CRANFORD, NJ — Between Black Friday and Small Business Saturday, the weekend following Thanksgiving is a big shopping weekend. In Cranford, local businesses didn’t let the COVID-19 pandemic slow them down on Saturday, Nov. 28.
Ellen Ramer is the owner of Martin Jewelers, a jewelry store at 12 North Ave. W. that is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. She had high expectations for Small Business Saturday.
“Like all previous years, we have found that our Cranford community and surrounding towns are extremely good about supporting the local businesses,” Ramer said on Friday, Nov. 27. “We are very optimistic that they will continue to do so this year. We’ve benefited from Black Friday sales, but we’re not a mall operation. We do have an online shopping website and we hope to benefit from Cyber Monday. We have a strong presence and we just hope that we do get to benefit from Cyber Monday.
“Regarding the past challenges of COVID-19, every day is a challenge. We have installed a state-of-the-art air purifying system. We adhere to the strictest of rules in dealing with the customers’ jewelry and with the jewelry here that customers may see, so we’re constantly cleaning and ensuring that we stay safe.”
Ramer confirmed that sales were going well but said she hoped customers continued to remain loyal, particularly since her business has a longstanding history of giving back to the community.
Cori Ardente, owner of Anthem Style + Gift, a women’s clothing, gifts and accessories store at 100 N. Union Ave., Cranford, said she wasn’t sure what to expect as Small Business Saturday approached.
“I think that, just like any other year, we will see a lot of support from the community,” Ardente said on Friday, Nov. 27. “But this year is different than any other year, so we don’t really know exactly what to expect. We are hoping for continued support from the community on Small Business Saturday.
“We have benefited from Black Friday, but Saturday is always the bigger day for us. As a small business in a normal year, we just don’t have the capability to do doorbusters or big, flashy sales, but we do offer what we can. But in general, Saturday is always the busier day for us. We’re expecting to benefit from Cyber Monday also. It’s usually pretty good for us.”
Ardente said COVID-19 had done a number on Anthem + Style, forcing them to close their doors for three months, starting March 15, and forcing them to work 10 times harder for a lot less profit. However, they took pride in being able to serve the community with deliveries and curbside pickups.
“Since we’ve been reopened, we’ve been pretty busy, luckily, with decent foot traffic, which is great,” she said. “But those months of being closed took an extreme toll on the business, for sure. There’ve been a lot of businesses that already have not been able to sustain the COVID closures, so we want to make sure that the ones that are standing can make it through the rest of this pandemic. I hope that people can continue to support the small businesses in their communities that are still here, so that we can stay here.”
Elaine Moffett, owner of Periwinkle’s Fine Gifts and Home at 17 N. Union Ave. in Cranford, was optimistic about the holiday weekend.
“We have been participating in Small Business Saturday since day one,” Moffett said on Friday, Nov. 27. “Small Business Saturday was started 10 years ago by American Express. Our expectations for this Saturday are to be very busy, to have customers and see our customers. We want our customers to feel very grateful that they are our customers. We want to offer them a discount and give them a free gift.”
Moffett said COVID-19 has been a rough time for small businesses.
“Every business was at a point where they didn’t know what was happening,” she said. “We had no past history on how to plan or how to buy. We just had to take it one day at a time. I never shut down; we did curbside pickup. We did not have our store open, but we were here for curbside pickup. We were never completely closed; we were just sort of closed. What I’m hoping for, this holiday season, is to have a business that was like it was before COVID-19 happened. I’d like to help my business grow, and it’s a little hard, due to COVID, but we’re doing our best to keep it growing. We can get through this and I am very optimistic that we will get through this fine.”
Kim Capece, co-owner of Augusta Mae Boutique and Fine Consignment, a boutique selling jewelry, personalized items, candles and clothing at 35 Alden St. in Cranford, said she values continued support from the community.
“We do have an online website, so we’re hopeful that people will shop our website. This is our first year we’ve launched our website, and it was just after the quarantine in March. This will be our first Cyber Monday experience, so we’re hopeful,” said Capece on Friday, Nov. 27
Coping with the challenges of COVID-19, Capece and Augusta Mae co-owner Clara Nunziato shifted gears accordingly to make things work.
“Clara and I have pivoted in a way that we feel we have grown,” Capece said. “So, we have, as I said, begun our online website, we’ve done some virtual shopping and I think we’ve taken a much more personal approach with the customers, and people appreciate that. We’ve done local deliveries and we ship. So, we have really tried to pivot into the times of what is going on, and I think that we have benefited from the pivot.
“We’re hoping to be able to provide our customers with a safe shopping experience. We’ve taken a lot of pride in our boutique and wrapping all of our gifts to make sure that we can keep the flow going, as things become busier and our customers can come in and shop. We want to just provide a safe, comfortable experience during a very unusual time.”
Danielle Decostello, owner of Bella Organici Skin Bar, which specializes in organic skin care and is located at 29 Alden St. in Cranford, said she was thankful for the three-day shopping event, which concluded with Cyber Monday, focusing on online purchases, on Monday, Nov. 30. She admitted, however, that her business didn’t reap rewards on every sales day.
“We did participate in Small Business Saturday, and we did benefit from it the most,” Decostello said on Monday, Nov. 30. “We didn’t benefit from Black Friday sales, and we are not benefiting from Cyber Monday.
“We’ve had a lot of challenges. We’ve seen about 60 percent less customers, due to fears of contracting COVID-19. Since opening back up after March 15, sales are literally just keeping us afloat. For this holiday season, we’re hoping to recoup some of our money that we lost out on over the three-month shutdown.”
Cranford Mayor Patrick Giblin urges residents to continue helping businesses bounce back by shopping locally this season.
“Small Business Saturday is a great way to support our many downtown and other Cranford businesses,” Giblin said on Sunday, Nov. 29. “Almost all of them are family owned and need our support now more than ever — not just on Small Business Saturday, but throughout the holiday season and into 2021.”
Photo Courtesy of Periwinkle’s Fine Gifts and Home, and Augusta Mae Boutique and Fine Consignment