BRYAN, TX — This holiday season will be crucial for some small business in an attempt to end the year strong.
However with the end of the year comes stress as businesses hope preparing for a holiday rush will bring a big return.
”We were kind of anxious in our ordering this year, but we decided that, you know, Christmas is what makes a retail business, so we thought, you know, let's go for it and just have hope,” said Candace Scott, co-owner of Birds Nest Gifts and Antiques.
As the downtown Bryan area begins to set up Christmas decor, excitement is in the air and businesses are beginning to see the turnout.
”People have already started shopping for Christmas. We have our Christmas tree up. It’s probably early, earlier than we normally have had it up, but we’re seeing people already come in,” said Scott.
Not only are the holidays back but so are First Fridays. On the first Friday of every month, the community gathers in the downtown area for live music and a chance to shop at their favorite local stores.
”I’d say the last two Fridays, as far as our business and our sales, are reflective of what the first Fridays were prior to COVID,” said Scott.
These events coordinated by the Downtown Bryan Association help attract the community to the downtown area to support the local small businesses.
”Of course, we're all about small business here in downtown and the whole community of Bryan, so we’re really excited to promote Small Business Saturday," said Abigail Noel, public relations and communications manager for Destination Bryan. "I know of a lot of specials that are already happening. Some business owners have been teasing us with their specials for that whole weekend.”
Residents like Kristin Pewitt, who is looking forward to checking out the local toy stores for her holiday shopping, thinks it’s important to support local small business during this difficult time.
”I think it is important to shop local just because of how hard they’ve been affected. We’ve all been kind of hurt in different ways and just to help out our local community is really important,” said Pewitt.
This holiday season, the Downtown Bryan Association has some fun events like Lights On, where you can enjoy a stroll in the downtown area and witness the holiday spirit with a flip of a switch.