Saturday is Small Business Saturday; a day intended as a day to encourage people to shop at small local businesses when looking for those Black Friday deals — places like Kika’s Boutique in Aurora’s Plaza Colorado owned by Martha Carillo.
She’s had a long career in fashion; primarily with one store.
“I worked 21 years for retail. I was an assistant manager for Kmart when Kmart was officially here,” Carillo said.
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But all the Kmart stores closed in Colorado, which left her without a next step.
“When this store goes down, I was kind of like, sad because, you know, they were my family for so many years, and I literally refused to go to work for somebody else,” said Carillo.
So, she decided to go into business for herself. Saturday she and several businesses there were offering door-buster deals. And while slashing prices may not make her rich right now, she says the strategy is to get people in the door, so they come back.
“The main important thing is, is to get people to know us. You know that we are here. You know, we have the outfits and what they need for the holidays,” said Carillo.
Many Coloradans do most of their shopping online these days. In fact, digital data collection company Loqate says that Colorado is the state with the most online shoppers leading up to Black Friday.
Carillo says shopping especially for clothing is best done in person.
“We have what they want. I feel like, I have enough experience. You know, to be able to know what our people like,” said Carillo.
She says if you come down you will see what she means: “I just want people to give us a chance.”
