New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
SEASON ‘COULD BE VERY GOOD FOR US’
As holiday kicks off, local businesses hope to draw crowd-wary shoppers, but some fear a retreat to online
The economy was gripped in the midst of a recession 10 years ago when American Express launched a promotion to promote the virtues of patronizing small businesses on a weekend that generally is focused larger retailers.
Fast-forward to this year’s edition of Small Business Saturday, the day after Black Friday each year following Thanksgiving, and things look just as precarious, if not more. As businesses locally
“We’re small and a lot of people don’t want to go to the mall.”
Anita Bruscino, gift shop owner
and around the nation struggle with the effects of restrictions amid the coronavirus pandemic, one could argue the stakes for small businesses around Connecticut and across the country are even higher than they were a decade ago.
“I think right now, they
(small business owners) are trying to figure out how to tread water until the virus is under control,” said Donald Klepper-Smith, chief economist and director of research for
New Haven-based DataCore Partners.
American Express officials said a recent survey found that 62 percent of U.S. small-business owners reported they need to see consumer spending return to pre-COVID levels by the end of the year in order to stay in business. But until a vaccine for the virus is released and well distributed, it is unlikely small businesses will see that happen.
Part of the challenge that small businesses are faced with is covering their fixed costs, Klepper-Smith said,
“I don’t know what to think,” Anita Bruscino, owner of Elegant Touch Fine Gifts in Cheshire, said of her expectations for Small Business Saturday and the holiday shopping season as a whole.
“We’ve had a couple of months that were above the norm. And this holiday season could be very good for us because we’re small and a lot of people don’t want to go the mall,” she said.
Online sales were 100 percent of the business activity at Jean’s Closet in Norwalk during the first few months of the pandemic, said Jean Smith, whose business sells crocheted items and accessories.
That number declined significantly once state social distancing requirements loosened over the summer. But Smith said she expects to see a return to more online sales now because of the resurgence of the virus.
“I think that’s where we’re headed, not just now, but in the future,” she said.
Klepper-Smith said the increased focus on making online purchases during the pandemic is likely to result in permanent structural change to small businesses.
“Right now, they are making do with the staffing levels they have,” he said. “I think it will be at least a year or two before they begin to consider hiring people.”
Lauren Mahieu from Litchfield True Value has organized a Small Business Saturday event intended to highlight the town’s local businesses, and drive foot traffic to their brickand-mortar locations.
“A lot of small businesses had to close at some point during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Mahieu said. “This community and these businesses come together in a way I have never seen before. We always rally, we are always supportive of one another, and I just wanted to help.”
John LeTourneau, owner of Wallingford Lamp & Shade, said he is not convinced the national Small Business Saturday promotion has had much of an impact in Wallingford.
“Years ago, I stayed open for both the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving and nobody came in,” LeTourneau said. “People were more focused on the big-box stores.”
Businesses that participated in last year’s Small Business Saturday reported a record
$19.6 billion in spending, according to American Express officials. Over the 10 years the promotion has been in existence, consumers have spent more than $120 billion at small businesses.
The COVID-19 related cancellations of promotional events such as Celebrate Wallingford, the town’s annual Holiday
Stroll and the Christmas tree lighting ceremony, have had a more visible impact because they physically bring people past his storefront, LeTourneau said.
Despite the recent rise in COVID-19 cases here in Connecticut and elsewhere, some communities are moving ahead with their holiday promotions.
Such is the case in Middletown, which is going forward with a series of events spotlighting local businesses called “The Magic of Middletown.”
The series begins with a virtual tree-lighting Nov. 27 — Black Friday — and will include a decorated car parade called Dashing through Downtown on Dec. 4.
But even without the annual events promoting local businesses in Wallingford, LeTourneau said he actually has seen a surge in patronage since COVID-19 came to Connecticut in March.
“It has been the busiest I have been in 15 years and I’ve only been in business here for 20 years,” LeTourneau said.
Wallingford Lamp & Shade has two business lines: Selling vintage lamps and light shades as well as repairing lamps.
“My repair business is what is holding everything together,” he said. “If I were relying strictly on my retail business, I would say its slow. But people are spending more time in their homes and they’re seeing lamps that aren’t working properly and they think, ‘Maybe it’s time I get this repaired.’”
LeTourneau said the small businesses that are being hit the hardest during the pandemic are those without any kind of online presence.
“Internet sales are realigning the whole outlook of business,” he said. “It’s changing things so fast, it’s scary. At the very least, you need something online to let people know you’re out there.”