Chamber hosts holiday craft market for Small Business Saturday

RIO RANCHO — Big business is the largest sign on the block more often than not. But what keeps the world going is the small businesses.

There is no shortage of small businesses in Rio Rancho, but they might not be as visible in the community.

Recognizing that, the Rio Rancho Regional Chamber of Commerce, hosted its annual holiday craft fair to highlight the unseen groups on Small Business Saturday.

“It was a tremendous day for our local artisans and entrepreneurs,” chamber President and CEO Jerry Schalow said.

He added the day was a strong success and that the event saw steady crowds throughout the day “... and our local small businesses reported great engagement, strong sales and built new connections with customers who are excited to support them throughout the holiday season.”

But the reason the fair is so important, he explained, is because every dollar spent locally recirculates in the community. He added that it strengthens small business economy and helps sustain what makes the community unique and reinforces the character of Rio Rancho.

Inside, where the market was going on, small business was booming. One local woman was selling her gnome creations.

Becky Green, owner of the Chubby Closets business, makes all manner of gnomes from recycled materials. Some of her works were Christmas-themed, including a gnome nativity scene and gnome tree toppers. She runs the business from her home.

Perhaps the most popular stop — aside from Santa that is — was a local sweets baker.

Laviolette’s Treats and Sweets, also run from home, was started by Lori Laviolette and her husband as a fundraiser for their daughter’s school project, according to the website. It states the business took off as a passion project.

“We baked everything from zucchini and pumpkin bread to our famous bizcochitos and gluten-free chocolate chip cookies, and the incredible customer response sparked a dream,” it reads.

“Recognizing the competitive nature of the homemade baked goods market, we knew we needed to stand out. Our solution was to pivot on to make homemade confections, where we developed a signature ‘natural twist,’ meaning all our confections are free of added preservatives, food dyes and artificial coloring.”

The Laviolettes had a variety of truffles, clusters, cookies and more at Saturday’s event.

That character Schalow mentioned showed in some of the fun activities around the market as well.

“The Girl Scouts did an outstanding job serving hot cocoa, coffee, cookies and bringing smiles to shoppers of all ages. Santa was a huge hit as always, creating a fun, festive environment that kept kids and parents engaged and offered kids the ability see the Jolly Old Elf to kick off the holiday season,” Schalow said.