Local businesses prepare for Small Business Saturday

MARQUETTE — There are a lot of exciting things going on later this week. Thanksgiving is on Thursday, the next day is Black Friday, and Saturday, November 30, is a national holiday called Small Business Saturday.

Recognized on the Saturday after Thanksgiving each year, Small Business Saturday is a day to promote small businesses in local communities. Marquette in particular is a town built on local businesses.

Marquette Downtown Development Authority Promotions and Events Coordinator Tara Laase-McKinney says that shopping locally is a great way to support your community, especially on Small Business Saturday.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our community here,” said Laase-McKinney. “Especially downtown, the vast majority of the businesses are small businesses. For every dollar that’s spent at a local small business, roughly two-thirds of that stays in the community. So not only are you getting yourself a great item when you’re shopping locally, but you’re also supporting your community at the same time.”

Small Business Saturday is also a way to highlight what makes communities special. Operations Manager of Getz’s Department Store Keith Dickson says that the continuing support Marquette community is the reason his small business has been successful for so long.

“We’re a special group of people that choose to live up here,” said Dickson. “I’m originally from downstate, and I came to college up here and just fell in love not only with the region, but with the people. They’re people that understand small businesses really do drive local economies, and they know that the dollars spent here will be spent around town. And we thank every one of them that come in here. Without our local customers, we wouldn’t exist. They’re very special to us.”

Small Business Saturday is a great opportunity to get your holiday shopping started or to get some great deals for yourself, all while supporting local businesses. Getz’s Clothiers will have lots of special promotions on local items.

Be sure to head downtown on Saturday to visit other small business to take advantage of all the other promotions going on in Marquette.