‘Tis the season…for shopping! Sure, you could get everyone a gift card and be done with it, but Grandma isn’t going to get the warm fuzzies from her (current) favorite grandchild from a piece of cold, hard plastic. And it’s always good to hold on to the Favorite Grandchild position.
Consider instead grabbing a hot chocolate from an independent coffee shop and hitting Main Street for your shopping needs this holiday season. The DiG challenges you to close your browser window and get back to real window shopping (they’re wearing their holiday finest!).
For every $1 million spent….
…at a local store …at a chain store
| $680,000 remains in our community | $430,000 remains in our community. |
Shopping in a local means less tax dollars spent on infrastructure, less maintenance, and more money available to beautify our community. Also, spending locally instead of online ensures that your sales taxes are reinvested where they belong – HERE! Over $9.3 billion would be directly returned to our economy if every US family spent just $10 a month at a local business. Also, small businesses support one another – 70% source goods and services locally.
| $119,000 goes towards wages for local workers. | $71,000 goes towards wages for local workers. |
Small business is big business! Small businesses are the largest employers nationally, creating two out of every three new jobs. They account for 99.7% of all U.S. employers, employing 58.9 million people! That’s 44% of the total U.S. private payroll.
| 2.2 local jobs are created. | 1.3 local jobs are created. |
Local businesses are better at creating higher-paying jobs for your neighbors. When you shop locally, you help create jobs for teachers, firemen, police officers and many other essential professions. Compared to large online retailers, local retailers create twice as many jobs for the same amount of revenue. As online retailers grow larger, they crowd out small brick-and-mortar stores, leaving fewer jobs available.
Need a few more reasons to shop local for the holidays? Local businesses often carry unique products that you won’t find anywhere else, sourced by people who live in and understand your community and its wants and needs. Our community is full of incredibly talented artists who partner with local shops to give their products a storefront.
Finally, take a look at your local high school’s fundraising discount card – see many online stores? Small businesses donate 250% more than large businesses to community causes, truly making them the backbone of our community.
Still at yellow or a hard red about going out and about? If you’re not ready to mask up to get out in about to shop this holiday season, many local shops offer online shopping and curbside pick-up. Some even offer personal shopping, which is something I can get on board with, pandemic or otherwise!
If a gift card is a must, consider gift certificates to local boutiques, restaurants, beverage shops, or post-vaccination live performances.