WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES DECEMBER 3, 2020 13
Pay it forward to small businesses this holiday season
BY SOPHIA KIM
Small businesses continue to feel
the grind of the pandemic and they’re
pounding the pavement for your support.
Which is why it’s more important
than ever to shop small this holiday season
by supporting small businesses.
The pandemic has wiped out small
businesses and they need a lifeline.
Washington has yet to achieve a solution
and to add to the uncertainty, President
Trump’s Treasury Secretary Steven
Mnuchin asked the Federal Reserve to
return unused coronavirus funds for
its emergency lending programs by the
end of the year, cutting off much-needed
liquidity from businesses, including the
Main Street Lending Program, during a
vulnerable economy.
That’s where you come in. This
OP-ED
holiday season, instead of buying
from a big-box retailer, support your
local small business. Small businesses
are nimble engines of the economy. In
New York City, 98 percent of businesses
are small and they employ nearly 3 million
New Yorkers or half of the city’s
workforce — a number that is being
decimated due to hardships related to
COVID-19.
According to one study, if you spend
$100 at a local business, about $68 stays
in the local economy — supporting local
tax revenue used for much-needed
government services — compared
to shopping at a non-local business,
where roughly $43 stays in the local
economy.
Not only do small businesses pack a
big economic punch, but small employers
also give back to the local community
by providing on-the-job training
to the people that live in your town,
encouraging new entrepreneurs. Let’s
not forget they also sponsor your local
Little League, too.
While controlling the virus is the key
to recover our economy, being a patron
at your mom-and-pop shop is a gesture
that could go a long way.
To uphold social distancing measures,
check if small businesses in your neighborhood
off er online shopping options.
If not, they’ll oft en provide curbside
pick-up or delivery. You can also call to
see hours of low customer footprint to
have peace of mind to shop with little to
no contact with people.
As small businesses continue to
shift and adapt during these turbulent
times, pledge your pocketbook to the
local bakeries, restaurants, bookstores,
boutiques and businesses that are
minority- or woman-owned as they
tend to generate lower income sales,
according to a Federal Reserve report.
It’s also noteworthy that research
shows supporting minority-owned
businesses helps to lessen existing
economic inequality.
This action by you provides a measure
of relief for small business owners,
employees and their families but also
bands us together to strengthen the
unique fabric of New York during this
challenging time.
So, shop small, make it count this
holiday season.
Sophia Kim is a recent graduate of
New York University’s Robert F. Wagner
Graduate School of Public Service and
comes from a family of fi rst-generation
immigrant small business owners.
SNAPS
BEAUTIFUL AUTUMN IN FLUSHING MEADOWS CORONA PARK
PHOTO SUBMITTED BY LEANN BUGARIN
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