‘Support Small Business Saturday’ – Show Appreciation for Northern Ireland’s local retailers

‘Support Small Business Saturday’ – Show Appreciation for Northern Ireland’s local retailers
Support Small Business Saturday - Shop Local

Saturday 5th December is  Small Business Saturday – sadly Northern Ireland’s local independent retailers’ doors will be closed. NR asks people to support their independent retailers as much as possible once doors re-open on 11th December.

Recognising the essential role small businesses continue to play in our local communities during the Covid-19 pandemic, research by American Express shows that people plan to spend £6.2 billion shopping small this December. Seven in ten say they will visit local shops and businesses this month (70%), from butchers and greengrocers to hairdressers, florists and cafes, with an average spend of £169.

This research, commissioned by American Express, principal supporter of Small Business Saturday UK, found nearly half of those shopping with small businesses will do so because they want to support local jobs (47%). A further three in ten say it’s because these businesses have worked really hard this year and they want to see them succeed (31%).

Navigating lockdowns and social distancing measures, among other challenges, small businesses have had to dig deep on their resilience and agility this year. Just over three quarters (78%) of UK adults say they admire how local businesses have navigated Covid-19 and want to continue supporting local businesses for the long term (78%). Over four in five consider local shop workers to be frontline; an essential part of the community (83%) and seven in ten say they appreciate local businesses more now than ever before (71%).

Stay local, shop local

Non-essential businesses have been sorely missed during lockdown. People are most excited to see hairdressers (34%), restaurants (34%) and cafés (31%) reopen their doors as lockdown restrictions lift.

Across the UK, people are backing small businesses by spending more with them. Four in ten say the amount of their budget spent at local businesses has increased since March 2020 (40%).  Of these, almost four in five intend to either maintain this spend or increase it in 2021 (78%).

Dan Edelman, General Manager UK, Global Merchant and Network Services, American Express said: “2020 has been hard for everyone but the resilience and creativity of small businesses in the face of the most trying of circumstances continues to be nothing short of incredible.  It’s great to see shoppers recognise the important contribution local small businesses make and want to show their support, rewarding them with a much-needed boost to spending before the end of the year. As principal supporter of Small Business Saturday (5 December), we hope that people will continue to show their support for their local independents by shopping small, not just this December but all year round.”