Small Business Saturday Successful in RVC

In between the impersonal throes of a record setting Black Friday and Cyber Monday lied an initiative that Rockville Centre establishments have embraced with open arms: Small Business Saturday.

Started by American Express last year in order to encourage shopping locally and independentally for the holiday season, the new commerce holiday has been backed by Facebook, Google, Twitter and FedEx. The program also seeks to optimize the online presence of brands through new marketing methods and free advertising.

This year even more small businesses throughout Rockville Centre took part in the festivities. Christina Essabba, who owns , opted for extra savings. “We kept a promotion running for the entire weekend,” Essabba said. “The entire weekend, Friday through Saturday, we were very busy.”

The charming women’s boutique had online specials of 20 percent off one item while in store offered items 50 percent reduced to go with 10 percent off the entire purchase. To its core, Milk & Honey follows the small business model.

“We do specialize in hard to find brands that are up and coming,” Essabba said. “We bring in local artists and designers and carry products we feel that will help support local and emerging designers.”

A few blocks away on Park Avenue, offered 20 percent gift cards for their business that specializes in gifts and accessories, specifically custom and personalized products. On top of this, owner Jeannine Palladino wanted to offer a communal experience for residents and shoppers alike for Small Business Saturday.

“I advertised for people to come have lunch with us,” Palladino said. “We had sandwiches, drinks and a little bit of a party. It was a very busy day and we were pleasantly surprised by people that made the effort to come out, who are very loyal to my business and I.”

Both Palladino and Essabba used the Internet — be it mailing lists, their website or Facebook pages — to promote their deals. Milk & Honey’s online store allows for the business to reach outside of RVC and outside of New York.

At , owner Albert Idy, used a modest sign to promote his storewide daily deal for fine men’s clothing and shoes. “We did 30 percent off our entire inventory,” Idy said. “It was busy. I told of lot of customers to register their American Express card online and they would get a $25 statement credit.”

All of these owners echoed the sentiment that people enjoyed the lightning deals, and that RVC is a beautiful place for a small business owner.

“The people that shop and that are from Rockville Centre really support their small businesses,” Essabba said. “We’ve really been able to tailor our business to exactly what we want and we’re grateful for customers that support it.”