The tradition of shopping with small, locally owned businesses on the Saturday after Thanksgiving will feature three activities-in-one for Hopkinsville this year.
In addition to Shop Small Saturday promoting all independent businesses in the city, there’s also Christmas Market on the Square and the Downtown Stroll, Sip and Shop.
The Downtown Renaissance District and the Christian County Chamber of Commerce have been involved in promotions to “celebrate the 2021 holiday season and 12th annual Small Business Saturday by supporting our locally owned small businesses, encouraging our residents to invest their dollars locally and partnering with those businesses for a community-wide day of fun and festivities,” a press release states.
Mayor Wendell Lynch and Christian County Judge-Executive Steve Tribble issued a Small Business Saturday proclamation earlier this month.
American Express created Shop Small Saturday in 2010 to promote the importance of small businesses and bring more holiday businesses to independent shops during the Great Recession.
Other business groups, such as the National Retail Federation, also promote small businesses over the Thanksgiving weekend. The federation estimates 186.4 million people shopped from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday in 2020.
Downtown Hopkinsville is the center of many holiday traditions, and Saturday kicks off shopping with Stroll, Sip and Shop, co-sponsored by the Downtown Renaissance District and J. Schrecker Jewelry on South Main Street.
“Participants will have the opportunity to enter for gift card drawings from a variety of small businesses, receive a free caricature drawing of themselves, stroll through the Downtown Farmers Market, enjoy holiday open house events, sip on signature craft cocktails, mocktails and beer, all while supporting the businesses who keep our local economy going strong,” the release states.
The Christmas Market on the Square will have wreaths, Christmas ornaments, holiday jewelry, crafts and candles from local shops and artisans, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Vendors will also be selling winter vegetables, a variety of meats, baked goods and jams and jellies. (A second Christmas Market will be at the same time on Dec. 11.)
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. She spent 30 years as a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition.
