Vandalism on Christmas Day has failed to deter the enthusiasm of the owner of a small Eaglehawk business.
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Jemma Stormer, owner of Kindness Society, said she had been "blown away" by the support she had received from the community in the lead up to this Christmas period.
And that support is set to continue, even after someone smashed one of the shop's front windows on Christmas Day.
The smashed window has been boarded up and Ms Stormer, who was keen to turn a negative into a positive, has written the words 'Smashing sales in store' on the board.
She won't let the vandalism set her back, determined to stay open for the rest of the week to end 2023 on a high.
Ms Stormer said this was the second year the store had been open and, despite initial fears of failure, it had been a great venture.
"Given the current retail climate, we weren't sure what to expect," she said.
"We were absolutely blown away by the amount of local support this Christmas.
"There were quite a few customers who came in that were wanting to support local small businesses."
Support from all over Bendigo
Ms Stormer said the support she had seen was not just from Eaglehawk locals but from residents all over the city.
"People from all over Bendigo (have visited the shop)," she said.
"We have had quite a bit of support from Kangaroo Flat and even Strathfieldsaye, which is incredible.
"People just want quality products that they cannot get at big stores."
She thanked the community for the support they had shown Kindness Society.
"We just want to thank (Bendigo) so much for everything they have done," she said.
"We are consistently blown away by the amount of positivity and the great community that we have here."
"We definitely have our regulars and we also have a consistent amount of people who don't know that we are here yet, so it is really exciting when they come in and see all of our things, that makes me so happy."
