Southern Ill. retailers gear up for busiest shopping time of the year

MARION, Ill. (KFVS) - It’s the busiest time of the year for retailers as many are gearing up for holiday shopping later this week.

Retailers told us on Tuesday, November 22 that Black Friday and Small Business Saturday are the kickoffs to their busiest time of the year.

“We’re hoping that everybody chooses to shop local,” Sheri Donahue, owner of Spitting Image Boutique in Marion, said.

With the current state of the economy, Donahue is still hoping for a big turnout.

“For any retailer that’s the boost, that’s the bread and butter for the year. So we’re really hoping that people choose to shop local and just help support all of the small businesses around southern Illinois, they really need it right now,” Donahue said.

As for staffing, Donahue said she isn’t having an issue finding staffing and neither is Lavish Bath Box in Marion.

“I think that is something that a lot of small businesses are experiencing right now. I find myself very lucky that it’s just me and a very small team and I got some great ones and so hopefully that won’t change anytime soon,” owner Katie Fowler said.

From bath bombs to soaps, Fowler said she is already seeing an uptick in sales before the big shopping weekend.

“We’ve already started to see it a little bit and you know obviously with Black Friday being the biggest shopping day of the year, we’re always hoping to get a little piece of that action as well,” Fowler added.

Both businesses are excited for the upcoming gift giving season.

“We’re really excited for the busy season, we’re very excited for this weekend, this will be our fourth Black Friday small business Saturday events,” Donahue said.

One example of how businesses are trying to attract more customers is both Lavish Bath Box and Spitting Image Boutique are two of 12 businesses participating in the 4th annual Holiday Shop Hop in Marion.

Shoppers can enter a raffle to win a raffle for a grand prize shopping spree with a $1,200 value.

But how do you win? Shoppers will pick up your Shop Hop card at any of the participating locations to get started. Have your card stamped at the register (no purchase necessary) at each location. Once completed, you can turn it in at any participating store at the register in exchange for a discount voucher redeemable one time at participating stores.

The grand prize shopping spree winner will be selected from the completed cards at random and announced after the event.

For more information on the Shop hop, you can find that here.

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