Rochester's Small Business Saturday was a bigtime success story

Ryan Couture, 5, shows his mom, Stacy Courture, the gum he just got out of the gumball machine as his older brother, Shamus, 9, looks for a quarter from his mom so he can follow suit at Sweet Peach's Candy and Confections on North Main Street on Saturday

ROCHESTER - There was no pushing, no shoving, no fisticuffs over who gets that last 60-inch flat screen for a couple of hundred bucks.

Instead, there were customers who enjoyed shopping for that perfect Christmas gift while sipping on a crisp pinot grigio and nibbling some cheese, or in some cases, a piece of bubblegum.

That was the takeaway from Rochester's highly successful Small Business Saturday held at several downtown shops.

Sherry Beaudoin of Artisans' Gallery waits on a customer as others shop around her North Main Street store during Small Business Saturday in Rochester.

Artisans' Gallery owner Sherry Beaudoin had extra store staff on hand for what she expected to be a busy day, but even she was overwhelmed with the brisk crowds that came, saw and bought at her locally sourced arts and crafts emporium.

"We are having a fantastic day," Beaudoin said, adding that some of her suppliers had even come in midday to restock empty shelves.

Small Business Saturday is part of a nationwide initiative to reinvigorate downtown shopping as a counterweight to big box stores' Black Friday.

On Saturday it made for a bustling downtown, something local restaurants and taverns also were happy to see.

Just a few doors down from Artisans' Gallery, Sweet Peach's Candy and Confections had also drawn a crowd.

A finely assembled wine and cheese station at Artisans' Gallery on North Main Street provided welcome refreshment for weary shoppers.

Among them were Stacy Couture of Rochester, who said she felt it was important to support the mom and pop shops downtown.

"They keep the community going," she said. "This is for people who live in this community, and have their shops here. They are the community, so I want to give them my support."

RiverStones Custom Framing on North Maine and Country Essentials on Hanson Street also reported a healthy Saturday sales ledger.

Dale Marino of Country Essentials, who moved her primitive shop to Hanson Street after 15 years at the Lilac Mall, said she was heartened by the appearance of many longtime customers.

"It's nice to see the faces of those that have supported me through the years," Marino said.