PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) – It’s the second day of Black Friday, but the shopping doesn’t stop there. More than 30 vendors opened the first-ever Small Business Saturday Pop-Up Market in Panama City on Saturday.
Maddie Cassell is the owner of Shop Otis’s Closet Boutique and event organizer for the market.
“I want to add more experiences for small businesses on Saturdays, it’s just another way for vendors to go out and sell there, there are already a lot of great opportunities today, but I want to add more experiences for our community,” Cassel said.
The event is held in the North Star Church parking lot near St. Andrews Avenue and 23rd Street.
Hannah Gutcher owns a coffee shop in the North Star Church. Small businesses cannot thrive without community involvement, she said.
“We’re excited to have this small business market in our parking lot. We’re a small business; you know we rely on the community to believe in us and come and try our product,” Gutcher said.
The fun isn’t limited to adults. The event is kid and dog friendly. Its specialty items include children’s clothing, handmade jewelry, ice cream, and even braids.
Vendors like Maggie Winkler, owner of The Home Plant Company, say pop-up markets are a great way to socialize and cross some names off holiday gift shopping lists.
“Since we don’t have a storefront, we’re here to show up, and it’s a great opportunity for other small businesses to come here and meet our community,” Winkler said. Great holiday gifts, presents, unique stuff and cool clothes that you can own. It’s a great opportunity to get your Christmas shopping done and support some of the local businesses here.”
Small Business Saturday is a national holiday established in 2010 to help boost the local economy.
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