Small stores use 'human relationship'

KALAMAZOO, Mich. (WOOD) - Laurie Russell has owned the Nature Connection on the Kalamazoo Mall for about seven years. The store, which specializes in Michigan-made merchandise and specialty gifts, is having its best year ever.

She credits a growing shift in consumer preferences.

"The world is getting faster all the time, more complicated, more busy, more disconnected," she told 24 Hour News 8. "In a lot of ways I think people appreciate the human relationship."

Rusell may be on to something.

A survey of nearly 9,000 holiday shoppers shows low prices is stil the #1 reason people choose where they spend their hard-earned money. But that number fell from last year.

Now, 5.3% cite customer service as a primary motivator, the highest mark this category ever received in the eight years the survey has been conducted.

About 138 million shoppers are expected to participate in Black Friday. Younger adults - those between 18-24 - are more than twice as likely to choose stores based on service.

Experts claim this is proof good service is a trend not likely to disappear.

"Certainly there is tremendous competition," said Vicky Kettner of Downtown Kalamazoo Incorporated . They've gone to battle for your buck, placing billboards miles from downtown and right on the front lines of its big box competitors.

Their idea is to sell a holiday experience that consumers say is lacking in modern retail.

"When someone is looking for a relaxed environment, where experience is important, customer service is important and selection is important for the uniqueness of things, then we have a good story to tell," she said.

Steve Walsh is a shopper who will do most of his holiday shopping downtown.

"The downtown is a great way to get out and about and experience some of the verve and energy that goes on during the holiday shopping season without the maddening crush that overwhelms you at the mall," he told 24 Hour News 8.

But the biggest challenge all retailers face is this: 81% say they will spend less this year, leaving the big box stores and the Moms-and-Pops to battle even harder.