Inside Limelight Marketplace in New York, the holiday decorations are up. Big silver bulbs hang from the ceiling. The shops are open – and waiting for business. The scene could be the same at many a mall across America, except the retailers in Limelight aren’t the usual national chains or big-box stores. Instead, they’re mostly mom-and-pop merchants, promising an array of unique gift items and knowledgeable customer service. The Wall Street Journal’s small-business team set out to test American’s independents, or at least the representative sample inside Limelight, a 163-year-old venue that has a checkered past as both a former church and nightclub. We wanted to see if small shops can truly offer an alternative to big-name retailers. Could we find the perfect stocking stuffers or thoughtful indulgences for the special people in our lives?
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