The “Be a Local Hero” or “Shero” slogan is a too hyperbolic for me, but below the schmaltz there’s some truth to it.
The small action of buying local goods and services strengthens hometowns in ways that big box stores and corporate businesses can’t: more local jobs and charity and, in general, cooler stuff. Helping to sustain a regional economy is one of those everyday noble acts we do to keep society going, like voting, hand washing and stopping at crosswalks.
Studies of individual communities provide a wealth of data about how spending dough at independent stores benefits everyone. For example, because local shops tend to hire more locals, spend their revenue locally and donate to the communities in which they resides, a Maine Center for Economic Policy 2011 study of Portland found that shifting 10 percent of consumer spending from national chains to locally owned businesses would result in an additional $127 million in economic activity, with 874 new jobs generating more than $35 million in wages.
Researchers also found that every $100 spent at locally owned businesses contributes an additional $58 to the local economy. By contrast, $100 spent at a chain store yields $33 in local economic impact.
As the holiday shopping season is underway, I’d like to make a pitch that you spend your dollars at local shops. It won’t make you a s/hero — you need to be able to wield Thor’s hammer or summon the power of Grayskull for that — but it could greatly help the community in which you reside.
4 Reasons to Shop Local:
1.) It helps the local economy: Independent retailers return almost twice as much money per dollar of sale than chain stores, thus stimulating more economic growth in the area. They do this through buying goods and services from other area vendors, supporting community causes, and hiring people who live in the area. Contrast that with the job loss that can come from corporations seeking to outsource work.
2.) There’s cool stuff: Faces, Something to Talk About, Blue Marble Gifts, Northern Lights, Beadnik’s in Brattleboro, Grow Gallery, Nash Gallery, all the stores in Thornes Marketplace, Louis Clark Country Gifts, Ten Thousand Villages, Modern Myths, Hidden Treasures, and Comeptitive Edge — the mall’s got nothing on them and others of their ilk.
3.) It reduces your carbon footprint: When you buy local, your goods are generally coming from somewhere within a 50 mile radius. The packing, storing, and shipping costs are often less than what it would cost to transport goods from farther away. Chain stores typically purchase products from whomever will provide the best bulk price; a move that drives down the per-item cost enough to make transporting the product cheaper than buying smaller quantities locally. The U.S. imported $2.8 trillion worth of products in 2014, according to the Census Bureau.
4.) It gives you the warm fuzzies: Get the sense of personal satisfaction that comes with spending your money ethically.
If you want to explore the area’s independent shopping scene a bit more visit stop at the shops. If you want to do some online research first, check out these sites:
Hampshire and Franklin counties: www.pvlocalfirst.org
Berkshire County: berkshires.org
Springfield: www.myonlinechamber.com
Southern Vermont: www.vermontvacation.com
See you at the indies!•
Contact Kristin Palpini at editor@valleyadvocate.com.
