Cold weather isn’t the only thing bearing down on Eastern North Carolina. With Thanksgiving waiting just around the corner, the holiday shopping season is upon us.

Your newspapers this week will be filled with Black Friday deals, seasonal doorbusters and some of the best sales offers of the year. You won’t want to miss an issue.

Shoppers will inevitably flock to retail stores later this week, kick-starting economic activity unlike any other time of year.

It’s a critical time for commerce, especially so for local business.

With that in mind, several initiatives set out to put small business and local shopping in the spotlight.

First South Bank and the Washington-Beaufort County Chamber of Commerce are teaming up to promote Buy Local Day to coincide with Small Business Saturday on Nov. 29.

Locally owned businesses participating in Buy Local Day will offer special promotions and discounts. It’s a little extra incentive to “shop small” on Small Business Saturday, during which American Express says its cardmembers can get up to $30 back by shopping at participating businesses.

There’s plenty of value to shopping local beyond price, discounts and special offers.

Consider the impact on our community.

According to a recent study, for every $100 spent at a local business, $68 remains in the community if the business is locally owned. Compare that to $43 that remains if spent at a chain.

Small business advocates say locally owned businesses reinvest in the community at a 60 percent higher rate than chains and internet retailers.

Our local communities are blessed with a host of shopping destinations that rival big-city offerings. The experience that comes from shopping locally —from people you know and trust — is hard to beat.

On top of all that, the more shopping you do locally, the more you help fund local schools, roads, hospitals and services. Keep that in mind as you work through your holiday shopping list.

Another group of local businesses are partnering to draw excitement downtown well beyond Saturday. Festive Fridays on the west end of Washington’s Main Street will feature fun and activities on Dec. 5, 12 and 19. Some of the planned festivities include an ornament workshop, holiday movie showings and Santa Claus photo opportunities.

Happy shopping this holiday season.

 

Ashley Vansant is publisher of the Washington Daily News. He can be reached at ashley.vansant@thewashingtondailynews.com.