Holiday Shopping 2022: What small businesses in Sonoma County expect this season

Small businesses ín Sonoma County and around the country are gearing up for another post-pandemic holiday season, with inflation and recession concerns -- not a global health crisis -- at the forefront of consumers’ minds.

A September survey of 2,000 consumers from the National Retail Federation found that shoppers plan to prioritize holiday gifts and celebrations, but 43% of them say they don’t earn enough to cover the costs of gifts and holiday items.

The National Retail Federation also found retailers will start holiday deals and promotions earlier this year while also moving up peak shipping time periods to create some wiggle room when it comes to product delivery.

Press Democrat reporters Sara Edwards and Lonnie Hayes spoke to 10 local small-business owners and asked what their early thoughts and predictions of the upcoming shopping season were.

Here’s a sampling of their answers:

Savory Spice Shop, 317 D St., Santa Rosa 95404

savoryspiceshop.com

Owner Ian Weiss said he’s apprehensive about the fast-approaching holiday shopping season. He said with recession concerns and high gas prices, specifically, it’s hard to predict what the business day will be like or plan for it.

“It seems like maybe we could have a decent holiday season. I’ve seen some signs of that, but it’s hard to say,” he said. “I’m not going to bet on it.”

Weiss said the 2020 shopping season was really successful on the digital front, however, 2021 brought disappointment.

“We’re approaching this year with more caution,” he said. “Hopefully, we’ll be able to flex in case it (the shopping season) goes well and we’re able to handle it.”

Weiss said his customers talk about the high gas prices and parking fees the most when they come into the shop. To encourage shoppers to come into the store, he said they’re having tastings and trying to connect with the customer for more of a personal experience.

Wine Country Chocolates, 414 1st St. E., Sonoma 95476

winecountrychocolates.com

Caroline Phillips and her mother, Betty, have been operating from their Sonoma store exclusively since March 2020, with their Glen Ellen location temporarily closed and used as a production facility.

Caroline said the holiday season is their busiest time of the year. Because the team making the products for the business is so small, there comes a time in the season when they have to turn orders away because of high demand.

“Our concern isn’t with the lack of customers or lack of sales,” Caroline said. “The only issue we have, and it’s COVID-related, is still supply chain problems.”

Caroline said they start getting holiday chocolate orders in August, and because of supply chain uncertainty, they start stockpiling ingredients for their recipes in June to prepare for the high demand.

In 2021, the shop was keeping up with both in-store and online sales from all over the country that had Caroline and her staff working long hours to complete orders. She said they had to turn away multiple corporate orders because of it.

“It’s just me, my mom and one other woman making all the chocolate,” she said. “Until we are really able to grow the business exponentially with bigger machines and bigger manufacturing, we’re in this position where we’re working as hard as we can at Christmas.”

Design Jewelers, 2420 Magowan Dr., Santa Rosa 95405

hiltongray.com

Design Jewelers is owned by Ken Gray, which specializes in custom, handcrafted jewelry. The holiday season tends to bring in jewelry gifting, as well as engagements.

“The sales during (the 2021) holiday season were actually pretty good,” Gray said. “I don’t know about this holiday season because it seems like business has slowed down a bit now, because of the economy and inflation, I don’t quite have a feel for it yet.”

Gray said the shop tends to increase its social media postings to attract holiday shoppers. They do not offer sales on their items, as they are already fairly priced.

He also said he has already encountered people shopping for holiday gifts.

“We do custom work and some people are aware that it takes a certain amount of time to do that -- it’s not something you could walk in two weeks before Christmas and expect to have a custom piece,” Gray said.

“I just hope that Christmas isn’t going to be affected as much by inflation and all these other factors.”

Bow n Arrow and Friends, 8200 Old Redwood Hwy., Cotati 94931

bownarrowclothing.com

Mercedes Hernandez is the owner of the Cotati clothing boutique Bow n Arrow and Friends. The consignment boutique now houses more than 30 small, local-makers and businesses that offer items from floral arrangements and plants to clothing, jewelry, and candles.

Hernandez said December is the highest performing month of the year for her business, closely followed by the summer sales.

“We always try to build excitement and anticipation for that and with the new brand, Bow n Arrow and Friends, we really want to do it big this year,” she said.

Bow n Arrow and Friends will participate in Black Friday and Cyber Monday as they usually do. However, Cyber Monday will be run through their social media platform instead of a website this year.

Additionally, Hernandez noted they will be holding exclusive pop-ups from small businesses to attract in holiday shoppers.

“I know that one thing that has been common among a lot of local makers and boutique owners is just an increase in the price of supplies,” she said.

However, compared to previous years, she predicts she will not be facing issues with low stock from suppliers or delays with receiving those supplies.

“I always tell people to shop local for the holidays, that’s the biggest thing,” she said.

Journey of the Saber, 1071 Santa Rosa Plaza, Santa Rosa 95401

facebook.com/JourneyofTheSaber

Teryn Kelley started his Padawan training academy and Star Wars lightsaber and gift shop in the Santa Rosa Plaza in November 2021. He said the mall had a large shopper presence as the world transitioned into a post-COVID world.

He said the holidays are a big time for lightsaber sales, and that buying a professional stunt light saber is like purchasing a new iPhone because of the ability to customize the saber.

And with the consistent schedule of new Star Wars TV shows, Kelley said he feels Star Wars will be at the forefront of the minds of fans.

“(Lightsabers) are niche, but they’re very pricey at the same time,” he said. “I think people are going to be really amped up on Star Wars, so I’m feeling pretty good about the season. I feel like all of my target numbers are going to be hit.”

Kelley said he uses Halloween as his prime marketing time to bring awareness to his shop. He’s holding a Halloween costume contest and party at his shop in the mall as one of the ways to get people thinking about holiday shopping.

“That’s the main marketing I did for the winter months,” Kelley said. “I’m really not going to have to change anything other than pushing the lightsabers because it’s a good Christmas item.”

Fundemonium, 579 Rohnert Park Expy W, Expressway Center, Rohnert Park 94928

fundemoniumtoys.com

Steven Elliot, owner of the hobby and toy store Fundemonium in Rohnert Park, said his business is moving along very well in terms of their holiday season preparation.

The business has already been stocking up on items because, as Elliot said, since the pandemic, there tends to be supply chain issues around holidays.

“We’re optimistic about the holiday season,” Elliot said. “The main thing that we’ve noticed is that sales have slowed down in the big-ticket items, but they’ve picked up in the more entry-level items.”

Elliot said that in a general sense, the business is not quite at the same sales levels as it was last year. However, he expects it to be a successful one.He said that during the pandemic, people’s spending habits were much different than they are now, and consumers have less to spend this holiday season.

“People still have to have fun and feel good about their holidays, and our main thing rather than focusing on heavy discounting, is having people come into the store--staying optimistic and having fun around the holidays,” Elliot said.

Within the holiday special events and activities at Fundemonium, the store hosts a donation program annually through the local Rotary Toy Drive. Shoppers can donate a toy for a local child in need, and in return, receive a gift.

Goblin Bros. Games & Gear, 133 Kentucky St., Petaluma 94952

goblinbros.com

Ted Woolley is owner of this gaming shop in downtown Petaluma that opened in in early 2021. Woolley said post-pandemic, business is in a really good place because of what they specialize in: hands-on games.

Woolley said shoppers are looking for gifts that bring people together in person, such as board games, and that the shop has already seen an uptick in sales.

“People are already starting to do Christmas shopping and get stocking stuffers,” he said. “I overhear customers saying, ‘Oh, so-and-so would like this, let’s get it for Christmas,’ so it’s starting now which is a good sign for us.”

As other small-business owners have voiced, Woolley said his business has dealt with supply chain issues due to COVID-19. As a result, he said it was difficult to keep the hottest games in stock, and they faced many delays and items being back-ordered.

“This year, we’ve been front-filling our inventory a little bit more,” He said. “The supply chain issues this year aren’t as bad reportedly, but they’re still not completely fixed so we’re trying to make sure we have more in stock.”

Woolley also noted the aspect of support for local businesses in the community. ‘We are very grateful and benefit from the fact that a lot of people in our area want to support small businesses,“ he said.

Pack Ship and More, 1363 Healdsburg Ave, Healdsburg 95448

packandshipwindsor.com

UPS and FedEx revealed in earnings calls plans to increase shipping rates by 6.9% starting Dec. 27 due to inflation effects, which Pack Ship & More owner Shawn Nichols said will start hitting in early 2023.

He said in October, the Windsor location has seen a 20% decrease in revenue , but Nichols remains hopeful for the upcoming holiday season.

“Everyone’s feeling the effects of inflation, and I want to make sure that we’re taking care of all the local businesses and residents,” he said.

Nichols said the 2021 holiday shopping season was an “anomaly” because of how much people were shipping due to lasting pandemic effects. He also said the business has grown 400% in the last five years.

“A lot of what we get is word-of-mouth and people sharing that we’re here, especially in Healdsburg,” Nichols said. “Customers asked us to open a location in Healdsburg and we did.”

Russian River Books and Letters, 14045 Armstrong Woods Rd, Guerneville 95446

booksletters.com

This year is the second holiday season for Russian River Books and Letters owner Michael Rex. He was worried in December 2021 when he opened he would have a slow season , but that wasn’t the case.

“People were excited that I was here because they didn’t have to travel to Sebastopol or Santa Rosa to go Christmas shopping,” he said. “I had wrapping paper, cards, books, lights, I had all kinds of stuff.”

He also said people are looking to support local independent book stores rather than buying their books at such national chains as Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

“I’m not super worried about the recession because if people are going to put their dollars in this area into a book store, they’re going to buy it from me,” he said. “I want the store to have the reputation of a community book store, and if it’s a community bookstore, they’ll be more likely to support it.”

Corrick’s, 637 4th St., Santa Rosa 95404

corricks.com

Keven Brown and his wife, Jeri Yamashiro Brown, are the owners of the stationary and gift shop, Corrick’s.

“Last Christmas and this year we have seen more customers feeling the need to come out of their COVID-19 cocoon,” Brown said. “Luckily, Corrick’s, with our spacious 14,000-square-foot space and high ceilings and friendly hometown staff, feels like a more comfortable and safe environment for most people.”

Brown said staff, or “elves,” as he calls them, has already been working for the past few weeks to prepare the store for holiday shopping with themed holiday trees and winter wonderland decorations.

“Supply chain delays are never pretty and we need to concentrate on helping our clients, our friends and neighbors,” Brown said. “We need to not worry about whether or not merchandise may or may not come in for the holidays.”

Sara Edwards is the business reporter for The Press Democrat. You can reach her at 707-521-5487 or sara.edwards@pressdemocrat.com. Follow her on Twitter @sedwards380.

You can reach intern Lonnie Hayes at lonnie.hayes@pressdemocrat.com.