Bussiness
‘Biggest day of the year’: Holiday deals in St. Cloud area for Small Business Saturday
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If you don’t like online shopping, here are some tips while shopping in store.
Small Business Saturday, or Shop Small Saturday, is set to take place Nov. 30, with many local businesses around St. Cloud planning to participate with deals and giveaways.
The national event first started in 2010 as an initiative from American Express to provide an alternative to Black Friday shopping. Since then, the event has continued to grow, and many of St. Cloud’s small business owners see it as essential to keeping their stores alive.
“What makes a city unique, it’s maybe not all the chain stores, but it’s the individual businesses,” Books Revisited owner Jon Lee said. “It all has value; it’s what makes us different than everywhere else.”
Most small businesses in downtown St. Cloud will be participating in Shop Small Saturday with various deals and special offerings. For example, Mexican Village customers will receive a 25% off taco pack certificates and a bonus $25 with each $100 gift certificate purchase, and Baby’s on Broadway will be hosting a pop a balloon sale.
Bella Vita Salt Caves will also be participating, and this year’s Shop Small Saturday will be the first big event since the store remodeled its retail space, owner Christina Piecek said. The store will also enter customers who make $50 purchases into a drawing for a gift basket, and it is offering a holiday package deal for salt sessions and a massage.
Spice of Life Tea Shop also plans to offer specials that day, owner Terri Emmerich said. The store will be open extended hours from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and will be giving away free cups of tea and bulk tea with certain purchases.
“It’s our biggest day of the year, so it’s always exciting,” Emmerich said. “We make sure that we’re here bright and early and well-staffed.”
Spice of Life will also be hosting a drawing for a gift basket with no purchase necessary to enter.
Downtown bookshop Books Revisited will have a 20% storewide sale for Shop Small Saturday and will be giving away children’s Christmas books with each purchase. The store will also host free gift wrapping that day.
“The whole movement of trying to shop small and support local, people are interested in that, and they get it,” Lee said. “People can shop anywhere… so when people come in, I feel like there’s a sense of community.”
The small business festivities are not limited to St. Cloud. Some Sauk Rapids businesses will also be participating, such as home decor and gift shop Copper Pony. Shoppers can take advantage of several different deals, including some sales, a $10 gift certificate with a purchase of a $50 gift card, and a free ornament with a $35 purchase. The store will also provide the chance for three customers to get their entire purchase for free.
Sauk Rapids staple Manea’s Meats is offering 11% off entire purchases that day, as well as free samples and the chance to win a $25 gift card. Across the street, Rock Creek Coffeehouse customers can get a free $5 gift card with purchases of certain gear, including hats and mugs.
Several downtown St. Joseph businesses will take part in the town’s Shop Small Crawl, set for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event started 12 years ago as a way to “foster partnerships, support local businesses, and create a sustainable, intentional approach to holiday shopping,” according to the Facebook post for the event.
Shoppers can pick up a punch card for the event at a participating business, and once it is completed, turn it in to be entered into a gift basket giveaway featuring items from participating artists and businesses. The event’s participants include flower and soap business Pluck Flower Farm, botanical shop Seed to Glass, Milk and Honey Ciders and Bad Habit Brewery, among others.
Other small businesses across the area will be participating as well. Watch for window signs or just go in an chat.
The Small Business Saturday festivities are fun for shoppers and store owners alike, and multiple business owners emphasized how important the day can be for the well-being of their shops. This weekend is often one of the busiest weekends of the year for several of the area’s local businesses.
“We are small businesses and we do support our community, and it would be nice if our community supported us a little bit more,” Piecek said.
Teagan King covers business and development for the St. Cloud Times. She can be reached at teking@gannett.com.
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