NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — Locally-owned small business owners say they are hoping to cash in on some of the holiday shopping this Saturday.
From Colley Avenue in Norfolk, to High Street in Portsmouth to the Vibe! District at the Oceanfront, there are hundreds of local places for customers to shop on Small Business Saturday.
The Selden Market, located inside the Selden Arcade in downtown Norfolk, is gearing up for a busy day of business with giveaways and sales off merchandise. This holiday season is the second for Selden Market, according to Director Careyann Weinberg.
“We are here with 10 to 20 small businesses every single day, whenever you spend your money with them, it goes directly into the community to help them,” said Weinberg.
Here we are at #BlackFriday @SeldenMarket in downtown #Norfolk. I’m told by the director this place is really gearing up for tomorrow! Also, there’s a Black Friday s’mores special. I mean, come on!!! #SmallBusinessSaturday #shopsmall pic.twitter.com/l48icESQVm— Laura Caso (@LauraReports) November 23, 2018
Those businesses include Smore’s Amore, a small business owned by Duane Dinio.
Dinio says he has always loved s’mores, and his shop allows him to make them a decadent dessert for all to enjoy. “We offer a unique experience as opposed to big name and big box stores,” he said.
While Selden Market shops are offering discounts like 20 percent and freebies, Weinberg says they are really gearing up for Small Business Saturday as opposed to Black Friday.
Small Business Saturday is an initiative that started eight years ago in an effort to get people to support small businesses in their community. According to the National Retail Federation, 108 million consumers took part last year.
This year, it expects sales to reach $720 billion, which would be up more than 4 percent from last year.
“You kind of look forward to it all year. I’ll sell the most wallets on that day,” said Derek Shaw, owner of Werther Leather Goods.
