MONEY

Local stores prepping for Small Business Saturday

Lindsay VanHulle
lvanhulle@lsj.com

LANSING – Teresa Wren believes running a small business gives her an advantage when it comes to holiday shopping.

On Black Friday — and, increasingly, on Thanksgiving Day — shoppers line up in droves at big-box stores to grab blockbuster deals on electronics, clothing and household goods.

But that leaves Saturday wide open for independently owned stores like hers: Kean's Store Co. in Mason has watched sales on what's been dubbed Small Business Saturday surpass those on Black Friday, even without offering discounts.

Wren has a theory.

"We're still swamped because they're catching on to that — just visit one or two small businesses that you maybe frequent or want to support," said Wren, the third generation of family members to own Kean's, which has been in business since 1928.

"All the people that shop in here are local, and all my employees are local, and we're all supporting each other."

If Wren's outlook sounds rosy, she's not alone. Nearly two-thirds of Michigan's retailers are expecting holiday sales to top last year, based on a survey conducted in part by the Michigan Retailers Association trade group. Roughly 35 percent expect sales will be up to 5 percent better than in 2013.

Kean's, for instance, extended hours on Saturdays from 5:30 p.m. until 8 p.m. in November and December. Wren has hired five seasonal workers above the 22 regular employees, and she's still worried they won't have enough help. Some family members will help with gift-wrapping and carrying bags to customers' cars, she said.

Grand Rapids-based Schuler Books & Music, which has stores in Meridian Mall and Eastwood Towne Center, has hired extra seasonal staffers, extended hours and hopes for higher sales this holiday season, said Tim Smith, the chain's operations manager.

"Taken as a whole, these individual forecasts reflect the type of year Michigan's retail industry has experienced: Overall progress with a bumpy ride along the way," James Hallan, Michigan Retailers Association's president and CEO, said in a statement. "It's no surprise to see retailers projecting better holiday sales, but showing restraint in their projections."

New York-based credit card company American Express Co. has supported Small Business Saturday as a way to get shoppers to visit locally-owned stores in their communities. It's part of a huge holiday shopping burst around Thanksgiving that includes traditional Black Friday deals and online retailers' promotions on the Monday after Thanksgiving, known as Cyber Monday.

In a recent consumer survey, American Express and the National Federation of Independent Business found that 31 percent of holiday buys will come from small businesses, and two-thirds of shoppers say they value local businesses' contributions to their communities.

Black Friday

With major retailers expanding Black Friday sales throughout the month of November, most shoppers won't head to stores the day after Thanksgiving, according to a Bankrate.com survey out last week.

Just 28 percent of shoppers plan to hit stores on Black Friday, though 40 percent of those surveyed plan to shop when you include online shopping, Bankrate found in its survey of 1,000 adults.

Most of the big retailers plan to open on Thanksgiving, a trend that's grown in popularity in recent years and has pushed shopping earlier in the week. This year, in particular, retailers are spreading major discounts on top products throughout the season. Walmart, Target, Amazon.com and Toys R Us are all among retailers that have already been pushing pre-Black Friday sales.

Major retailers including Macy's, Kmart, Walmart, Target and Kohl's all will open Thanksgiving evening.

Meridian Mall at Okemos will open at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving and close at 10 p.m. on Black Friday. Lansing Mall in Delta Township will open from 6 p.m. to midnight on Thanksgiving, reopening at 6 a.m. on Black Friday.

USA Today contributed to this report.