Local stores plan deals for Small Business Saturday

LANSING – Alec Davis is hoping to draw a crowd at Summit Comics & Games on Small Business Saturday.

Saturday is the first-ever Local Comic Shop Day, where special edition comics will be on sale from titles such as The Avengers, Wolverine and Back to the Future.

“I’m expecting more people,” said Davis, the store's manager, who added that the shop typically fares better on Black Friday. “Putting Small Business Saturday next to (Black Friday) feeds off of those sales.”

Sales more than double during the holiday weekend for the comic store, Davis said. More than a decade of blockbuster movies has drawn a new generation to comics.

“Kids are growing up on these movies, and there are so many cartoons out there now,” Davis said, as he picked up an Avengers comic. “This comic is based off the cartoon of the movie.”

Small Business Saturday, started in 2010, is gaining momentum.

Last year, shoppers spent $14.3 billion across the county on Small Business Saturday, according to an estimate by American Express, which created the shopping holiday. That’s more than the $12.3 billion shoppers spent on Thanksgiving and Black Friday combined last year, according to Shoppertrak, which monitors spending at retail stores.

“There’s just a greater awareness of the buy local movement,” said Tim Daman, president and CEO of the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce.  “It’s a great way to support local businesses owners because they are your neighbors and your friends.”

The chamber has selected 19 Lansing area businesses to receive kits with balloons, banners, tote bags and other gifts to help drive more traffic on Small Business Saturday. Old Town General Store is among them.

“There’s a really big sentiment about buying local here, and I feel encouraged by the mood of shoppers I’ve talked to,” said Rhea Van Atta, the owner of Old Town General Store.

“There’s a certain part of the population that doesn’t want the rat race in the big stores,” she said. “There’s something about the down-hominess and personal service you get when you come to a place like this.”

Van Atta said sales typically jump 40 percent in the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Aside from the promotional items on Saturday, Old Town General Store will have free food samples, including baked goods from Glory Bee’s Sweet Treats, cheeses from Troll Smokehouse and syrup from Swallowtail Farm.

“It’s a great thing for people to support what we do,” Van Atta said. “It’s the one day we can come out and say ‘This is what we do,’ and it keeps the money they spend in the community.”

Contact Alexander Alusheff at (517) 388-5973 or aalusheff@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexalusheff.

Chamber-sponsored stores on Small Business Saturday

Preuss Pets, Medawar Jewelers Frandor, Old Town General Store, Glazed & Confused, Meat Southern BBQ Carnivore Cuisine, Juice Nation, The Cosmo’s, Country Stitches, Cravings Popcorn – Old Town, We Love Kids N Dogs, Guitar Center, Dusty’s Cellar, Cutco, Moneyball Sportswear, Medawar Jewelers, Cravings Popcorn – Okemos, Kositchek’s, Playmakers, Zaytoon Mediterranean