By Marisa Kamall, Founder of GAIA & Creator of ChatGPShe
As the world gears up for another high-octane retail season, Small Business Saturday—falling on November 29 this year—quietly returns to the calendar. Positioned between Black Friday’s global frenzy and Cyber Monday’s digital rush, the day could easily get drowned out. Yet its significance has never been greater.
Small Business Saturday isn’t just a shopping moment. It is a deliberate economic choice. A value statement. A commitment to backing the ecosystem that powers innovation, resilience, and community-level prosperity—especially when it comes to women-led enterprises.
Why This Day Matters More Than Ever
Women entrepreneurs continue to launch businesses in record numbers, many driven not by opportunity alone, but by necessity—seeking workplaces that value their voices, respect their ambitions, and honour their lived experiences.
When consumers choose a woman-led business, the impact extends far beyond revenue:
- It validates the founder’s vision.
- It strengthens local economies.
- It narrows the opportunity gap.
- It keeps diverse leadership in the pipeline.
It is, simply put, an investment in a better—and more inclusive—economic future.
The Backbone of Growth: Community
As the founder of GAIA, a global leadership community for women, I’ve witnessed the undeniable correlation between community support and business resilience. Women who feel mentored, connected, and supported are more likely to:
- Launch
- Scale
- Hire
- Negotiate
- Take risks
- Stay in business long-term
Inside GAIA, women rewrite each other’s pitch decks, advise on contract terms, share client referrals, and offer the kind of unwavering encouragement rarely found in traditional professional settings.
Sometimes, the most transformative moment in a woman’s journey is just two seconds long:
“Keep going.”
Courage, Not Capital, Drives Small Businesses
Many women founders build despite limited funding, not because they have abundant resources. They balance societal expectations, family responsibilities, and structural roadblocks—yet they push forward with remarkable courage.
I’ve seen members walk away from toxic workplaces to build thriving consultancies. Others have built brands that turned personal passion into generational empowerment. These are not exceptions—they are the new face of entrepreneurship.
Your Spending Decisions Shape the Economy
Every purchase is a vote for the world we want to create. This year, ask yourself:
- Whose vision am I supporting?
- Whose expertise am I valuing?
- Whose future am I investing in?
For me, the answer is clear:
Women.
Women who innovate.
Women who mentor.
Women who rise—together.
Women who turn community into economic power.
Small Business Saturday Is More Than a Date
It’s a reminder that when women win, economies win.
When women thrive, communities thrive.
When women are supported, they become unstoppable.
As consumers prepare for one of the biggest retail weekends of the year, Small Business Saturday presents an opportunity to shift the narrative—from consumption to contribution, from convenience to conscience, from transactions to transformation.
This year, choose to support small.
Choose to support women.
Choose to build the future we keep saying we want.
