Small Business Saturday UK – the annual campaign that puts small, independent businesses in communities across the country in the national spotlight – has announced that Boroughbridge will be one of the stops when it takes to the road again with a nationwide promotional bus tour to raise the profile of the campaign and the day itself, Saturday December 3rd.
Using the theme “Small Business, Big Difference”, the A-B bus tour will begin on Monday 24th October in Aberdeen and will conclude in Bournemouth on Friday 25th November. The bus tour will visit Boroughbridge on Wednesday November 2nd to promote the campaign to both local small business owners and consumers.
The bus tour, which aims to promote the campaign to both consumers and small business owners around the UK, will also host workshops and seminars at its daily destinations. The bus tour will visit the east and west coasts of the UK, as well as crossing the Irish Sea for three stops in Northern Ireland.
Commenting on the announcement of the bus tour, Small Business Saturday National Campaign Director, Michelle Ovens said:
Small Business Saturday is not just a campaign to raise awareness of our diverse and innovative small business sector, but also a vehicle from which small businesses who embrace make use of the campaign can derive tangible benefit. The bus tour is a very visible way for us to meet small businesses around the UK and show them how they can become involved as well as drumming up consumer interest, support and enthusiasm. We are really looking forward to welcoming small business owners and consumers to the bus to get information and find out ways in which they can support small businesses and make the day work most effectively for companies in their own communities.
The full itinerary for the bus tour is as follows:
Week One
- October 24th Aberdeen
- October 25th Edinburgh
- October 26th Stirling
- October 27th Strabane & Coleraine
- October 28th Ballymena
Week Two
- October 31st Carlisle
- November 1st Durham
- November 2nd Helmsley & Boroughbridge
- November 3rd Manchester
- November 4th Grimsby
Week Three
- November 7th Derby & Burton
- November 8th Birmingham
- November 9th Aberystwyth
- November 10th Denbigh
- November 11th Chester
Week Four
- November 14th Carterton & Thame
- November 15th Cambridge
- November 16th Southend
- November 17th London
- November 18th Tonbridge
Week Five
- November 21st Newquay
- November 22nd Exeter
- November 23rd Swansea
- November 24th Bath
- November 25th Bournemouth
Now in its fourth year Small Business Saturday is already the UK’s most successful small business campaign. Last year an estimated £623 million was spent with small businesses across the UK on the day – up £119 million on last year and an increase in spending of 24%. The day itself also generated huge buzz on social media with Small Business Saturday trending at number one on Twitter. Over 100,000 tweets were sent in support of Small Business Saturday on the day itself with a combined reach of more than 25 million people. An estimated 75% of all local authorities actively supported the campaign on the day in a variety of ways, from staging or supporting small business events to offering free parking.
Small Business Saturday, which is a grassroots, not-for-profit campaign, was originally founded by American Express in the U.S. in 2010 and it remains the principal supporter of the campaign in the UK, as part of its on-going commitment to encourage consumers to shop small. The campaign also benefits from the backing of leading business organisations including the Federation of Small Businesses and Enterprise Nation. The campaign is also supported by PRS For Music, TalkTalk Business, Vistaprint, Post Office, Clear Channel and STIHL.
Logos, digital banners, a social media guide and toolkits will be available to download from the website www.smallbusinesssaturdayuk.com and can be displayed online or on premises. Businesses around the country can also upload information to the ‘My Small Business Finder’ on the website (www.smallbusinesssaturdayuk.com) on what special events or promotional offers they will be running for Small Business Saturday.
More information on Small Business Saturday can also be found on the Small Business Saturday Facebook page (www.facebook.com/smallbusinesssaturdayuk) and Twitter feed (@SmallBizSatUk).
