanksgiving as “Small Business Saturday” and launches a campaign to encourage people to “Shop Small” and bring more holiday shopping to small businesses. This campaign is more than a simple proclamation by this major credit card company. They use sophisticated technology to provide on-the-fly digital support materials to small businesses whether they accept American Express or not. Further, they allow businesses to order physical promotional kits that include stickers, balloons, posters, and a significant number of canvas bags. My family has an AMEX card that we rarely use. My business doesn’t accept them. So I give props to them for offering this level of support. I can only imagine how much this must cost.
For the past two years, I’ve encouraged clients to participate. I’ve signed up a few for the promotional kits and sent them custom made digital materials. A few participated on a small level. Some loved the idea, but didn’t have time for the execution. Yet, all agreed that the Alaskan economy would only grow if small businesses grew. So I decided to take a new approach to Small Business Saturday this year. I became and American Express Neighborhood Champion and decided to organize a Pop-Up Market.
I sent out a number of personal invites to businesses, most of which don’t have physical storefronts. I offered them a free 10ftX6ft booth at Caribou Way Studios who generously donated the space for this event. I am producing and providing the promotional materials for free. The goal for Pagesculptor Studios is to help Fairbanks businesses increase their revenue and grow the economy.
The final list of businesses is a great mix of health, beauty, and fun:
- Laughtership, LLC/Laughter Yoga
- Swim Fit/Fairbanks Masters Swimming
- RIZE & DANCE studio
- Forge of Ice
- Golden Heart Massage
- Pretty Lippy
- Arbonne
- Fairbanks Wellness Coalition
- Pagesculptor Studios
Save the date! Come by and Shop Small in 2018! Together we can make the Alaskan economy strong again!