DOWNTOWN RETAILERS REPORT SALES SURGE FOR SMALL-BUSINESS SHOPPING EVENT
By Katie Eder/NJBIZ
November 27, 2012
While Black Friday sales met the expectations of New Jersey retailers as a whole, the state’s mom-and-pop stores saw a bigger boost than anticipated for Small Business Saturday.
According to the National Federation of Independent Businesses and American Express, which have partnered to entice consumers to shop small for the past three Christmas seasons, consumers spent a total of $5.5 billion at independent merchants on Nov. 24, though surveys had estimated the total would be $200 million less than that. And while American Express offered the same promotion as last year, providing cardholders a $25 statement credit if they spent $25 at an independent store, Amex transactions at small-business merchants rose approximately 21 percent compared to last year’s Small Business Saturday.
Before the initiative was launched in 2010, Doris Crater, owner of clothing boutique DJ Crater, in Chatham, would see her sales drop to around $2,000 on the first Saturday after Thanksgiving — nearly $2,000 less than a typical Saturday for the store, as “people stayed away from downtown because they were busy shopping at the malls and online.”
