Countdown to Third Annual Small Business Saturday Begins with Support from Every Corner of the Country

More than 150 Advocacy Organizations, 30 Corporations, and U.S. Senate Unite to Inspire Consumers to Shop Small on November 24, 2012

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP), a non-partisan organization that advocates for issues affecting the health of small businesses, today announced its coalition of 159 organizations that will drive support for the third annual Small Business Saturday. Small Business Saturday, which falls between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, is a day for dedicating a portion of holiday shopping at local, independently-owned businesses.

“The support from these organizations, corporations and members of Congress is helping small retailers and restaurants more effectively market themselves to get their cash registers ringing on the busiest holiday shopping weekend of the year”

Recently, the United States Senate unanimously passed a Small Business Saturday Resolution, which supports efforts to encourage consumers to shop locally and increase awareness of the value of locally owned small businesses. The resolution received bi-partisan support from more than 40 co-sponsors.

American Express, the founding partner of Small Business Saturday, created the national program in 2010 in response to small business owners’ most pressing need: more demand for their products and services. WIPP is leading the Small Business Saturday Coalition, which is on pace to exceed the size of last year’s, to inspire business owners and communities across the country and raise awareness of the value small businesses bring to local communities.

The following 159 organizations and 30 corporations have joined the Small Business Saturday Coalition, to build on last year’s success that drove millions of Americans to shop small. “The support from these organizations, corporations and members of Congress is helping small retailers and restaurants more effectively market themselves to get their cash registers ringing on the busiest holiday shopping weekend of the year,” said Barbara Kasoff, president of WIPP.

159 ORGANIZATIONS

Accion East Coast and Online

Aiken Chamber of Commerce

American Booksellers Association

American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA)

American Specialty Toy Retailing Association

Arizona Small Business Association

Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO)

Association for Women in Communications

Association of Small Business Development Centers (ASBDC)

Association of Women's Business Centers

Astra Women's Business Alliance

Better Business Bureaus

Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce

Business and Professional Women's Foundation

BusinessOwnerSpace

CAMEO - California Association for Micro Enterprise Opportunity

Canton Area Chamber of Commerce

Center for Rural Entrepreneurship

The Center for Women & Enterprise

CharlotteBusinessResources.com

Charlotte Center City Partners

Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau

Church Street Marketplace

City of Charlotte, NC

City of Orlando Main Street Program

City of Peoria, Illinois

City of San Jose

City of Scottsdale

City of Washington, IL

Coachella Valley Women's Business Center

Coastal Enterprises, Inc.

Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce

Count Me In for Women's Economic Independence

CPCC Institute for Entrepreneurship

Culver City Chamber of Commerce

DC Chamber of Commerce

Deanwood Heights Main Streets

Destination DC

Detroit Regional Chamber

Downtown Boulder Business Improvement District

East Orlando Chamber of Commerce

East Peoria Chamber of Commerce

Echelon Circles

Enterprising Women

Erase Poverty.org

EWF International

eWomen Network

Florida Small Business Development Center Network

Foster City Chamber of Commerce

Georgetown Business Improvement District

Georgia Minority Supplier Development Council (GMSDC)

Global EXEC Women

Grand Avenue Business Association

Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau

Greater Palm Bay Chamber of Commerce

The Greater Phoenix Black Chamber of Commerce

Greater Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation

Helms Bakery District

Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Marin

Hyde Park Main Streets

Illinois River Road National Scenic Byway

Independent We Stand

Inland Empire Women's Business Center

La Cocina

Lacon Chamber of Commerce

Lacon Economic Development Committee

Latino Economic Development Center

Little PINK Book

Manayunk.com

Manhattan Chamber of Commerce

Manta

McLean County Chamber of Commerce

Melbourne Regional Chamber of East Central Florida

Metro Centre Shopping Center - Peoria, IL

Miami Beach Chamber of Commerce

Mills 50

Morton Chamber of Commerce

National Association for Female Executives & Entrepreneurs (NAFE)

National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE)

National Association of Certified Government Business Enterprise

National Association of Women Business Owners, Central Illinois

National Association of Women REO Brokerages (NAWRB)

National Foundation for Women Legislators

National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce

National Ice Cream Retailers Association

National Restaurant Association

National Small Business Association

NAWBO - National Association of Women Business Owners

New Jersey Association of Women Business Owners, NJAWBO

Northern California Independent Booksellers Association

NY Business Latino

NYC & Company

Ohio River Valley Women's Business Council (ORV-WBC)

Old Bridge Economic Development Corporation

Ottawa Area Chamber of Commerce & Industry

Oviedo - Winter Springs Regional Chamber of Commerce

Pacific Community Ventures

Park Avenue Merchants Association

Pekin (IL) Area Chamber of Commerce

Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce

Peoria County Government, IL

Peoria Heights Chamber of Commerce

Princeton Area Chamber of Commerce

Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center

Retail Merchants Association

Roslindale Village Main Street

Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream

San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau

San Francisco Locally Owned Business Alliance

San Francisco Office of Small Business

Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce

SBDC @ Indian River State College

SCORE

Seton Hill University E-Magnify

Shelton Mason County Chamber of Commerce

Small Business Development Center at Gulf Coast State College

Small Business Development Center at the University of South Florida

Small Business Development Center Miami Dade

Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council

Small Business Majority

Society of American Florists

Sundance Square

Tazewell County

The Economic Development Council for Central Illinois

The Heartland Partnership

The Latino Coalition

The National Association for Printing Leadership (NAPL)

The National Association of Quick Printers (NAQP)

Union Street Association

Tucson Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

U.S. Black Chamber, Inc.

United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship®

Upham’s Corner Main Street, Inc.

Valley Economic Development Center – VEDC

Village Alliance

Washington Chamber of Commerce

Washington Gateway Main Street

Washington Heights and Inwood Development Corporation

Wealthy Sistas Media Group

Winter Park Chamber of Commerce

Women Construction Owners & Executives USA

Women Impacting Public Policy

Women in Ecommerce

WIRES - Women Impacting Real Estate Solutions

Women in Default Services

Women Presidents' Organization

Women's Business Center at Florida Tech

Women's Business Council-Southwest

Women's Business Development Center

Women's Business Development Center – Chicago

Women's Business Development Council of Florida

Women's Business Enterprise Alliance - WBEA

Women's Business Enterprise Council South

Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC)

Women's Business and Training Center

Women's Exchange, Inc.

Women’s Business Development Council - (WBDC)

Women's Leadership Exchange

30 CORPORATIONS
Ace Hardware	ReachLocal, Inc.
AOL/Patch	Regus
Business Beware	Rocket Lawyer
Central Parking	Taylor Corporation
Clear Channel	Tekserve
Constant Contact, Inc.	Tissot Swiss Watches
Dunn & Bradstreet Credibility Corp.	True Value Company
FedEx	Verizon Wireless
FTD	vFlyer Inc.
Garmin	Web.com
Hertz	WebQA
Hilton HHonors™	Xerox Direct
Hyatt	Xero Online Accounting
Marriott International	Yext
Plantronics®	Zipcar for Business

About Small Business Saturday

November 24th marks the third annual Small Business Saturday, a day to support the local businesses that create jobs, boost the economy and preserve neighborhoods around the country. Small Business Saturday (SBS) was created in 2010 in response to small business owners' most pressing need: more customers. More than 2.7 million Facebook users, 230 public and private organizations, 75 corporations and elected officials in all 50 states and Washington D.C. declared their support for SBS last year. More than 500,000 small business owners leveraged an online tool or promotional materials for SBS and 15,000 businesses signed up for free Facebook advertising to promote their products and services in the run up to SBS. American Express is the founding sponsor of SBS.

About Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP)

Women Impacting Public Policy is a national nonpartisan group with over half-a-million members. WIPP is the collective voice in Washington, D.C., for over 50 national women and small business organizations. WIPP advocates for and on behalf of women in business in the legislative process of our nation, creating economic opportunities for members and building alliances with other small business organizations. Visit www.wipp.org.