WACO, Texas — The holiday hustle is in full swing with Hanukkah just days away and Christmas 28 days away. This season when you're picking out gifts, don't forget to shop local. After Black Friday comes Small Business Saturday.
Chris and Michelle Hill are the owners of Sparrow, a vintage goods and antiques store in Waco. They want to remind people the importance of supporting local.
"The local community has been so supportive, we have been blessed with that," Michelle Hill said.
They said they are going into Saturday with a lot to be thankful for.
"In less than a year, it kind of blew out at the seams and we actually had to look for a bigger space. So we moved here," Chris Hill said about their new 8,000 square foot location in Downtown Waco.
They believe the holidays are great for business and a good time to buy from local shops.
"We have a lot of local artisans from oil painters, all the way down to jewelry makers and wood makers and they're all from Waco," Michelle Hill said.
They also have loyal customers who come through all year round.
"We get a lot of the tourist crowd that comes through, but they don't buy the big pieces. They buy one or two pieces so we have a lot of locals that come in almost every week just to see what's new because we constantly changing our inventory," Chris Hill said.
Another shop is Mainstream Boutique, also located in Downtown Waco. It has been around six years, but in November 2020, Gina Mitchell became the owner.
"For this to have been my first year, it has been phenomenal," Mitchell said.
She said when you shop local, you're not only getting personalized customer service, but you're supporting your neighbors as well.
"We really get to know our customers and we really care about our customers and we have customers all over the country thanks to the tourism here. I have developed relationships with people from states all over and I just love that," Mitchell said.
In Waco, Christmas at the Silos kicked off on Black Friday at Magnolia Market.
Mitchell said any time Magnolia has an event here, it trickles down to other shops in town, but the biggest support comes from Central Texans.
"It's just been wonderful. We love our local Wacoans," Mitchell said.
Mainstream Boutique Waco website: https://mainstreamboutique.com/
Sparrow Waco website: https://sparrow-waco.com/