Support Main Street

As we are inundated with continual messages via social media, about a multitude of things, I wanted to sift through the “Buy Local” message to highlight why it’s so important.

Does anyone remember going to the hardware store, grocery store or shop with your Dad on a Saturday morning bored while he was talking to the shop owner?  Now that we’re old, some of those fond memories may come flooding back, as we realize that rushing around, picking up the cheapest, sometimes imported gadget that we feel we have to have has lost some of the “experience”.  

Buying from a local small business independent matters for so many reasons. Our actions are observed sometimes more than we think through the eyes of our children.  We are paving the way for the next generation and we have to show them that we do not want our only choices to be the big box chains, discounters, and company-owned stores.  

The independent retailers that started their businesses generations ago, are back to the realization that even though it is hard, it matters and that it’s important in our society for generations to come.  

One of the latest buzzwords in retailing has been that of “show-rooming”, which is the act of going into a brick and mortar store and identifying the product you want to purchase and then going online or to a large chain to buy it cheaper.  
I can understand why this has become popular with the generation-y consumer, but it also needs to be identified that these kind of continual situations are not fair to the independent retailers that spend a lot of money to simply have a store to walk into.  

Besides the rent, utility bills, phone bill, advertising, signage, office supplies, cleaning supplies, sales tax, inventory tax, computers, phone systems, equipment/repairs, etc.,  there is the costs associated with having employees, costs of goods sold, and oh a meager salary for the owner.  

So now if that “show-roomer” comes in and asks the store owner/manager to explain the features/benefits of the said product, and then doesn’t even buy?
This business that spent all of that money to get that person to call or come in get’s no sale.  Not only is this unfair, but if this trend continues there may not be the choices left except for online retailers or the large chains that can withstand due to their sheer volume.

So remember the next time you are planning your shopping trip realize that the benefits to “Buying Local” and “Buying Small”are SIGNIFICANT and matter in the long term more than you think, and the broader benefits include:

• benefiting the local economy 
• raising the value of home prices in the community 
• revitalizing and saving the Main streets in a small town 

We can all feel good about making these choices.  It’s the right thing to do!