Chamber: Shop Local Saturday & Support Revenue

Small Business Saturday can be a boost to your neighbors and the community overall, by increasing local sales tax revenue.

That from Cumberland Chamber of Commerce President Ethan Hadley, who said there has been a steady rise in online Black Friday shopping in recent decades. Hadley said it is important to support locally-owned businesses because they give a community its flavor and provide a personalized experience that cannot be matched by major companies.

“People still want to go and put their hands on things and feel them and have that experience of shopping,” Hadley said. “And our small businesses take this opportunity every year on Black Friday and this coming weekend to show up and show out. And that’s important to us, important to them.”

Hadley said people should look to small businesses for deals first before going online or to a major chain. Hadley said people can use the internet and social media to find all sorts of local sales they had not heard of before.

“Look for ones that you might not be aware of yet,” Hadley said. “To see if you could find that something that you’re looking for here and support the community while you’re doing it.”

Hadley said national statistics show that small businesses provide nearly half of private sector jobs. Hadley said shopping local thereby supports those jobs, keeps tax revenue local, and support the families in the community.

“If your only options were to go out and go to a nationally-named, known brand store to do all of your shopping, your experience would be markedly different,” Hadley said. “And completely, arguably, lesser than it would be to have that unique experience that you have when you go to a locally-owned business.”