Small Business Saturday is an opportunity to celebrate local businesses, and to encourage consumers to shop local. 

For entrepreneurs, it can be an opportunity to get new customers and increase sales.

But making Small Business Saturday a success isn’t without costs. Creating a financial plan for Small Business Saturday can help you make sure that your business is really ready for the holiday season.

What is Small Business Saturday?

Small Business Saturday is an annual event held on the Saturday after Thanksgiving in the United States. Created in 2010 by American Express, it encourages consumers to support independently-owned local small businesses during the busy holiday shopping season. It aims to spotlight small businesses and their vital role in communities, positioning itself as a counterpart to Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

In 2024, Small Business Saturday falls on November 30. 

For local businesses, Small Business Saturday offers a unique opportunity to boost sales and visibility. By participating, small business owners can tap into a national movement that promotes shopping locally. This event often brings increased foot traffic, media attention, and community support, potentially leading to higher revenues and new customer relationships. 

Additionally, many small businesses use this day to showcase their unique products, personalized service, and community involvement, helping them stand out in an increasingly competitive retail landscape dominated by large online shopping and box box stores. 

Managing Cash Flow During the Holidays

Managing cash flow during the holidays can be challenging. While holiday sales may bring in revenue, expenses often increase—before those sales take place. Your business may need additional working capital for: 

• Inventory and supplies,
• Money for marketing campaigns,
• Additional staffing,
• Funds for giveaways or other special offers

Spending on these efforts to promote your business can add up quickly. And while this one day is important, the entire holiday season can be financially stressful if you’re not well prepared. 

Types of Financing To Have Ready for Small Business Saturday

There are many types of small business loans and financing available to small businesses. Short-term financing tends to be the best type of business financing for working capital needs. The goal is to pay it back fairly quickly, so you don’t incur a lot of interest charges that cut into profit margins. 

With that in mind, here are a few options that can be a good fit: 

Business line of credit

When you get a business line of credit, you have a certain amount of credit when you need it. You can use as much as you need, and only pay interest on the amount you borrow. Having a line of credit available for seasonal events can be a smart way to be ready for the unexpected. 

Business credit cards

Think about getting a business credit card before the holidays. First, most cards give you time to pay for purchases (as much as two billing cycles depending on the terms of the card and when you time your purchase). 

Business credit cards with 0% intro APRs can offer several months of interest-free financing, which can be helpful for financing purchases you’ll pay off with revenue from your Small Business Saturday sales. 

As an added bonus, many business credit cards allow you to earn cash back or points which can be used for flights, hotels, and more.

Finally, most small business credit cards are available to sole proprietorships and startups, as long as the business owner who applies qualifies. Many issuers consider personal credit scores (rather than business credit scores) as well as income from all sources, not just the business. 

Business loans

Small business loans are also a common financing option for businesses. There are a lot of options so choose carefully. A 5-year term loan, for example, wouldn’t be a good choice if you’re paying for inventory. But it could be a good choice for new packaging equipment that cuts your labor costs. 

Business cash advances

Another popular type of short-term financing is business cash advances, or merchant cash advances. Here, the financing company looks at your business’ past sales and uses that to advance funds against future cash flow. 

This type of financing can be fast and easy to get, and don’t usually require good credit. But it can also be expensive, so if you think this is the right type of financing for your business, make sure that the ROI justifies it. 

Vendor terms

Your suppliers may offer payment terms that let your business buy goods or services and pay for them later. This is a popular type of short-term financing and can prove very useful during the holidays. Vendor terms can range from net-10 to net-180 or longer. (Net-30 terms means you have 30 days from the invoice date to pay.) 

A personal credit check is rarely required and if the lender reports payment activities, this financing can help your business establish business credit. 

Also read: 7 Tips to Prepare Financially for Small Business Saturday

FAQs Small Business Saturday

How do businesses promote their small business on Small Business Saturday?

There are a lot of ways for small businesses to promote themselves on Small Business Saturday. 

If you have a bricks and mortar store, consider setting up signage outside the store and putting up posters in the windows and around the store to let people know that Small Business Saturday is coming up. Talk to business organizations in your local community (such as your local Chamber of Commerce) and other small businesses to see how you can work together to generate excitement and sales for the holidays. 

Online businesses can consider setting up online pop-ups or changing their website look for the day.

All businesses can get free promotional material from the US Small Business Administration, leverage social media posts, offer special discounts, create special promotions, and use email marketing to send out special offers. 

What is the benefit for small businesses to participate in Small Business Saturday?

Small Business Saturday can be a great way to sell more to your loyal customers, and attract potential customers. 

To get the full benefits make sure you prepare early and develop a plan. If you haven’t prepared for Small Business Saturday specifically, but have a plan for holiday promotions, you can use that as a starting point. 

Read: Small Business Saturday: The Business Owner’s Guide

How much do people spend on Small Business Saturday?

According to American Express, last year (in 2023) an estimated $17 billion dollars was spent at independent retailers and restaurants and an estimated $201 billion has been spent across the past 13 Small Business Saturdays. 

This can be a big day for many small businesses so make sure your small business is ready to participate this November.

Is Small Business Saturday still a thing?

Yes, Small Business Saturday is absolutely still a thing. Small Business Saturday was started by American Express in 2010 to encourage consumers to shop at small businesses during the Holiday season and after great success has continued ever since.

 If you want to participate in Small Business Saturday either as a vendor or shopper, it occurs on the last Saturday of November so make sure you plan ahead. Consumers can find small businesses through the SBA, social media (search hashtag #SmallBusinessSaturday), an internet search, etc. 

Businesses can order free small  business marketing material through the SBA and talk to their local Chamber of Commerce to see if they may offer additional promotional materials. 

How Nav Can Help

Nav can help your business view top financial options from 160+ trusted loans and credit cards based on your business data. Nav also helps you manage your cash flow and credit together, all in one place.

With Nav Prime, you’ll get a comprehensive view of your business and personal credit with detailed credit reporting, and tradeline reporting to help boost business credit scores.