Small Business Saturday is one of those modern “holidays” that reappears every November — sometimes sweet, sometimes over-marketed, sometimes misunderstood. But underneath all the marketing, something real still matters here.

Because small businesses are the heart of cities like Nashville.

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, small businesses employ 45.9% of the entire U.S. workforce — over 59 million people. They make up 99.9% of all businesses in this country. Which basically means the American economy is held up by everyday people working in everyday businesses, in everyday towns.

People like us.
People like you.
People who care about where we live.

Why this day matters to me

When I think about Small Business Saturday, I don’t think about revenue or foot traffic.
I think about what it means to live in a city full of locally run places that feel personal, warm, and connected.

Places where the owner stands at the counter.
Where someone knows your order.
Where your kids are welcome.
Where your dollars stay in your community — supporting schools, nonprofits, youth teams, local taxes, and real people’s lives.

Small business isn’t a brand.
It’s a family.
It’s a dream.
It’s people with skin in the game — literally and figuratively.

Nashville is Nashville because of its small businesses

When I think about the city I love, I think about the places that have helped build its personality and soul:

• Rose Hill Flowers — woman-owned, deeply rooted, and always pouring beauty into the community.
  
• Nectar Urban Cantina – serving Mexican-inspired cuisine, fresh juices, craft cocktails, and local roasted coffee.
• Creive Hall Bagel Co. — warmth, craft, and kindness in every interaction.
• Rooted — the locally owned men’s shop with impeccable curation and a loyal Nashville following.
• Forts — a thoughtful selection of local goods that reminds us what “neighbor-made” feels like.
• Degthai — a food-truck legend turned community staple with the best kind of cult following.
• Imogene + Willie — a denim-and-design institution that helped define what Nashville style even means.
• Hollie Ray — another woman-owned boutique showing up for women with heart and style.

These aren’t just shops or restaurants.
They’re landmarks of feeling — the places that make Nashville feel like Nashville.

If we woke up tomorrow and these businesses were gone, the city simply wouldn’t be the same.

Small Business Saturday isn’t about pressure — it’s about perspective

It’s not a day that should guilt people.
It’s not a test of loyalty.
And it certainly doesn’t measure anyone’s worth as a customer or a friend.

It’s just a day to pause and remember:

Local businesses matter.
They create the culture we live inside.
And supporting them — in any way, at any time — keeps our community vibrant and human.

For us at Molly Green

We’re not focused on one Saturday.
We’re grateful any day someone chooses us — whether it’s for a dress for an event, a fun new top, or simply because you wanted to wander somewhere warm and friendly.

We know you have endless choices.
And choosing a small business is choosing people — people who truly love what they do, who care deeply about their customers, and who see every purchase as a privilege, not a guarantee.

Our Nashville customers have shaped who we are today.
And we don’t take that lightly, ever.

As we head into this year’s Small Business Saturday…

I’m grateful.
Grateful for this city.
Grateful for our local business community.
Grateful for every person who has supported us in big or small ways.
Grateful that Nashville is still a place where you can feel the heartbeat of small businesses if you pause long enough to notice.

Whether you shop with us, grab a smoothie at Nectar, pick up flowers from Rose Hill, or support any other small business you love — thank you.

It all matters.
It all builds the world we live in.
And we’re honored to be a part of yours.

— Brittany
Owner & Creative Director, Molly Green