Thousands of people in the Bay Area turned away from big box stores to head to locally-owned stores on Small Business Saturday.
Small Business Saturday was established in 2010, and since then, thousands of people nationwide have made it a point to shop at the mom-and-pop stores and restaurants that often operate in the shadows of chain stores.
San Jose's Japantown was bustling Saturday as people went out of their way to spend local.
And in San Jose's Willow Glenn, business was up a notch at the local stores, which is a welcome gift to business owners.
"We're excited to have people, families coming in, that they sleep in, they can come in, and have like a small-town experience rather than waiting through those lines at the malls," said Julia Yee of locally-owned Mann's Jewelers. "And it's great because we get a lot of one-on-one time with the customer."
According to the American Express Small Business Saturday Consumer Insights Survey, 82 percent of shoppers in the U.S. said they planned to shop or eat at independently owned businesses Saturday.
