TAMPA, Fla. — The countdown is on. We are less than two weeks away from Christmas and a new survey shows almost half of us have more shopping to do. According to the Shopify survey, younger shoppers and men are most likely to procrastinate. And surprisingly, more than half of you are shopping in person, at the store.
That is great news for local businesses that count on the holiday season to keep them in the green for the year. The owner of Butter Bug Boutique in South Tampa says it gives shoppers a more personal experience. Courtney Vermette started Butter Bug online three years ago mainly selling soft bamboo and cotton baby and children's clothes.
She moved into a storefront two years ago and then had to move again to a bigger space six months ago. Courtney knows first hand that people prefer to shop in person, because she also has a store online.
"There is definitely a trend and I can see that with my analytics," Vermette said." More people are preferring to come in store and I hear that all the time. It's not the same online. You know you see a picture, but when you're in person it's really the big picture."
Courtney says people want to actually feel the product and see what they are spending their hard-earned money on. Customers tell her they like supporting local, small businesses like hers. Personalized customer service is also a big reason people keep coming back.
"We love our customers," she said. "We know their children's names and birthdays. When they come in we give them love and hugs. Their loyal to us and we're very loyal to them. We love them, so we show our appreciation any way we can, but we do have our repeat customers every single week and when they walk in we're like 'Yay, you're here.'"
Courtney even has customers text her to find out if they have certain items or to hold certain things for them. And personal touches like gift wrapping and cards also help during the busy holiday season.