Saturday after Thanksgiving vital for Libertyville retailers

Thanksgiving weekend is busy for Pam Lockowitz, owner of Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory in Libertyville.

Between the tree lighting on Friday night and Small Business Saturday the following day, she said the chocolate shop is usually elbow room only with lots of families coming in for dessert or picking up treats to give as gifts.

Lockowitz, who has owned the shop for 22 years, said she does a lot of business during every holiday season, but Small Business Saturday helps people focus on how local businesses support the community.

“Our employees live here and work here, so it’s a good way to create economic development strength within the community,” Lockowitz said.

For Main Street retailers in Libertyville, the Saturday after Thanksgiving kicks off what they hope to be a busy holiday season.

Small Business Saturday, a shopping holiday introduced by American Express in 2010, encourages shoppers to celebrate small businesses and often brings new faces into the shops in Libertyville.

In addition to the national shopping day, Main Street Libertyville organizes a passport program to promote visiting multiple businesses. Customers can pick up a passport and receive stamps at each of the 24 participating businesses.

Each participating business donated prizes that will be raffled off to those who turn in their stamped passports.

Small Business Saturday is a great sales day for Libertyville downtown businesses and hundreds of passports are returned as a part of the raffle program, said Jennifer Johnson, executive director of Main Street Libertyville, a nonprofit organization affiliated with Main Street America.

“We’re always looking for ways to promote economic revitalization in downtown so this is one of those opportunities,” Johnson said. “(The program) is really about getting people into the shops so they’ll come back and attracting new clientele.”

Business owners and employees said there is increased foot traffic on Small Business Saturday and helps start the holiday season, which tends to be the busiest time for businesses and shoppers.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Johnson said business has been unpredictable for the locally-owned establishments, but summer and the holiday season have brought an uptick.

Main Street Libertyville’s responsibility is to support the small business all year long and work to preserve historic downtown, Johnson said.

“Our downtown business owners are our families, they contribute to the community and they also patronize our community,” Johnson said.

Shopping locally supports the local town, city and neighborhood through sales taxes, which is used to support public schools, parks, roads and more.

A 2022 American Express Small Business Economic Impact Study found for every $1 spent at a local business, over two-thirds, or $0.68, stays in the local community.

There are 33.2 million small businesses in the United States, making up 99% of all businesses, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Data from QuickBooks Intuit shows 65% of small businesses’ annual revenue was generated during the holidays last year. The same survey said this year, small businesses can look forward to a 42% increase in consumer spending over the holiday season.

Monica Johnson, a sales associate at Oh Olive in Libertyville, said an organized Small Business Saturday program increases foot traffic and brings in new customers from around Lake County who are likely to come back on another day.

“The Main Street organization does such a great job with promoting the event and throughout the year, there are so many different events that bring people out to the sidewalk,” Johnson said.