Picture a classic Christmas card image of holiday gift shopping, with softly falling snowflakes before the windowpanes of a toy shop. From inside the store a golden glow bathes displays of colorful trains, dolls, balls and blocks.

Nostalgic memories of Christmas Past are meant to beckon shoppers to walk up and walk in. That experience might happen, can happen in real life. It surely does not happen in an online purchase.

Shopping local is not simply a slogan to inspire gift buying on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. It also serves as a reminder that both customers and businesses can benefit from people taking advantage of the opportunity to find the gifts they want -- for others or themselves -- right nearby.

This is an especially good idea in a holiday season that presents extra challenges to retail businesses, like Christmas 2022. Post-pandemic times have not been kind to small business. Many haven't fully recovered their sales volume of 2019, soon after which they had to close down for weeks. Virus-wary shoppers stayed away in droves even when stores reopened, and some have yet to return.

The re-openings did not measure up to previous levels, either. Lack of help kept many small retail operations from being open on as many days or hours per week.The Help Wanted signs are up but fewer potential employees have been applying for jobs that entail mingling with members of the public.

Some businesses are also still experiencing difficulties getting the merchandise they’d like to sell. Popular items can be hard to stock, but brick-and-mortar stores are often able to offer customers alternatives. It is easier for a shopper to consider a substitution when they can see it for themselves and decide if it suits their purpose. That can be harder to judge in online shopping.

Retailers may also be making less per sale, if inflation is cutting deeply into their profit margins. They have hard decisions to make about what prices to put on items that will make them some money without scaring away budget-conscious shoppers, but there are usually sales and promotions to lower the price.

This is not to suggest that good will to struggling local business owners is the only reason to shop locally. National news stories say more people are shopping in person, and their reasons make sense.

Wide variety: Local businesses, which includes theaters, museums and other non-profit arts organizations, can sell experiences as well as objects. A day at the Mystic Marinelife Aquarium, an evening with the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra and events hosted by dozens of other local venues are possibilities.

Getting back out there: Walking a chilly sidewalk, popping into a warm shop and encountering others doing their shopping the traditional way can be fun -- which many may have forgotten, it has been so long.

Comparison shopping: Local purchasing means the option of trying on clothes and shoes, handling tools and testing out electronics. The item may not fit as well or feel as good as it looks, but the buyer will know that right away, and another size or style may be waiting on the shelf.

Shopping with children: It may not be the most efficient way to shop, but it’s fun to watch little ones and even older kids browse the goods. Excitement is contagious, and the children may steer the grownups to the perfect gift.

All shopping is a transaction, but shopping in person from local proprietors adds another dimension that’s not available online. It’s a great holiday tradition that should not be missed.