Black Friday gives consumers the opportunity to take advantage of deals, but many store owners are hoping locals show up for Small Business Saturday.

“It helps make downtown Corning a more vibrant place to shop,” Dish & Company Owner Mike Pirozollo said.

Once Thanksgiving is over, holiday shopping is in full effect.

Many big box stores like Walmart and Best Buy offer promotions on Black Friday while Amazon and other online companies try to pull in customers with deals on Cyber Monday, but what falls in between is Small Business Saturday, and one area hoping to see some action is Corning’s Market Street.

“I hope it brings a lot of traffic,” Mike Pirozollo said. “We compete against the big box stores and also, of course, the online shopping.”

Small Business Saturday first started in 2010 thanks to American Express. The United States Senate unanimously passed a resolution in support of it the following year.

The credit card company makes free and customized advertisements for storefronts, social networks, and websites.

“Us being small business owners, and being on a street that’s really founded and owned by small business owners, people understand that,” Heels and Hobos Owner Dee Reid said. “To have a street like this, we need you to come in, shop local and support us, and not just do it one day a year, but do it throughout the whole year, so that things like this stay – vibrant shopping opportunities for the community.”

The recent announcement of Imagine That! toy store closing its doors permanently has some neighboring owners fearful.

Shopping local doesn’t just put cash into the pockets of the owners, but it keeps the money circulating in the community which overall benefits the area’s financial structure.

“Downtown and small businesses intertwine and it’s a big, big thing for people like myself and for our community, and we urge them all to support us and not just on Saturday,” Bongs Jewelers Jeff Bong said. “This is an opportunity for them to take advantage of promotions for ‘Small Business Saturday’ and to get more familiar with the stores and the people who run them.”

If you don’t live in the Corning area, stores in Watkins Glen will also be taking part in Small Business Saturday.