Amazon helped customers find great gifts from small businesses this holiday season—and also helped entrepreneurs, artisans, and other small business owners attract local customers.
Amazon hosted “Shop Local” pop-up shops in San Diego and Miami to help small businesses increase sales and grow their businesses while selling in Amazon’s store throughout the holidays. Learn more about the businesses, their owners, and the pop-up shop experience below.
Shop Local San Diego
The Shop Local San Diego event—held at Sparks Gallery—featured 10 small businesses from across Southern California that sell their products in Amazon’s store. The businesses included Hair Craft Co, Cleer Audio, Uncle Keith’s Gourmet Foods, PupLid, VitaCup, Hips-sister, Game that Song, H2O Audio, Beard Reverence, and Ho Stevie!. San Diego City Council President Pro Tem Stephen Whitburn also attended the event.
Sonia Kanner, founder of Hip-sister, speaks with San Diego City Council President Pro Tem Stephen Whitburn about her small business."If you are a business owner,having a brand like Amazon that reaches people all over the world is great for awareness. In that sense, Amazon is supporting the American dream because they do all of the marketing for us and provide us with the opportunity," said Sonia Kanner, founder of Hips-sister.
Shop Local Miami
Held at Wynwood Marketplace, the Shop Local Miami event featured nine small business Amazon sellers from the greater Miami area, including Ali+Oli, Bdsign, Candleology, Dryzzz, Filthy Food, Geek Club, Homia, Teabloom, and Treelance Yoga.
Customers shop the Ali+Oli store at Amazon’s Shop Local Miami event.“I think [the event] is great for the local community to see that Amazon does have local sellers. A lot of Amazon customers don’t understand the dynamic of Amazon and that there are a lot of third-party sellers," said Oliver James, co-founder of Ali+Oli.
Supporting small businesses year ‘round
Customers had more ways than ever this year to support small businesses while shopping for holiday gifts on Amazon.
Throughout the holidays, customers discovered gifts from small businesses, met the real people behind the products, and learned more about business owners’ inspiring stories of entrepreneurship. Those personal stories were highlighted during the pop-up events and through Amazon’s Small Business Gift Guide, the Amazon Launchpad Gift Guide, and the Amazon Handmade Gift Guide.
