Community Corner

Optimism on the Rise as Brooklyn Retailers Head Into Holiday Shopping Season

Despite negative economic outlook nationally, small business owners are bullish as Black Friday approaches

With the recent collapse of debt deal negotiations in Washington, D.C., steep stock market losses and persistent fears of a double-dip recession, it would seem that Brooklyn small business owners would be dreading the official start of this year's holiday shopping season come Black Friday.

Think again.

Many small business owners from Bed-Stuy to Park Slope and many places in between reported high hopes for the season, which comes after two particularly dismal holiday shopping years in the wake of 2008's worldwide financial crisis. 

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“Last year at this time it was like a ghost town around here, but we have about five more businesses open on this block, so it feels great," said Chris Yanatiba, owner of Yanatiba, a gift shop on the corner of Washington Avenue and Prospect Place in Prospect Heights.

For Tia Jackson, owner of on Malcolm X Boulevard in Bed-Stuy, the start of the holiday shopping season was an opportunity to make her customers feel special.

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"I call it 'Pink Friday,' because we’re fabulous, and I didn’t want my customers to feel that because I’m a small boutique that we can’t participate in the same kind of sales," Jackson said.

The stakes couldn't be higher for small businesses weathering an anemic economic recovery after years of recession.

According to Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Carl Hum, fourth quarter holiday sales can account for as much as 50 percent of total revenue for small businesses.

"This retail season is going to be a real barometer if we are going into a recession again," Hum said. "You can’t overstate the importance of this season."

However, not all small business owners put the same 'do-or-die' emphasis on Black Friday, which has turned into a slugfest between big retailers over who can offer the lowest prices at the earliest time.

“I am not going to be gearing up for crowds,” said Eric Mudick, the owner of , a shoe store on Seventh Avenue in Park Slope. “I think small stores partake in Black Friday, but in their own way.”

As for shoppers, enthusiasm was high for Black Friday. However, it seemed big-box stores would be the biggest beneficiary of the renewed holiday cheer.

“I think Black Friday is great. I am going to get a 50-inch TV I would never be able to afford," said Mike Sanchez of Carroll Street, who said he planned to go to Best Buy as early as possible Friday.

Sanchez's excitement over new gadgets could be the theme of this year's holiday season, which even more than in years past, will be dominated by sales of electronics, according to Harry Stucke, director of 's MBA program.

"People are spending money," Stucke said. "It's just that they're spending money on different things and it's really Internet retailers like Amazon.com that are seeing much of the growth. And that shouldn't be any different this season."

However, that doesn't mean small businesses like Kiwi, Eric and Johntines Boutique can't compete, according to Stucke.

"If you see a store that’s differentiated, offering something that you can’t get anywhere else, then that’s a winning recipe," he said.

Related Topics: Black Friday, Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, Carl Hum, Economics, Eric, Holiday Shopping Season, Johntines Boutique, Recession, and kiwi


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