While weary-eyed shoppers seeking bargains in the early morning hours of Black Friday may flock to shopping centers from Des Moines to Chicago, businesses around Newton have their eyes on a different date — Nov. 24.

This day, the Saturday after Thanksgiving, marks Small Business Saturday, an initiative brought to life by American Express in 2010 and sponsored in part by Fed-Ex this year.

“It’s kind of a new thing that started a couple of years ago,” said Darrell Sarmento, Executive Director for the Newton Chamber of Commerce. “American Express started sponsoring it and it kind of took off from there. It’s a way of encouraging people to shop locally and support small businesses during the holidays.”