NFIB thanks state’s chief executive for helping get the word out to do some shopping on Main Street
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Patrick Connor, NFIB/Washington State Director, [email protected]
or Tony Malandra, Senior Media Manager, [email protected]
OLYMPIA, Wash., Nov. 15, 2017—The state’s leading small-business association, today, thanked Gov. Jay Inslee for his official proclamation designating November 25 as Small Business Saturday, part of a national effort to draw some holiday shopping out of the malls and onto to the Main Streets of America.
As the governor noted in his proclamation “Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, and the glue that holds communities together—creating jobs, boosting the local economy, and preserving our neighborhoods. Small Business Saturday is a day dedicated to supporting small businesses on the busiest shopping weekend of the year.”
According to a survey by NFIB and American Express, shoppers spent $15.4 billion last year at locally-owned stores and restaurants on Small Business Saturday, which was a 13 percent increase over the previous year. As the governor pointed out in his proclamation, “Washington’s small businesses employ more than half of the state’s private workforce, 1.3 million workers in Washington … businesses with fewer than 100 employees are the largest share of business employment.”
In an analysis of various studies, the American Independent Business Alliance summarized that on average, 48 percent of each purchase at local independent businesses was recirculated locally, compared to less than 14 percent of purchases at chain stores. “In other words, going local creates more local wealth and jobs,” said the AMIBA study.
“The morning after Thanksgiving may be the traditional start of the holiday shopping season, but more and more shoppers are bypassing the malls to find unique gifts and support their friends and neighbors on Small Business Saturday,” said Patrick Connor, Washington state director for the National Federation of Independent Business, which is co-sponsoring the awareness campaign along with American Express.
Related News
Six Tips for a Successful Small Business Saturday
###
For more than 70 years, the National Federation of Independent Business has been the Voice of Small Business, taking the message from Main Street to the halls of Congress and all 50 state legislatures. NFIB annually surveys its members on state and federal issues vital to their survival as America’s economic engine and biggest creator of jobs. NFIB’s educational mission is to remind policymakers that small businesses are not smaller versions of bigger businesses; they have very different challenges and priorities.
National Federation of Independent Business/Washington
711 Capitol Way South, Suite 505
Olympia, WA 98501
www.nfib.com/washington
Twitter: @NFIB_WA
