'Shop Local,' Says Sen. Reed

U.S. Senator Jack Reed is once again encouraging Rhode Islanders to support their neighborhood small businesses on Small Business Saturday, set for this Saturday, Nov. 30. Small Business Saturday is a national movement that marks a day to support the local businesses that help create jobs, boost local economic activity, and preserve neighborhoods around the country. 

While “Black Friday” (the day after Thanksgiving) and “Cyber Monday” (when online retailers typically offer deals) are some of the biggest shopping day of the year for national retailers, “Small Business Saturday” is providing an economic spark for local, independently owned stores in Rhode Island and nationwide.

“Small businesses are vital to our communities and our economy and the goal of this event is to get more people shopping at locally owned businesses,” said Reed, who earlier this month helped pass a resolution designating November 30, 2013 as “Small Business Saturday.” 

“Shopping at small businesses and supporting local companies can have a big impact on Rhode Island’s economy.” 

The inaugural Small Business Saturday, held in 2010, galvanized support across the country and today the movement has grown. Shops, stores, and restaurants throughout Rhode Island will be participating in a number of ways, including a “Holiday Stroll” in East Greenwich and a gift card giveaway in Westerly, where some lucky local shoppers will receive free $10 gift cards courtesy of the Westerly Chamber of Commerce.

“When you shop local, it has a ripple effect through our economy,” said Reed, noting that a Chicago study of Retail Economics found that spending $100 at a locally owned store produces $68 in additional local economic impact, while doing the same at a chain store produces $43 in local impact.

The Rhode Island Department of Labor & Training (RIDLT) reports that smaller employers in Rhode Island – businesses with less than 20 employees -- represent about 90 percent of all employers in the state and 25 percent of the workforce.  And according to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy (SBA), small businesses generated 64 percent of net new jobs between 1993 and 2011 and employ nearly half of all private sector employees.