FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Connie Jackson at 862.253.8454
connie.jackson@eastorange-nj.gov
East Orange, NJ, Nov. 22, 2017: The City of East Orange is encouraging small businesses and restaurateurs to gear up for Small Business Saturday® on November 25 when people around the nation will be shopping and dining in their local neighborhoods.
“This weekend is traditionally one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year and we want to ensure that our business owners get off to a great start this holiday season,” said Mayor Lester E. Taylor III. “‘Shop small, dine small’ must be more than a slogan. When small businesses succeed, we all do.”
Mayor Taylor will be joined by special guests Congressman Donald Payne, Jr., Dominick Belfiore of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s New Jersey District Office, and members of the East Orange Chamber of Commerce and Central Avenue Business Improvement District on Friday, November 24, 2017, starting at 10:30am at 44 City Hall Plaza.
Beginning at 11am, the group will visit The Urban Cyclery Bike Shop, 337-339 Central Avenue, Ashley Stewart, 14 South Harrison Street, Elegant Eyes, 560 Main Street and Dolce Pizzeria, 76 Dodd Street, stopping approximately 15-20 minutes at each stop.
SCHEDULE
10:30 am Assemble at City Hall
10:50 am Depart City Hall
11:00 am Arrive Urban Cyclery
11:20 am Depart Urban Cyclery
11:25 am Arrive Ashley Stewart
11:45 am Depart Ashley Stewart
11:50 am Arrive Elegant Eyes
12:10 pm Depart Elegant Eyes
12:15 pm Arrive Dolce Pizzeria
12:50 pm Depart Dolce Pizzeria
1:00 pm Return to City Hall
According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, there are a little over 20,400 retailers in New Jersey that have between 1-19 employees. There are also another 48,442 retailers scattered throughout the state that are considered sole proprietors and have no employees. Small business retailers employ 154,032 workers throughout the state, which accounts for 34.6 percent of the 445,176 people employed by all retailers.
When a consumer spends $100 at a local small business, $68 stays in the local economy. However, if that same $100 is spent at a large big box business, only $43 stays in the local economy, said SBA officials.
Congressman Donald Payne, Jr. is a staunch supporter of supporting small businesses and their owners.
“Small businesses are the backbone of our local economy. I have worked diligently to foster economic justice among women- and minority-owned small businesses in communities like East Orange, and to ensure equal access to the capital small businesses need to compete,” said Congressman Donald M. Payne, Jr. “It is a privilege for me to speak one-on-one with small business owners to find out how I can help them succeed.”
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Sandwiched between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Small Business Saturday®, which was started by American Express in 2010, has given a big boost to small business owners across the country. Last year, 95 million people went out to shop small and spent a total of $16.2 billion in local shops and restaurants, a 14 percent increase over 2014.
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