Many Americans are shopping small Saturday to support mom-and-pop clothing, toy, furniture, sporting goods, hardware and electronics’ stores.
But this year’s Small Business Saturday promotion is unlikely to change the fortunes of independent shops in America, which have diverged dramatically from their larger rivals.
Small retailers have been squeezed out throughout the pandemic and are at a significant disadvantage navigating the current supply chain crisis, rising inflation and the shortage of workers, said retail analysts and supply chain experts.
First, as Covid-19 spread last year, many small shops did not meet the criteria of “essential” businesses and had to close down. Their larger competitors such as Walmart (WMT), Target (TGT), Costco (COST), Home Depot (HD) and others were able to stay open.
