The importance of shopping locally has been emphasized with increasing urgency in recent years. Events like Small Business Saturday have brought some much-needed attention to the importance of shopping local, which is even more crucial now as so many small businesses try to survive the pandemic.

Small Business Saturday is held every year the Saturday after Thanksgiving, Nov. 28, which is usually one of the busiest shopping periods of the year. The point is of course to shine a light on the thousands of smaller businesses who might otherwise get overshadowed during the heavily commercialized Black Friday offerings and Cyber Monday deals that often lure folks away from supporting smaller, locally owned businesses.

A poll from the trade group the National Federation of Independent Business reported that about half of all the businesses in the survey reported a 25% drop in sales since the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus, and roughly one in five businesses have seen sales decline by more than 50%. If the economic climate does not radically improve, 20% of small businesses won’t survive making this Small Business Saturday even more crucial for the health of local economies.

According to the Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy, small businesses employ nearly 60 million people in the United States, almost half of the nation’s private-sector employees. In addition, small businesses generate tax revenues that help communities by funding schools, maintaining parks and contributing to public safety programs. However, based on research from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, even before COVID-19 spread across the world, only 20% of healthy small businesses had sufficient cash reserves to continue to operate if they experienced a revenue loss for two months. Some have been shuttered for much longer.

Individuals looking for everything from clothing to home improvement services to office supplies can look to small businesses to fill those needs.

• Look for small businesses for any and all of your shopping needs. Chances are items sold by big-box retailers also are sold by small businesses. When the options are the same or similar, purchase from a small business instead of its big-box competitor.

-Many Berthoud and other local businesses are now offering curbside pickup or even contactless delivery. Make sure to check out the businesses’ social media posts and websites for specials and offers that help during the pandemic.

• Readily provide recommendations of small businesses with which you have done business. Too often people are quick to complain about places that have failed them, but those same people don’t think to say kind words about companies that went above and beyond. Share great experiences on social media or through word-of-mouth.
• Talk to small business owners first if you have an issue. It’s tempting to go directly to social media to complain about something, but such complaints can have a dire impact. Always take issues to the manager or business owner first to see if a resolution can be reached. A manager may not be aware of an issue at all. Give small businesses a chance to make it right before taking things public.
• If you own a small business, rely on other small businesses to fulfill your needs. Order supplies from fellow small-business owners, seek the help of local financial advisers and tax professionals and use local suppliers and delivery personnel.

Small businesses have experienced unprecedented setbacks due to COVID-19. By supporting small businesses, communities can help them regain stable footing.