Evansville, Ind. (WFIE) – Black Friday and Small Business Saturday are now behind us, and local small businesses have told us they look forward to those days to boost their desired business growth.
The Sixth and Zero boss said people most often associated Black Friday with big box retailers, but smaller, more personal stores also benefited. Some, like Sixth and Zero, have even adapted and found ways to benefit from Cyber Monday.
Mary Allen owns Sixth and Zero, which sells shampoos, soaps, detergents, and more; some of which they make in-house. Also, Black Friday and Small Business Saturday are big.
“This is our biggest sale day, traditionally our biggest sale day of the year, and this year didn’t disappoint,” Allen said.
She said they hit five times their daily sales goal on Saturday, and they made more sales this Black Friday than they did last year, well beyond a typical Friday.
She said her business has much lower profit margins than larger retailers, so she can’t offer the same level of discounts, but said there are benefits to being a small business, too.
“We know we can’t compete with the big box stores, but what we do try and deliver and what I think is really special is the engagement and interaction with the customers we know by name, they come to know us by name and we can ask about their day ,” Allen said.
Mary said that as the business grew, loyal customers sometimes left and they became more reliant on online orders. This gave her an opportunity to participate in Cyber Monday by offering free shipping. She is careful not to make the online ordering process impersonal.
“We’ll put a little tea bag, a little note, a note with every order, maybe a small sample of something else they didn’t order; so even if it’s an order that’s shipping to another state, we’re still Will try to add those personal touches,” Allen said.
Mary said the money spent on small businesses has an immediate impact on the community. She said she was dancing with joy after making enough deals to be sure.
Allen said the majority of their sales are still in-person, but as the store has grown, they have increasingly relied on online sales. She said 75 percent of their online orders this weekend came from new customers.
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