SOME OF Scotland’s most impressive small businesses have been featured on Small Business Saturday‘s ‘SmallBiz100‘ line-up.
Showcasing the best of the UK’s vibrant small business community, the launch of the SmallBiz100 kicks off the 100-day countdown to Small Business Saturday, which is set to return on 2 December 2023.
Businesses from across Scotland that have earned a place on the line-up include:
- D’lux Gift Box – luxury pamper gift boxes curated in Glasgow.
- Me-Time Therapies – a Musselburgh holistic health and wellness business offering handmade natural products.
- Raven Botanicals – a Haddington business making bioactive skincare products using locally grown and ethically sourced ingredients.
- SD Barbering – a Glasgow-based barber shop with a strong focus on helping the community.
- WildStrong – outdoor group movement classes in Fife.
Small Business Saturday is the UK’s most successful small business campaign, which takes place each year on the first weekend in December, celebrating small businesses and encouraging consumers to shop small and support businesses in their communities.
Gill Erskine who set up WildStrong in Fife said: “We’re so pleased that WildStrong was selected as part of the Small Biz 100.”
“Starting a business in the current climate whilst having a young family can seem like an impossible juggle, but being part of a national support network of other entrepreneurs, and all that comes with that, keeps us going.”
As the campaign moves into its second decade in the UK organisers are stressing the need for ongoing support from the support for small businesses, as they face serious challenges from the cost-of-living crisis, on top of prolonged challenges.
“The fantastic small businesses featured in this year’s SmallBiz100 sum up the phenomenal contribution that small firms make to our economy and local communities,” said Michelle Ovens CBE, Director of Small Business Saturday UK.
“It continues to be really tough out there in the economy for small businesses, so there is a huge need to celebrate our incredible small business economy and throw our arms around them. Small Business Saturday remains a critical and powerful way for the public to do this.”
Small business Saturday is a grassroots non-commercial campaign that was originally founded by American Express in the U.S. in 2010. The brand remains the principal supporter of Small Business Saturday in the UK.
The most recent SME Barometer research from American Express and Small Business Saturday reported that over a third (35%) of small businesses are finding it is increasingly hard to run a small business, and 82% feel there needs to be more celebration of entrepreneurship.
Yet despite the challenging trading environment that many small businesses still face, almost two thirds (64%) are defying the odds and forecast that business performance in the final quarter of 2023 will be better than the previous two years.
On Small Business Saturday, customers across the UK go out and support all types of small businesses, from independent shops and restaurants to small service and b2b based businesses like accountants and plumbers. Many small businesses take an active role in promoting the day by hosting events and offering promotions.
Since the UK campaign started in 2013, the campaign has reached millions of people and seen billions spent with small businesses on the day itself, with an impact that lasts all year.
Last year the campaign trended at number one in the UK on X (formerly Twitter), with the Prime Minister, leader of the opposition and the Mayor of London among those publicly supporting the campaign. Over 90% of local councils also supported the campaign.
Dan Edelman, General Manager, UK Merchant Services at American Express said: “This year’s SmallBiz100 once again showcases the incredible vibrancy and vitality at the heart of the nation’s small businesses, which contribute so much to local communities across the UK.
“We’re proud to champion them and the entrepreneurs running these businesses through our ongoing support of Small Business Saturday, and by incentivising our Cardmembers to spend with them all year round. As we move into the second decade of this vital campaign, we look forward to continuing to celebrate small businesses and those running them.”
To learn more Small Business Saturday’s SmallBiz100 visit – https://smallbusinesssaturdayuk.com/small-biz-100
