Initiative Focuses Shoppers on Local Retailers for the Holiday

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Downtown businesses in Murray, Ky.

Many holiday shoppers rush out for Black Friday, but an initiative for local businesses is urging people to visit smaller shops on Saturday. Holiday shopping is crucial for many businesses as they recover from a rough economy. Small Business Saturday is an effort to encourage shoppers to check items off their gift list within their communities.

Chris Wooldridge is the district director for the Kentucky Small Business Development Center.

“There became this feeling basically throughout the nation that while most of the big box retailers were the focus of Black Fridays and the Internet and those companies that were selling through the Internet were the focus of Cyber Mondays, our small businesses were more or less falling off the radar screen," said Wooldridge.

The National Federation of Independent Businesses says shopping locally during the holidays can pay dividends throughout the year because small business owners are often strong supporters of civic groups, charities and youth sports.