Call to shop local – cheap at the price!

SHOP Local this Christmas and take advantage of the council’s special parking offer

Shoppers are being urged to support local businesses as the countdown to Christmas begins in earnest.

West Lancashire Borough Council and DiscoverOrmskirk. com are supporting Small Business Saturday UK on December 2, part of a national campaign to encourage people to shop local and support small businesses.

The lifeblood of the economy, small businesses are a big part of what makes towns and villages such unique and appealing places to live, shop and work.

The first weekend of December is one of the busiest shopping times of the year, when towns, villages and markets are bustling with activity.

Small Business Saturday is a great opportunity to support and celebrate the quality of small businesses and all that they bring to our local economy in West Lancashire.

Councillor Ian Moran, leader of the council and portfolio holder for economic regeneration, said: “We are delighted to support Small Business Saturday and celebrate our much-loved small businesses.

“With Christmas lights casting a festive glow and creating a wonderful atmosphere in many of our local towns, there won’t be a nicer place to shop.

“Supporting small businesses fits in with a key priority of the council plan for the authority to be ambitious for the local economy, and to retain and grow jobs.”

With a number of shops having recently opened in Ormskirk town centre, including Blue Lily Fashion boutique and Hayes Travel, it really is a great time to visit the town.

According to the organising body: Customers spent £717m with small businesses on Small Business Saturday, an increase of 15% on 2015 spending

Over 140,000 tweets were sent on the day, reaching 130 million people, trending on Twitter in the UK and globally.

Helen Suarez, the owner of Hello Baby Ormskirk, said: “I am supporting the Small Business Saturday campaign and would encourage people to shop local and support small businesses, not just on Small Business Saturday but all year round, it is crucial to their survival as well as to our town centres.”

To further encourage shoppers to come into Ormskirk, West Lancashire Borough Council is offering visitors to the town the chance to save money when using council car parks in Ormskirk (see panel).

If your business is running a special offer for Small Business Saturday, DiscoverOrmskirk.com will add your offer to their business page, to find out more visit: www.DiscoverOrmskirk.com/ business.

For more information on how the council supports businesses visit: www.westlancs.gov.uk/ business.