Sip N’ Shop: Here’s why you should do your Christmas shopping at a craft fair

RAPID CITY, S.D. – On Saturday, December 17, 40 different vendors gathered at the Naja Shrine headquarters in Rapid City to sell their goods.

For the sixth year in a row, they have hosted a series of Sip N’ Shop events, with this event being their fifth and final one of the year. The vendors offered everything from granola to Tupperware and wood-crafting.

So, why should you do your holiday shopping at events like this?

Christina Cole, the director of the Naja Shrine Sip N’ Shop, said it best: “We believe in supporting local small businesses and it helps out the local mom and pop stores. And you don’t have to pay for shipping and you can just come out and have a wide variety of different things to buy.”

Supporting small and local businesses is always a good idea, as it helps to prop up the local economy and keep money within the community.

This event in particular has a portion of the proceeds going to help support some of the different programs offered by the Naja Shrine, including a kids’ summer camp that comes at no cost to the families, and transportation to and from their hospitals in the Minneapolis area.

So, if you haven’t done your holiday shopping yet, try to find a local craft market to visit.

Take a look as some of the photos from Sip N’ Shop: