Credit card company's promotion focuses on mom-and-pop retailers

For Holiday 365 Florist and Gifts, this is the most wonderful time of the year.

From brightly lit trees and holiday-themed scented candles to a steady stream of holiday music, Holiday 365 on Cape Girardeau's Main Street is alive with Christmas spirit.

Owner David Bell said Black Friday, which kicks off the holiday shopping season, isn't designed for small retailers.

"Black Friday is geared for the mass merchants, not us," he said. "We don't feed into the hype of Black Friday; we treat it like any other day."

Business still seemed pretty good at Bell's store and many others along Main Street. Small businesses nationwide are picking up a little more attention this year.

While Friday may have been devoted to the deep discounted deals at the big chain stores, credit card company American Express Open was shining the spotlight on mom-and-pop shops, in the first Small Business Saturday. American Express offered a $25 credit to registered cardholders who shopped at small stores. Sure, the Facebook-led campaign served as an emotionally evocative marketing tool. But some downtown merchants said it's about time to give credit -- and sales -- where credit is due.

"Small business is still the backbone of the country," said Kent Zickfield, owner of Zickfield's Jewelry and Gifts. He estimated sales at his store as of late Saturday were up 20 percent from the same time last holiday season.

Small businesses represent 99.7 percent of all employer firms in the United States, according to the Small Business Administration.

Jebediah Morris of Cape Girardeau was giving small stores his business Saturday, unsure of what he was looking for but figuring he'd know the right gift when he saw it.

"I think it's vital to recycle my money into the local economy," Morris said. "That's pivotal to having any kind of healthy economy."

mkittle@semissourian.com

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