Coalition Mobilizes to Drive Consumers to Small, Independently Owned Businesses on November 26, 2011
Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP), a non-partisan organization that advocates for issues affecting the health of small businesses, will be leading a coalition of small business advocates around the country to further the Small Business Saturday movement.
Small Business Saturday, which falls between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, is a national movement to drive consumers to shop at local merchants during the heaviest shopping weekend of the year. American Express, the founding sponsor of Small Business Saturday, created the movement in response to small business owners’ most pressing need: more demand for their products and services.
To expand the reach and impact of Small Business Saturday, WIPP and its partners have created the Small Business Saturday CoalitionSM. The coalition’s mission is to inspire business owners and communities across the country to embrace Small Business Saturday and get the word out about the importance of shopping at small, independently owned businesses. In addition to involving more than 50 existing partner organizations, WIPP will recruit additional coalition members – both for-profit and non-profit organizations – who have an interest in supporting independently owned small businesses in their communities.
The impact that “shopping small” has on local communities is profound: for every $100 spend at a locally owned small business, $68 returns to the community through taxes, payroll and other expenditures, according to Civic Economics. Additionally in the last 10 months, 93% of the jobs created were by small businesses, according to Automatic Data Processing, Inc.
“We are proud to be taking Small Business Saturday to the next level by leading a community of like-minded small business advocates,” said Barbara Kasoff, President of WIPP. “We will mobilize our base, which are the small business advocates, owners and consumers in local communities around the country to encourage and promote small business shopping and to rally local communities to support local businesses on November 26th.”
Background on Small Business Saturday
In 2010, 130 small business advocate groups, public and private organizations, and elected officials joined American Express in declaring the Saturday after Thanksgiving, Small Business Saturday. American Express pledged a $1 million donation to Girls Inc. tied to the number of “likes” on Facebook; the donation was used to empower young women to become entrepreneurs. (Currently, approximately 1.5 million people “like” Small Business Saturday on Facebook.)
In addition, 41 elected officials in 32 states declared the Saturday after Thanksgiving “Small Business Saturday.”
“The success of the inaugural Small Business Saturday proved that American consumers appreciate the vital contributions of small businesses to the communities where they work and live,” said Maryann Fitzmaurice Reilly, Senior Vice President, American Express OPEN, the company’s small business unit. “Through the creation of the Small Business Saturday Coalition, WIPP is providing additional resources to take the movement to the next level. The coalition invites advocates across the country to join the movement to encourage consumers to “shop small.”
About Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP)
Women Impacting Public Policy is a national nonpartisan group with over half-a-million members. WIPP is the collective voice in Washington, D.C., for over 50 national women and small business organizations. WIPP advocates for and on behalf of women in business in the legislative process of our nation, creating economic opportunities for members and building alliances with other small business organizations. Visit www.wipp.org.
