Local small businesses say they’re having a good season

LEXINGTON, Va. (WDBJ) - Time is running out, but retailers are happy to help you out.

“I think they’re just enthusiastic to find that unique gift,” said Liz Murphy of Lizzie’s of Lexington. “I’ve heard that a lot from people, they come in, and are like, I’m looking for something unique.”

In Lexington, where small, locally owned shops like Lizzie’s of Lexington predominate, that means more than just staying open through Christmas Eve.

“We are seeing plenty of people in the stores and on the streets shopping,” said Main Street Lexington Executive Director Rebecca Logan. “Some folks actually make a weekend of it.”

Which is not to say that everything is perfect. Take, for example, the supply chain issues.

“The merchandise obviously has not been coming in as expected,” Murphy said, “and I’ve been waiting for some things since January.”

But for most, it wasn’t a problem.

“Many of our shops saw this coming, so they ordered inventory way in advance,” explained Logan.

And for art galleries, it’s no problem at all.

“No! Exactly, we do not have supply chain issues, exactly,” said Gail MacLeod in Artists in Cahoots. “I was thinking about that the other day too, is that we’re not dealing with that.”

And at Artists in Cahoots, which has been in Lexington 30 years or more, they say customers are buying more.

“We’re seeing a busy, a really busy days every day for the last two weeks,” said MacLeod, “and probably will continue to be.”

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