After Black Friday kickstarted the holiday shopping season, customers shopped local for Small Business Saturday in Southbury.
“It’s been an amazing opportunity,” Marla Wayne, owner of Dripability, said.
An opportunity she’s grateful for, having her pop-up store Dripability open for the holiday season in Southbury. It sells clothes and tote bags which drew customers in for Small Business Saturday with a wider impact.
“We have a lot of local folks coming in and we also have a staff here who are young adults with special needs who are being trained in vocational skills,” Wayne said.
Skills that include training them for a possible future in retail.
“They’re going to learn how to ship, track orders, make the product, follow through with customers,” she said.
Customers say they appreciate the in-person interactions of stores like Wayne’s.
“Just to be able to come into a store and speak to people face to face, it’s worthwhile,” Tony Barile, of Middlebury said.
An American Express study showed 86 percent of shoppers surveyed say they’ll be shopping at small businesses, with many saying they’re essential to their community. It’s what owner Julie Lasky felt on Saturday at her gift shop, Alaska Company, just down the road.
“We have enjoyed every single person, and it has been a lot of fun enjoying them and seeing them come in here in a nostalgic store,” she said.
Lasky says during the day, people have been stopping by to shop for gifts or to pick up products directly from Alaska, her home state.
“They have been coming in and having a great time coming in here seeing this store, and just how old-fashioned it looks,” she said.
Lasky says it means so much to see the support from local customers.
“We really do appreciate you guys. It really helps people bring their dreams alive,” she said.
