This day after Thanksgiving, as you sleep off your turkey hangover, the scariest aunts in America will rally in the wee hours to duke it out for deals at Target and K-Mart, fanny packs a burstin’, the promise of huge Christmas sales on cheap merchandise goading them forward. Want something else to be thankful for? You don’t have to join them! You can get your holi-deals the next day, on Small Business Saturday.
While we’re scarcely in the position to snub discount shopping, Small Business Saturday is a nifty alternative to Big Scary Capitalism Day. Instead of waging war in the home electronics aisle of a megastore, you can browse peacefully at local businesses borough-wide. Just like last year, the Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership and the Fulton Area Business Alliance are leading the celebration in their respective hoods. The Fifth Avenue BID provides a list of participating businesses in Park Slope, and you can also check out this map from American Express to highlight all the businesses in your own neck of the woods welcoming local dollars on the day.
In addition to the normal Small Business Saturday festivities, be sure not to forget about all the bookstores in Brooklyn taking part in the IndiesFirst program, during which you might get rung up by your favorite author while buying their book. And take note that Saturday evening culminates with a magic Christmas tree lighting at S’Nice (315 5th Avenue), at 6pm. The Fifth Avenue BID is also hosting this leg of the shin-dig, which promises live music, Santa and a performance by the Puppetry Arts Theatre.
Holiday shopping is ridiculously stressful any way you slice it…but it’s always better to spend your limited funds in those places that give credit and character to our hood. So down with the fanny packs! (Or, even better, tell your aunt to sleep in Friday, too – then you can bargain-hunt together in the ever fam-friendly cuteness of Brooklyn shops!)