Small retailers gearing up for Small Business Saturday 2018

The fifth Small Business Saturday is just over a week away, with millions of British consumers shopping with small, local retailers on 1st December.

The iconic Small Business Saturday bus tour kick-started its nationwide journey on 25th October, calling at 30 different towns and cities over five weeks. The tour is set to conclude in Central London on Wednesday 28th November in a bid to raise awareness of the campaign.

At each stop of the bus tour, Small Business Saturday has been running a mentoring programme, with free sessions for small business owners.

The campaign is non-commercial, with the aim of supporting small businesses in their local communities and delivering a lasting impact on local firms at one of the busiest times of the year – the festive season.

Small Business Saturday 2017 was the most successful campaign yet, with an estimated £748 million spent by consumers with local retailers.

Support from local authorities was also up 7% year-on-year in 2017, with 87% of all local authorities across the UK actively supporting the campaign. This includes small business events and free parking initiatives, designed to entice shoppers in to town and city centres.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is a big supporter of the Small Business Saturday campaign and works closely with the campaign’s organisers.

According to FSB statistics, small firms accounted for 99.3% of all private sector businesses at the beginning of 2017. Meanwhile total employment among small and medium-sized businesses amounted to 16.1 million – 60% of the UK’s private sector employment.

Along with the FSB, TaxAssist Accountants aims to support small businesses and that’s why we offer discounted FSB membership to all TaxAssist Accountants clients.

All clients can receive a £30 saving on the FSB Business Essentials membership. To benefit from this offer, you can pick up the phone and speak to a member of our team on 0800 0523 555 or by emailing us online here.

You can also contact the FSB directly on 0808 2020 888 or visit www.fsb.org.uk/join and enter the discount code TAA716 to qualify for the saving.

Date published 21 Nov 2018 | Last updated 21 Nov 2018