Magazine Street welcomes Small Business Saturday shoppers

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - Before turning to the digital window shopping of Cyber Monday, thousands took to browsing this year’s hottest gifts at their favorite neighborhood spots.

Small Business Saturday in New Orleans boosted sales when shop owners say they need it most.

“We are all still clawing our way out of that scene,” said Georgia Wilson at The Bead Shop.

Wilson says a little goes a long way.

“If you have a guest in town and you walk down that street and you say, ‘Oh, let me take you to that shop,’ or ‘I love this restaurant. I always go there,’ if you don’t continue to support those places, those little places that you love won’t be there anymore,” Wilson said. “You can love them but you also have to support them financially.”

Next door at Home Malone, Savanah Phillips sells Christmas spirit with New Orleans flair.

“Our ornament section has been really big. We have poinsettia ornaments made out of crawfish and magnolias made out of gar fish scales,” Phillips said. “These are people who have a love for their art and a love for their craft. I don’t think you see that in a lot of big brand box offices.”

The National Retail Federation predicts more than 65 million shoppers will open their wallets for Small Business Saturday.

Diane Lundeen at Petcetera welcomed a steady crowd into her shop but says not everyone made a purchase.

But even with fewer sales, Lundeen says the increased foot traffic into her long-standing pet store makes a difference.

“I think we made a lot of fabulous connections and had a lot of fun with all the people that came to visit us,” Lundeen said.

It was the in-person visits that those shopping small can feel good about.

“We push online a lot. But the truth is online doesn’t give you good feelings. Online doesn’t know your name when you walk in the door and ask how your kids are doing,” Wilson said. “They’re not donating to your kids’ school fundraiser. So, all of the things we do, I hope makes a difference in what people think when they shop here.”