Small businesses in Homewood and Flossmoor will offer extended hours, special deals, free snacks, in-store games, crafts and a visit from Santa Claus on Saturday, Nov. 29, for Small Business Saturday, an annual event on the day after Black Friday.

“The giant box stores take over all the dollars [on Black Friday] and everybody forgets about the little businesses in the neighborhoods,” said Maureen Mader, owner of Dunning’s Gourmet Market & Deli in downtown Flossmoor and president of the Flossmoor Business Association, explaining the origins of Small Business Saturday.

Homewood and Flossmoor business owners said it’s been a tough year due to tariffs and cost-of-living increases. Downtown Flossmoor business owners said the recently completed streetscape construction project on Sterling Avenue also caused a decline in profits.

“Support your small businesses. If you want a vibrant community, it’s your responsibility as a community person,” Mader said, adding that if every community member spent $10 at a local business, it would be enough to keep it afloat.

“With the construction, a lot of us took major hits this summer. But now that everything is done, and it looks great out there, people are finding their way back to downtown Flossmoor,” said Alison Turner, owner of Alison Turner’s Nail Salon. “I’m hopeful for a successful holiday season.”

Turner has planned a coordinated, building-wide event in Shops on Sterling, a collective of small businesses in downtown Flossmoor. All stores are set to stay open from noon until 7 p.m. for Small Business Saturday, and there will be crafts for kids, a DJ and snacks, Turner said.

“I always have customers that are like, ‘I’ll see you Small Business Saturday,’” said Lisa Komorowski, owner of Loulou Belle in downtown Homewood and president of the Homewood Business Association. “It’s the best day of my year.”

Loulou Belle will open at 8 a.m., two hours early. The store will offer free ballpoint pens with the Loulou Belle logo and slogan, “Cute stuff for nice people,” Komorowski said.

Limitless Laces, a gym shoe store in Shops on Sterling, will offer reduced prices on all brand-new shoes, owner Darahn Magnus said.

Pinki’s Beauty Salon, a beauty salon in Shops on Sterling, will offer a discount on lashes, owner Pinki Koli said.

Dunning’s Market will offer cheese samples, wine tasting and a raffle, Mader said, adding that it will also have free cookies from D’s Cookie Dough Company.

Conservatory Vintage and Vinyl, a record store in downtown Flossmoor, will sell select records for a dollar apiece, co-owner Tony Fields said.

GoodSpeed Cycles, a bicycle shop in downtown Homewood, will have Santa Claus and a helper elf, events director Steve Buchtel said.

“We have a European-style cargo bike set up and decorated with a Christmas tree in front of a fireplace. And we’ve got reindeer antlers for kids to wear and sit in the cargo bike with Santa at the handlebars for a photo-op,” Buchtel said.

Art Corner Frames, a frame shop and art supply store in Homewood, will offer a Plinko game for customers to play, owner Stephanie Becker said.

“You drop a ball into the top of the game, and it makes its way to the bottom in one of six bins. And whatever bin it lands in corresponds with a different prize,” Becker said. “We’ve got customers who come back every year to play this Plinko game.”

Prizes include notebooks, pens, art supplies and candy, Becker said.

Beyond the Book, a bookstore in downtown Homewood, will offer a bundled discount for customers buying books, blankets and coffee mugs, owner Tenia Davis said.

Zone Comics & Games, a comic shop in downtown Homewood, will offer a discount on trade paperbacks and hardcovers, owner Alex Stritar said.

Epiq Nutrition, a smoothie, weight loss and nutrition shop in downtown Homewood, will offer discounts on supplements, meal replacements and drinks, co-owner Isabel Folis said.

Shoppers supporting participating Homewood businesses between Nov. 25 and Dec. 25 can submit their store receipts to the village. They’ll earn a $50 Visa gift card for every $250 spent. Details about Unwrap Homewood, including a list of the 21 participating businesses, are available on the village website. 

Gypsy Fix in downtown Flossmoor sells signed copies of the book “A More Perfect Place: The Story of Flossmoor” by local author Tom Dobrez.

Morgan Sullins, owner of Gypsy Fix and founder of Shops on Sterling, was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. She said that after the holiday season, Gypsy Fix will probably temporarily close while she “tries to get healthy again.”

“If I do, it will just be temporary for January and February,” Sullins said. “And then come back in the spring.”