Business boomed last weekend on the 10th annual Small Business Saturday, bringing in an estimated $19.6 billion in revenue for small independent shops and restaurants – a new record, according to several sources. Last year, shoppers spent an estimated $17.8 billion.
This story originally appeared in NFIB.
According to data collected by NFIB, American Express, and Adobe Analytics, Small Business Saturday outperformed both Black Friday ($5.4 billion) and Cyber Monday ($9.2 billion) combined by almost $5 billion.
“This year’s Small Business Saturday sales set a stunning record, eclipsing Black Friday and Cyber Monday online sales,” said NFIB President and CEO Juanita D. Duggan. “These figures underscore the importance of the world’s third largest economy, small businesses, and the need to support them year-round.”
“We all came together on Saturday to prove that shopping small really does add up,” said Elizabeth Rutledge, chief marketing officer at American Express. “We are thrilled to report that shoppers are increasingly making a conscious effort to Shop Small and support their local communities, and over the past 10 years consumers reported spending an estimated total of more than $120 billion at small businesses on Small Business Saturday.”
A joint American Express and NFIB survey showed that more than 70 percent of American adult shoppers are aware of the day, with 96 percent of respondents saying that they were inclined to shop at independently owned businesses to make a positive social and economic impact in their local communities. 95 percent of respondents said that the tradition impacts their views on shopping at small businesses throughout the year.
