Shoppers and retailers reap the benefits of Small Business Saturday in Lincoln

[December 03, 2019]  

Saturday was an exciting day in downtown Lincoln. Shoppers streamed into shops to get a really good start on their Christmas shopping while supporting local small businesses.

This year more than 20 businesses in the heart of the city as well as the outskirts, joined together to plan an awesome event that everyone seemed to enjoy. In addition to shopping there were events and activities going on throughout the day. A passport was handed out at the retail shops and those who chose to visit 10 or more of the 21 participating stores could get their passport stamped and entered for a cash prize drawing that will be held at a later date.

For those who didn’t make it to ten shops on Saturday, don’t toss that passport. If you shop this week at any of the participating stores you can still get your stamp and your chance at that prize.

Taking advantage of the special day in Lincoln was the local quilting club that held a quilt and craft show, and sale in the building next door to Debbie’s Downtown Floral. The ladies there enjoyed spending time with shoppers and also had a pretty good sales day.

At Debbie’s, the shop is done up beautifully for Christmas and stopping in was just a must for anyone who wanted to revive their Christmas spirit. Of course in addition to floral arrangements, Debbie’s offered a lot of really great items such as holiday décor and tree ornaments.

Small Town Creations is also all done up for Christmas and offers such a large variety of items from coffees to home décor and pieces that are perfect for Christmas giving or keeping!

At the Guest House there was a home based business vendor sale going on in the second room and customers were pouring in the front door for their morning coffee break, keeping the barista’s, including owner Ethan Hoinacki, very busy.

For those that love vintage and antique, Copper Penny was the place to go. Shoppers enjoyed looking around and admiring all the store has to offer and some found that one and only thing that they knew they just had to have.

Mary Todd Hallmark was so busy the staff was trotting to keep up. Owner Julie Tarter was very happy with the number of customers she was seeing and they were buying, that was the best news of the day!

For those who needed a break from the shopping, the Zion Lutheran School Bell Choir was performing at the Logan County Tourism Bureau. There were a large number of folks who decided to check that out. The kids played and sang Christmas hymns that were familiar to all. They wrapped up their performance with a vocal and bell choir performance of “We wish you a Merry Christmas.”

While at the LCTB Depot, guests could admire the gingerbread work from local cookie designers. This is a new event in Lincoln and one that everyone hopes will grow in the years to come. This year there were six entries all of homemade gingerbread. The entries included Santa on a covered wagon, several houses, and an entire Christmas Village made by the kindergarten students at Carroll Catholic School.

Entrants included: Grayhaven Design Studio, Generations Healthcare Network, Joshua Hellman and Mom, Carroll Catholic Kindergarten Class, Maxton (no last name given), and Graham Meister.

One visitor noted that she loved the covered wagon and her first impulse was to vote for it just for its symbolism with our town and its uniqueness compared to the other entries. However, when she got to the entire Christmas Village made by kindergarten students, she knew that those adorable kids with their marshmallow dogs, penguins on graham cracker benches and candy cane lamp posts just had to get her vote.

Another, more discerning “judge” said that he had voted for Maxton because the piece was neat and tidy and looked like the young entrant (age 10) had put a lot of work into it.

Each visitor to the LCTB had the opportunity to vote for a favorite. The votes will be tallied and a nice trophy donated by Small Town Creations will be awarded to the piece with the most “people’s choice” votes.

Back on the shopping excursion, the next stop for several shoppers was the Pink Shutter. There everything in the store was half off! Shoppers enjoyed looking around and grabbing up a few items, perhaps for themselves, or maybe to give. Either way, there was plenty to be found in the popular thrift store.

At Sir Renna Tea, Eileen Mullins was so excited about the day. She said her shop which features not only her signature bubble teas but tons and tons of gift items was busy, busy, busy!

The same was true next door at Abe’s Caramel Corn Shoppe. Owner Helen Rainforth was all smiles as she, son Lance, and all the shop staff were taking care of customers right and left.

Back out on the street, a special appearance by the Lincoln Community High School Madrigal singers was a delightful distraction from the shopping mission. The group sang old English Christmas songs while shoppers stopped to take a breath and enjoy a little down time from their buying frenzy.

Another big attraction on Small Business Saturday is the Shop One Stop vendor sale at the Lincoln Knights of Columbus. Hosted by the Knights Ladies Auxiliary, the event this year was another popular and busy place. Those selling at the home based business market were also happy with the day. Several reported that they had seen a good number of customers and that sales this year were good.

With all that shopping, there had to be a couple of breaks for the kids. At 11 a.m. the Lincoln Family Theater offered a free showing of the Polar Express and there were a number of folks who took advantage of that for a great quiet time with the kids.

In the afternoon, children were invited to return to the Logan County Tourism Bureau Depot for a chance to visit with Santa Claus. Many took advantage of that offering and Santa enjoyed an afternoon of one-on-one time with some of the best kids one will find anywhere. They all assured him that they had been exceptionally good this year with hopes of sealing the deal on a special gift on their wish list.

This year, Santa is being sponsored through the generosity of the William Doyle family. Mr. Doyle loved Christmas and enjoyed playing Santa Claus around the community. At his passing the family requested that memorials go to a special fund for Santa. Earlier this year, Mr. Doyle’s daughter Helen Knecht presented a check to the LCTB to assist in bringing Santa to town this holiday season. To honor Mr. Doyle, a place complete with his photo was placed on display near to the spot where Santa sat to visit with area children.

Around town, there were lots of stores and lots of opportunities to shop and also enjoy our local community. The spirit of the season was definitely present in Lincoln on Saturday. Visitors not only enjoyed the shopping and the friendly store owners and staff, they also enjoyed spending time viewing the Winter Wonderland on the Logan County Courthouse lawn. The downtown area offered plenty of food opportunities from coffee and sweets in the morning to light lunches at one of several café’s in town to the ultimate sweet treat – ice cream at Top Hat Creamery.

Elf on the Shelf was an elusive butterfly as many people reported seeing her, but no one landed a photo. She was bouncing around from store to store, popping in and spreading good cheer, then in a poof she was gone and on to another downtown shop!

Venturing out of the downtown area, other great places to shop were Cindy’s Cottage, Podbelsek Family Creations and Renew Consignment. These shops also participating in the Small Business Saturday adventure offered great special sales for the day and another opportunity for shoppers to get those passports stamped.

This year’s event was a collaborative effort between all the participating store owners. The group came together at the invitation of Kathie Williams of Small Town Creations. Williams said she asked for everyone to get together and talk about bringing the holiday spirit into the city. She said that the shop owners were instantly excited and really great ideas were thrown out there and everyone had a hand in planning what would happen in Lincoln on this special day. All in all, it was a great day loaded with lots of fun and lots of shoppers. Job well done to everyone, and we know this is just the beginning. Be sure to mark your calendars now for Small Business Saturday (the Saturday after Thanksgiving) in Lincoln in 2020!

[Nila Smith]