Well, that's not entirely true.
Saturday is Small Business Saturday, the day when we consumers are urged to patronize and support small business owners and their struggles. This sounds great in theory, so I head to one of my favorite small shop spots -- Newburyport, Massachusetts.
Newburyport is loaded with small, eclectic shops, and it's fun to peruse through them. I have a particular mission in mind, so I make a bee-line for that one particular shop. It is both better and worse than I expect. The owners are pleasant and accommodating, and the selection is better than I anticipated. However, the shop is NOT offering ANY special sales for Small Business Saturday.
This trend of "no extra discount" pretty much sums up my Newburyport experience. Only one shop is offering extra sales on their stock. Naturally, I spend money there. I spend money at several places and try to reason with myself for the ultimate stupidity of these small business owners: This sales holiday is for their benefit, not mine; Offer some goddamned discounts. Even a simple 10% off total purchases, as cheap as that is, would've been a kind gesture.
This pattern repeats itself back in my own town. The only place offering discounts is the chain toy store. Really? Truly? Are you people even serious right now?
Here's my decision on Small Business Saturday -- BITE ME.
Do I get some shopping done? Sure. Do I spend money I didn't need to spend? Sure. Do I find what I expected to find? Not really. Do I feel like the small businesses actually appreciated my money? Nope. Not even slightly.
Here's where the wine comes in, though. I am on my way home from Newburyport when I attempt to get to the wine shop for the Saturday tasting. Waze keeps insisting that there is a huge traffic jam ahead of me, which I cannot fathom since I'm on the backroads. Suddenly I see ahead of me three police cars and a firetruck. I see that the road is now closed. Thinking there must've been an accident, I stay in traffic and inch closer.
I. Am. So. Stupid.
There's no accident. It's the town's Santa Parade.
I cannot get over to the wine shop for the tasting. I could go later, and I have gone late in the past, arriving just in the knick of time. However, I have a long list of important things to get done today that includes bringing food to my daughter who accidentally knocked her fridge open and lost all of the food when running off to work after being called in early this morning. I can't really say, "Hey, I'd love to rescue you, but I have to go sip wine first..."
If after reading all of this you still need a wine recommendation, I highly recommend the Sterling Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley, California. Even though the wine didn't quite make it into the 90-points bracket, it is very close to that score across the board. Sterling cab sauv is a drinkable red that doesn't overpower the palate, and it goes well with turkey, possibly because its smooth taste compliments such foods as cranberry sauce and squash. Coming in somewhere around $20 a bottle, This is a great go-to wine when being invited somewhere and you need to bring a gift or help supply the home bar.
As for those other businesses, I understand that you're trying to make a buck or two off people on Small Business Saturday, but THIS is why you need a special day to encourage people to come in. Don't be so damn cheap about being too damn expensive, especially when you know a little bit of coinage in my pocket will encourage me to spend even more at your register.
Lesson learned.
