Stuff. Oh, so much stuff. At the risk of sounding pathetically consumerist, there sure are a lot of cool things to buy around here. And happily, most of the Daysie-winning retailers and service providers are small-business owners you can feel good about buying from. No question, Vermonters flock to their big boxes and malls like everybody else, but we also seem to have a unique love of “local.”

It’s a pleasure to hand out awards to small shops such as Eyes of the World, Ecco, Sweet Lady Jane, Pure Pop, Full Tank and Yankee Tattoo. Those businesses are among the 16 winning their fifth straight Daysie!

Think that’s loyal? Waterfront Video kept its clientele when it moved to Shelburne Road and amended its name to Off the Waterfront. Similarly, Pier One transitioned to Homeport and kept on winning Hottest Housewares. Owners Frank and Bettie Bouchette kept their Daysie for Most Fabulous Furniture in the family when they opened Ashley Furniture Home Store — the award previously went to Pier One.

In a few categories, though, a couple of businesses have traded places over the five years we’ve been offering the Daysies — that is, first and second place. Those who nosed ahead in 2007 include Fiori Bridal (Best Bridal Shop, over Sewly Yours); Creative Habitat at Ben Franklin (Best Arts-and-Crafts Supplies, over Michael’s); and Stoweflake (Most Spectacular Spa, over Topnotch).

Upsets are rare in the retail world, at least according to Seven Days readers. But this year there were five. The David-and-Goliath victory for Best Bookstore was especially sweet — and surprising — for Crow Bookshop of Burlington; it won a Daysie in 2003 but was overruled the next three years by Barnes & Noble. In 2007, not even Harry Potter sales prevented Crow’s comeback. Score one for the little guys.

In other small-business squeakers: Zinnia edged out Grannis Gallery (Best Place to Buy Jewelry); Mirror Mirror unseated the four-time winner Soapdish (Best Beauty-Product Purveyor); Conant Custom Brass turned out City Lights (Best Lighting Shop); and Montpelier’s Pink Shutter got a bunch more votes than the Chittenden County shops for First-Pick Florist.

Central Vermonters also remained faithful to Buch Spieler (Best Record Store), Damsels (Best Women’s Evening Wear), Bear Pond (Best Bookstore) and Zutano (Best Children’s Clothing).

The number of winners in “Services & Stuff” is too lengthy to repeat here, but you’ll find them elsewhere on these pages. Congrats to all, and thanks for minding your own businesses!