By Shelby Stewart-Soldan
Staff Writer
Ortonville — The Ortonville Downtown Development Authority is encouraging people to shop small for Small Business Saturday on Nov. 25.
“We always seem to have a great response from the public on Small Business Saturday, but certainly throughout the holiday shopping season,” said Ortonville DDA Director Matt Jenkins.
Small Business Saturday is the last day to participate in the Oakland County Local Gems Sweepstakes. Patrons can take a photo of their favorite small business that they deem a ‘local gem’ and enter it at oakgov.com/shop small for the chance to win the grand prize of $1,000, second place of $500, or third place of $25. There are also three Ortonville specific prizes of $250, $100, and $50 of downtown dollars.
“It’s important for us to have these efforts periodically during the year, making sure that we remind consumers that small businesses are what really create our local economy and drive the economy across the country,” said Jenkins.
The DDA businesses will also have scratch and win cards available with a purchase.
“It is designed to be an add-on purchase,” said Jenkins. “They get the scratch off card for their next visit to bring people back between Thanksgiving and Christmas to take advantage of the certificate or the five or ten dollars off that they win.”
Many of the businesses will have pop-up vendors inside, so be sure to stop into each store.
Small Business Saturday was created by American Express in 2010 as a way to help revive the economy following the recession in 2008.
“American Express took it upon themselves to create this movement,” said Jenkins. “The next year, congress passed a resolution in support of it.”
To participate in Small Business Saturday, shop the businesses in downtown Ortonville on Nov. 25.