Small Business Saturday supports local shops amid online surge

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The start of the holiday shopping season is upon us. Online shopping is expected to be huge again this year, but it can also come at a cost to the little guy. Which is exactly why Small Business Saturday was started 15 years ago.

"It does help support local and it's a good idea if you have gifts you need to buy," said one shopper in downtown Austin.

Software company Adobe estimates that people will spend nearly $11 billion on Nov. 30 and Dec. 1. Most of that spending will go to big box retailers and online sellers, but not to local small business.

"It's really smart for small businesses who don't have the advantage of some of these big retailers and stores to combine powers," said Donika Toncheva, marketing manager for Austin's 2nd Street District.

The 2nd Street District was busy Saturday with plenty of people trying to find the perfect gift while spending their money locally. That can also be a tough feat with so many people opting to buy on their phone, versus in a store.

"People will travel to something that's unique and special," Toncheva said. "So trying to come up with that on the back end of how to make the experience unique and special for folks, and worth traveling for, has been a challenge but a fun challenge."

In fact, many stores got creative in order to bring in the foot traffic; one such shop is ATown, which offered a free gift with each purchase.

While there's nothing like a brick-and-mortar shopping experience mobile buying continues to grow year over year.

"We encourage our 2nd Street businesses to lean into that, too, and make both aspects as good as they can be," Toncheva added.