Green Christmas for local retailers

By ERIC SEIVERLING

eseiverling@yourmvi.com

With 2020 being the year of the COVID-19 pandemic and its damaging impact on the economy, many store owners didn’t know what to expect when it came time for holiday shopping.

But at Mon Valley stores, shoppers came out in big numbers to support small businesses.

“I was frightened and I was scared,” said Diann Donaldson, owner of Jazzy Boutique clothing store in Belle Vernon. “But December was really, really good. We had people come out from Upper St. Clair, Mt. Lebanon, Uniontown, Washington and even West Virginia. People really supported small businesses and that’s really humbling.”

Tara Bottino, owner of Just 4 You Gift Shop in Monongahela, said many shoppers told her they weren’t scared of the pandemic.

“We did better than the last couple of years … a whole lot better,” she said. “We did well, and we had more people walking in than shopping online. 

“The ones that were here were going to shop no matter what. I think people are just happy to get out and leave their house. When they saw the different products we had, they had to buy.”

Daneen Troup, owner of Prima Diva clothing store in Charleroi, said her store’s most popular items reflected how people view the pandemic.

“My top sellers were pajamas, slippers and masks,” she said. “It shows a lot of people are working from home and they aren’t going anywhere.

“I was pleasantly surprised that people came out to support small businesses. Overall for the season we did well. I still didn’t hit last year’s numbers, but it was very close. I’m not sad about it.”

Most store owners agreed that the pandemic forced shoppers away from the long lines and large crowds of malls and big box stores.

“The consensus was to shop small,” Donaldson said. “Shoppers didn’t want to be around large crowds and people encroaching on their space like in malls.”

To read the rest of the story, please see a copy of Tuesday’s Mon Valley Independent, call 724-314-0035 to subscribe or subscribe to our online edition at http://monvalleyindependent.com.