Shop Owensboro returns Nov. 26
The Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce’s “Shop Owensboro, Powered by Independence Bank” campaign returns on Saturday, Nov. 26, for the eighth year and continues through Dec. 3.
The event to encourage people to shop locally had been a one-day affair until 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic limited the number of people who could be in a store at the same time.
It was expanded to a week then, and the chamber has kept it that way to give people more time to shop the nearly 60 stores participating
The Shop Owensboro campaign was launched in 2015.
Until then, it had just been part of Small Business Saturday, an event started by American Express in 2010 to help bring shoppers to locally-owned stores.
Candance Castlen Brake, chamber president, said this year the event will start at Independence Bank, 2425 Frederica St., for the first time since the pandemic began.
It had been at the Owensboro Convention Center for the past two years.
“We are so excited to be back at Independence Bank’s flagship location on Frederica Street,” Brake said. “It truly kicks off the day with so much energy.”
Shopping bags with coupons will be handed out at the bank starting at 9 a.m.
In 2018, people began arriving outside the bank at 6:30 a.m. to be sure they got a bag.
By 9 a.m., just before the doors opened, the line stretched back from the bank to the sidewalk and down to 24th Street — nearly a block away.
Brake said CASA of the Ohio Valley and the H.L. Neblett Center “are having a run that day starting at our Shop Owensboro kick off.”
She said, “Our goal throughout the year is to remind our community how important it is to shop local. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy.
“The men and women who own those businesses are our friends and neighbors who give back to our schools, churches and nonprofits. They believe in Owensboro. It is only right that we invest back into them.”
She added, “Small business Saturday is often their biggest revenue day of the year, and it is also an opportunity for them to connect with new customers.”
Each store will feature is own deals and discounts.
Participating stores include: A Day In Time, Adorn Boutique, Alisa Nicole Dance Wear, Azzip Pizza, Be Real Sports Cycling & Fitness, Bearcat Corner at Brescia University, Bella Ragazza Boutique, Best Insured by Elizabeth, Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Boutique 54, Brasher’s Lil Nashville, Brew Bridge/Escape Today, Budget Blinds of Owensboro, Byron & Barclay, Cecil Farms Produce, Chicken Salad Chick, Computer Dave Sales & Service, Cottage Farmstand and Baking Company, Crazy Me Gifts & Apparel, Don Mario’s Mexican Restaurant, Donatos Pizza, Drake’s, En Vogue, Free Your Mind Body and Soul Wellness, Gramps Coffee and Donuts, Green River Appliance and Furniture, Hill View Farms Market, Home Inspired, Ivy Trellis Floral, J.J. Fosters, Jagoe Homes, Jiffy Lube, Julep Home and Gift, Kahawa Java, Kidstop Children’s Boutique, La Creme Coffeehouse & Bakery, Lance & Co. Jewelers, Legends, Liquor Barn, Mantled Home, Meadow House Flowers + Gifts, Nick T. Arnold, Niko’s Bakery, Owensboro Health Healthpark, Owensboro Symphony, Party Paper Place, Peacocks and Pearls, Pearle Vision, Preservation Station, Pure Barre, Red Wing Shoes Owensboro, RiverPark Center, Robin’s Resale & Boutique, Rowland Family Dentistry, Sassafras, PinCushion Gift Shop at Senior Community Center of Owensboro-Daviess County, Shoe Stop, Simply Chic Home Accents and Sprout and Sing.
By Keith Lawrence Messenger- Inquirer