Small Business Saturday

This Saturday 4th December is Small Business Saturday.

Small Business Saturday is a campaign that highlights small business success, encouraging people to shop local and support the small businesses in their community. It has been publicly supported by the Prime Minister, the leader of the opposition, and the Mayor of London.

The grassroots campaign is run by Small Is Big CIC, a not-for-profit community interest company that exists to serve the interests of small businesses.

In its ninth year in the UK, the campaign has grown significantly with each passing year. In 2020, a record £1.1 billion was spent by 15.4 million people with small businesses on Small Business Saturday alone! Tweets posted in support of the campaign reached more than 100 million people, with #SmallBizSatUK and #SmallBusinessSaturday trending in the UK.

It’s lead supporter is American Express, which has a long history of championing the high street and founded the first-ever Small Business Saturday back in 2010 in the US. Last year, they offered a £5 credit to all customers with American Express cards who spent more than £10 at participating small businesses on the day. They have also recently launched a ‘Shop Small’ magazine in partnership with Courier, a leading voice in the sector and champion of small business.

It is also being supported by BT with their ‘Skills for Tomorrow’ skills programme, which provides free digital training to 10 million people, families, and businesses. Additional supporters include Cisco, Facebook, and Square.

The Small Business Saturday Tour 2021

The iconic Small Business Saturday Tour returned again this year, travelling to different towns and cities across the UK in the countdown to Small Business Saturday from the 1st November to 1st December. The tour kicked off at the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow before visiting 24 different towns to share the 6 million amazing small businesses across the UK and ending in London.

97% of small businesses say sustainability is important to their business, so the tour featured a fleet of eco vehicles that highlighted the sustainable switches many small businesses are making and considering. The fleet included an electric van, car and scooter, as well as a delivery-style push bike, and the entire tour will be zero emissions.

As well as in-person activity, the tour was adapted to our current lifestyles, including virtual workshops, webinars, live-streamed interviews and mentoring on business topics for the first time.

If you’re a small business of any kind, whether that’s a family business, local shop, online business, wholesaler, business service or small manufacturer, you can get involved too!

Check it out here.