Who will you support on Small Business Saturday? Here's my pick. . .

Thanks to American Express for sponsoring my writing today about small businesses. American Express is presenting Small Business Saturday, a way to honor the local merchants who are the backbone of the economy, this Saturday, November 27. They're offering statement credits to people who shop at small businesses, advertising for small-business owners, and donations to Girls Inc. for "Likes" of the Small Business Saturday page on Facebook. Join the celebration by clicking the "Like" button and then visiting the Facebook page to learn more about the program and read the terms and conditions that apply.


Long before Etsy, before I had Cool Mom Picks, before I had ever been to a craft show that featured things other than crocheted potholders, I had Oop.

Oop was a little store that opened on Thayer Street in Providence, RI back in 1990, the year after I graduated from college. It was colorful, eclectic, silly and totally unique, and I was hooked the first day I walked through those doors.

Full of local and not-so-local American craft and art from people I'd never see in the big-box stores, it was here that I found the funniest, most unusual cards and gifts for my friends and family.

It is where I drooled over Elise Moran's pretty jewelry and the super-colorful furniture by Sticks that cost way beyond what my media planner salary could ever afford. Where I would go back just to see what new things would be hanging in the windows or lying on the tables.

Years passed and I moved away, but I'd stop by Oop's new locations whenever I went down to Rhode Island: the small store tucked away in the Providence Place Mall and then, last winter, in downtown Providence across from Craftland.

This week, I found Oop's latest location: in the spankin' new Legacy Place shopping area in Dedham, MA. Isn't it fortuitous that it is even closer to me now?

And after writing for Cool Mom Picks for the past few years, I had to smile at how many products we've covered that I saw in front of me on my last visit to the store. No wonder I love my job so much---it reminds me of that day twenty years ago when a little store opened my world to what amazing things were out there to be discovered.

So tell me, what is your favorite small business? Feel free to leave their name and website address in the comments.

Are you a local? I also listed one of my favorite local toy shops--they gift wrap!--on Cool Mom Picks along with the rest of our staff.

I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity, as I do.