14 Fun Financial Facts About Small Business Saturday
Small Business Saturday might not have the same cachet as Black Friday, and it certainly doesn’t have the same history. But this shopping holiday has become an important annual focal point for local businesses.
And it drives some real numbers.
Small Business Saturday, set for the Saturday after Thanksgiving, was started by American Express in 2010, as the U.S. was clawing its way out of the Great Recession.
The idea? “Encourage people to Shop Small and bring more holiday shopping to small businesses.”
With another Small Business Saturday on the horizon (Nov. 29, 2025), here’s a closer look at the day’s importance and some of its defining numbers.
14 Fun Financial Facts About Small Business Saturday & the 2025 Holiday Season
- Since its founding in 2010, American consumers have spent roughly $223 billion on Small Business Saturday, according to surveys by American Express.
- That $223 billion included roughly $22 billion in 2024.
- The National Retail Federation expects more than 67 million shoppers will turn out on Small Business Saturday.
- In American Express’s 2025 Shop Small Impact Study, 86% of participants said they planned to shop at small businesses either online or in stores this holiday season.
- That number is even higher among Millennials and Gen Z, at 89%.
- Speaking of Millennials and Gen Z, the same study says 81% of that combined cohort “discovered a new small, independently owned business or restaurant through social media in the past year.”
- Small Business Saturday is critical to small business operations, too. In its study, AmEx found that small business owners estimate nearly 20% of 2025’s annual revenues will come from Small Business Saturday sales.
- In a survey conducted by Talker Research in partnership with SurePayroll By Paychex, more than 70% of respondents said the holidays would simply not happen without their favorite small establishments.
- 64% of respondents said they would travel a longer distance to shop at a small business they enjoy rather than shopping at a larger business closer to them.
- The U.S. has more than 36 million small businesses, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy.
- American Express estimates that 68 cents of every dollar spent at a small business in the U.S. stays in the local community.
- It also estimates that if every American Gen Z and Millennial shopper spent $10 at a small business on Small Business Saturday, it would generate $2 billion in local economic activity.
- Roughly 21 million new business applications were filed between January 2021 and January 2025.
- American Express has a stated goal of driving $100 billion in small business spending between 2021 and 2025.
Sources: American Express, National Retail Federation, Bankrate, Talker Research/SurePayroll By Paychex, U.S. SBA
We’ll tack on one more fun number here: $1.
This year, American Express will partner up with Main Street America to launch the Amex Shop Small Grants Program. The venture will provide $5 million to fund 250 grants of $20,000 each to eligible small business owners across the U.S. And on 2025’s Small Business Saturday, for every $1 that AmEx cardholders spend at qualifying small businesses using an eligible card, American Express will donate $1 toward additional grants.
Small Business Saturday is an important boom time for many local businesses, and it can end up making or breaking a company’s year. If that’s the case for your business, proper yearlong financial planning for this holiday is prudent. McManamon & Co. provides outsourced CFO and accounting services that can help you with budgeting, financial planning, forecasting, cash flow management and more.
Want to know more? Reach out to us at 440.892.8900 or contact us online today.
Tags: McManamon & Co., small business, Small Business Saturday | Posted in McManamon & Co., small business