6 Reasons to Shop Locally
“Shop local. Support locally sourced products and services. Support small businesses.”
These are a few mantras you have no doubt heard many times over the last few years, as a push to move away from the sterile and impersonal environments of big-box chains and department stores have swept through North America. But, while there is an increased willingness on the part of consumers to throw some extra coin at small businesses, others may see this push as nothing but a fad or trend. After all, are the benefits of shopping local that well known? As we enter this new decade, we at Indy Times wanted to share a few reasons why supporting local is beneficial for everyone and how small businesses change the community for the better.
These are a few mantras you have no doubt heard many times over the last few years, as a push to move away from the sterile and impersonal environments of big-box chains and department stores have swept through North America. But, while there is an increased willingness on the part of consumers to throw some extra coin at small businesses, others may see this push as nothing but a fad or trend. After all, are the benefits of shopping local that well known? As we enter this new decade, we at Indy Times wanted to share a few reasons why supporting local is beneficial for everyone and how small businesses change the community for the better.
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1. A Majority of New Jobs Come From Local Businesses
Small local businesses are the largest employers nationally. Also, local shops provide jobs to people of various backgrounds, from students to residents who may be ready for a career change. And in our current economic climate, it never hurts to support these local business leaders in ensuring a more diversified job pool. |
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Honeybee's Garden
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It Makes a Community Unique
Want a recipe for a thriving community? The ingredients are many, but some of the most important are local businesses, entrepreneurs, and makers. Every city or town has the same mix of chain restaurants, grocery, and department stores, but it is the character beyond this that will make the community a destination. Those one-of-a-kind products and experiences shared by local makers and businesses are what sets our communities apart from every other town. By supporting those businesses, we ensure that the character of our community is preserved, and its uniqueness may draw others to it. |
Every city or town has the same mix of chain restaurants, grocery, and department stores, but it is the character beyond this that will make the community a destination.
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3. Your Local Economy Benefits
When you purchase at locally owned businesses — rather than nationally owned — more money is kept in the community. By being ingrained locally, small business owners generally support other local businesses — often patronizing nearby establishments for both business and personal purchases. This is in stark contrast to a large corporation that tends to get its supplies from its national distributors. Locally owned businesses that often purchase from other local businesses and service providers help to grow other businesses as well as the local tax base. |
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4. Customer Service Is Better
Any business that cares about its customer base is going to respond to its customers' concerns, but none more so than a local maker or owner of a community business. A small business owner is connected to every employee in-store, but also its customers. They value a personal approach. |
A small business owner is connected to every employee in-store, but also its customers.
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5. You'll Find Unique Offerings
Unlike big-box chains, the mix of products you can acquire from local businesses is often unique to your community, like a chair crafted from a locally grown type of wood or preserves made with ingredients that are native to your area. Perhaps the product you are looking for is one-of-a-kind and only produced by an artisan in your neighborhood. It is these unique offerings that are usually created and crafted with care and so made to last. Often the freedom of a local maker will lead to unique twists on familiar products or entirely new ideas that you may not have seen elsewhere. One sure-fire thing you must know about local artisans is that they are committed to their craft, bringing creativity and care to their products. |
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6. It Shows You Care About Your Community
When you stop to think about it, supporting local comes down to caring about your community. Not only do you reap the rewards listed above, but you ensure that all your neighbors do as well. Your buying habits can support your local economy, your neighborhood entrepreneurs, crafters, and the community as a whole. Supporting small business makes you a part of something special, unique, and thriving. |