Shopping locally for gifts has benefits and limitations

— -- Susan Fusaro of Jupiter, Fla., finds her local gourmet market, Carmine's, reminiscent of her former home in Long Island, N.Y. She often buys gift baskets at the Italian gourmet market for friends and clients.

"The people that I give these to know the reputation of the shop and love the presents," says Fusaro, who is a Realtor.

Doing holiday shopping at independent, local stores has benefits, including a wide selection of often-unique gifts and the chance to boost your area's economy, small retailers say.

Privately held stores that sell electronics, appliances, office supplies, stationery and gifts had more sales growth than their publicly traded counterparts in the last year, according to data from financial information company Sageworks.

"This movement reflects an increased sentiment towards supporting the local business community, more personal interaction and more comfort in a smaller shopping environment," says Mike Lubansky, Sageworks' senior financial analyst and product manager.

But local shopping can also cost more, reduce your options for returns and restrict how early or late you can shop.

"Larger stores are able to leverage their buying power, which helps them to significantly lower costs and improve margins," says Janet Shim, a retail analyst with the independent industry research firm IBISWorld. "Smaller stores are not able to compete with their larger counterparts in terms of scale and savings."

Local stores are "not typically open the marathon hours the national chains are," says Dan Butler, vice president of retail operations at the National Retail Federation.

While local store owners often have a unique array of gifts, they aren't likely to have any one item in bulk. They manage their ordering more carefully and can't typically afford the luxury of overstocking, Butler says.

"You want to buy it while it's available," Butler says. "It's more likely than not that it might have sold in the size you need or the color you want when you go back."

Here are some ways to make the most of local holiday shopping:

•Find out about markdowns. Check out stores' social-media profiles. Three-quarters of 615 retailers surveyed this fall by the online small-business community Manta said they'll be touting deals and other announcements that way.

Because local shops selling items such as art and jewelry often have a selection unique to their area, they're unlikely to have established a price-matching policy. But it's worth asking what they can do for you when it comes to deals, says Jody Rohlena, senior editor of ShopSmart magazine, published by Consumer Reports.

Haggling could get you discounts or perks such as repairs and services further down the line, she says.

"If you ask for what you want at a local retailer, your chances of getting it may be really good," Rohlena says. "It can pay off even if you spend more at the outset."

While some smaller retailers may join in on the post-Thanksgiving sales, local stores' markdowns will more likely come at the end of the holiday season, says Kurt Salmon retail strategist Alison Jatlow Levy. That makes gift certificates to a local shop a good option.