To the Editor:

On behalf of Franklin Southampton Economic Development Inc., the Franklin-Southampton Area Chamber of Commerce and the Downtown Franklin Association, we are proud to announce the first official Franklin Southampton Area Small Business Saturday was a smashing success! The turnout from area and out-of-town shoppers was overwhelming. Debbie Crowder, owner of The Cat’s Meow in Downtown Franklin, was thrilled with Small Business Saturday and shared, “We cannot thank everyone enough for the support of Small Business Saturday. The community effort by Franklin Southampton Economic Development, the Franklin-Southampton Area Chamber, the Downtown Franklin Association and local businesses enabled us to have one of our best days since we opened in 2012. Everyone did an outstanding job getting the word out early and helping to promote shopping small on Small Business Saturday. Our customers are the best! It is amazing what can be done when we all work together.”

Our three organizations are very proud and humbled by the support and participation we received during our first official Small Business Saturday. We would all like to thank each and every business who participated and helped make this special day a huge success. Another thank you that we cannot over look is our local community members who promised to Shop Small and did just that this past Saturday. Local small businesses have been a steadfast and essential part of our community. They provide good jobs to local citizens and support the communities that they are so much a part of. Again, we are so thrilled to have had a great turnout for our first year participating in Small Business Saturday and we hope that next year will be even more successful. With that in mind, we all know Small Business Saturday has now come and gone, but we shouldn’t forget how important it is to shop within our own communities. Every day can be a day to shop small and spend local and as the holiday shopping season continues keep in mind that for every $100 spent locally, roughly $68 stays in our local economy. Again, thank you for your support of the Franklin Southampton community.

Best regards,
Amanda Jarratt
Teresa Beale
Dan Howe