Business officials say their biggest day of the year -- Small Business Saturday -- is a good time to remember what keeps Delaware's economy running.
American Express started the locally-focused holiday shopping season kickoff in 2010, and Delaware's deputy Small Business Administration director John Banks says it's grown every year. Across the country, it brought in $14.3 billion last year, up 2 percent from 2013.
"We're hoping that it will continue to grow, and folks who are shopping during the holiday season really patronize these businesses, because they're the backbone of our economy," Banks says.
He says small businesses account for two of every three jobs in the state and make up 95 percent of all Delaware businesses.
"So we're actually just paying homage to the businesses that really, really make up the economy of the Delaware state," Banks says.
He's encouraging people to start their holiday shopping off at locally owned stores and to spend their money as locally as possible year-round.
Nationwide, nearly 74 million people shopped locally on Small Business Saturday in 2012.
