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 LaGrange, Ill.'s decades-old holiday festival has evolved into more
of a sales promotion event in recent years, says Nancy Cummings,
executive director of the LaGrange Business Association. This year's
will be held Saturday, Dec. 7, and 66 businesses have so far signed
up to take part.
Stores will have open houses, with many giving customers $5 off a
$25 purchase. Trolleys will transport shoppers to shops that aren't
part of the downtown cluster, and on the way point out retailers
along the route. There'll be ice sculptures outside stores to lure
shoppers to the front door. And there will be the holiday standards
like a petting zoo and Santa arriving on a fire truck. Shoppers will
have plenty to do across the village located west of Chicago.
"We want to get people moving around," Cummings says.
Many shoppers are familiar with Small Business Saturday, the
American Express campaign to encourage people to buy from
independent retailers and other small businesses the Saturday after
Thanksgiving. But a growing number of chambers of commerce, small
business organizations and local retailer groups hold events to
persuade shoppers to forsake malls, big-box stores like Wal-Mart and
the Internet in favor of local retailers. They also advertise on
joint Facebook pages and recommend shoppers visit other stores in
town.
SHIFTING SHOPPING
Retailers in Royal Oak, Mich., are holding a series of events that
began last Friday. That night, stores stayed open until midnight and
offered special prices and refreshments, much like the come-ons
Black Friday — the day after Thanksgiving — is known for. The
Saturday after Thanksgiving will be "Shop Local Saturday." On
Sundays during the holidays, many restaurants will have free meals
for children. And Dec. 11, retailers will set up shop at the Royal
Oak Farmers Market. There will be music, food trucks and gifts.
The efforts make a difference. Small businesses in communities with
"buy local" campaigns had an 8.6 increase in sales in 2012 from the
previous year, according to the American Independent Business
Alliance, a network of community business organizations. In
communities without campaigns, sales rose 3.4 percent.
The alliance and several other nationwide small business
organizations sponsor a Shift Your Shopping campaign aimed at
getting consumers to do their holiday buying in their communities.
The program, in its third year, now includes 150 local business
alliances and 40,000 small businesses.
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The economy's plunge in 2008 prompted storeowners to create the
joint events, says Gary Baglio, president of the Royal Oak
Association of Retailers and owner of Five15, a gift shop.
"If someone comes downtown to buy a dress at one store, they're
going to walk about to shop at another store," Baglio says.
GOING SOLO
Many retailers plan solo holiday events. Leigh's, an upscale women's
clothing store in Grand Rapids, Mich., plans five parties including
one Black Friday and another aimed at men shopping for wives and
girlfriends. On Black Friday, the store will open at 7 a.m., and
serve breakfast, coffee, juice and mimosas. Like the big box and
department stores, Leigh's will have specials, such as fur scarves
that will sell for $59 instead of the usual $98.
Last year's Black Friday party gave Leigh's a 12 percent sales bump,
says co-owner Rebecca Wierda.
"We actually had people waiting outside the door for us at 7 a.m.,"
she says. Some came straight from the malls.
The Beacon Hill Holiday Stroll in Boston Dec. 12 will give Dress, a
women's clothing boutique, an opportunity to introduce itself to a
new neighborhood. Dress moved to Beacon Hill in September. The event
includes a tree lighting, strolling singers and horse and buggy
rides.
"I don't think we'll see a lot of people trying on clothes," says
co-owner Martha Pickett, "but people will come in and see our store
and what we have to offer."
[Associated
Press JOYCE M. ROSENBERG, AP Business Writer]
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