Local Businesses Prepare For Holiday Shopping Weekend

While many are enjoying their turkey on Thanksgiving, many small business owners are cutting their feasts short to get ready for what they hope to be a busy shopping weekend.

Big box stores have traditionally claimed Black Friday for themselves; however, small businesses have begun to partake in the shopping holiday as well.

Having began as an exclusively online clothing store last year, XO Clothing Boutique in Ocean Springs opened its storefront last Friday just in time to welcome shoppers for the holiday season.

The mother-daughter run store has been preparing day and night for their special Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday sales.

Owner of XO Clothing Boutique Jamie Rhodes said, “It’s our biggest day of the entire year. Over the holidays is the most important time of the year for us small businesses. I think it’s more important to support your local small businesses versus the big box stores because we are your moms and pops of not just the Mississippi Gulf Coast or the South, but throughout the nation.”

Shopping local over the weekend and throughout the holidays also gives local stores a boost in sales to get them through until the summer season when tourists return.