"Can I get a Discount?" : The Importance of Supporting Small Businesses

Marveling-Mind Photography

I do some hair braiding every now and again and though I am generous with close friends who need their hair done, nothing shows more support than the act of someone refusing to let me do their hair for free.

We have all been there. One of our friends, family members or loved ones has taken their talent and developed an avenue for making money and we want to sample and benefit from their work. Small businesses often start like this and I know many people, myself included, are guilty of turning away from financially supporting a business by not buying their products or asking questions like "So... can I get a discount?".

I'm not saying this is totally a bad thing, but there are a couple of key points I want to emphasize.

1. Quality products have a price. Saying you support and believe in someone is totally different than showing them that you do. Sometimes you have to put your money where your mouth is.
2. If the person you are supporting is truly someone close to you, they may already be planning to give you a good deal. For example, I do some of my friends hair and may not intend on charging them full price, but as I said at the beginning of this post, nothing shows more support to me than those who truly want to pay me for the services that they received.

I ended up getting a logo made and I don't lie or embellish anything when I say that it was well worth the money spent. What feels even greater is that I took that step and put money down to show the internal support that I have for not only for my brother, but for HandyBrand. A small, new, black owned business that has the potential and likelihood to help many people take their visions and make them into reality. Here is a sample of what they were able to do for me.



If you are an aspiring photographer, artist, or a person trying to take their brand to the next level, I highly recommend trusting them to create a brand for you.


I'm going to leave you with this paragraph I saw floating around the internet (source is not known). It speaks volumes about how easy it is for us to support a celebrity or well known brand but not invest or support a peer in their endeavors to greatness.