Over the past year one of our most-asked questions has been, “How is your business doing?” We are so thankful our answer is “business is good and our local community has been incredibly supportive.”
All of the downtown Sylva merchants are looking forward to seeing you on Shop Small Saturday, November 26. Many businesses will be open late to celebrate the holiday season and help you take care of your shopping list. Here are just a few reasons you can feel good about supporting small businesses:
• When you shop local more of your money stays local – when you buy from a local business much of that money is used to make purchases from other local businesses.
We are proud to use products from Heinzelmannchen Brewery, Happy-Go-Lucky Foods, and The Convenient Market in our chocolates. We are fortunate to have a few examples of the amazing craftsmanship you can find in It’s By Nature as well as local photography available for purchase by local photographer Mark Haskett. Lulu’s on Main Street carries our toffee in their jaw dropping Chocolate Lava Brownie dessert and you can stop in Heinzelmannchen Brewery to try 4 of our chocolates expertly paired with 4 of their beers. We love working with our neighbors!
• Go Green – shopping local cuts back on pollution. Downtown shops are located in beautiful historic buildings within walking distance of each other. Less congestion, packaging and transportation waste helps preserve the natural beauty of our mountains.
• One-of-a-kind local shops give our community its unique character. You can come in and talk to the person who makes the product. Local owners are proud of their wares and have the knowledge you need when making a purchase.
• Support community groups – our local businesses believe in giving back to the community.
If you made a purchase from Baxley’s Chocolates this year then you also helped support wonderful local organizations like Circles of Hope, Clean Slate, The Canary Coalition, Community Table, Good Samaritan Clinic, REACH, Habitat for Humanity, North Carolina Conservation Network, Cullowhee Mountain Arts, WCU’s College of Fine and Performing Arts, Southwestern Community College Foundation, Smokey Mountain High School Band, Vecinos Farmworker Health Program, Relay for Life, and the Smokey Mountain Quilting Group.
So on Saturday have a nice meal at one of our outstanding restaurants and come visit our shops. You are doing something good for yourself, your local shop owner and your community. We can’t wait to see you!