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The Buy Local Movement is Catching On! By Peggy Werner and Janine Pumilia
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he “buy local” movement is growing. People want to live in places that have a strong local identity and that means shifting more shopping/dining dollars from chain stores to support locally owned businesses. “In recent decades, policy across the country has privileged the biggest corporations,” states the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, based in Minneapolis. “Yet a growing body of research is proving something that many people already know: small-scale, locally owned businesses create communities that are more prosperous, entrepreneurial, connected and generally better off across a wide range of metrics.” Local businesses generate 70 percent more local economic activity per square foot than chain stores do, reports the Andersonville Study of Retail Economics. That means more money
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Smart Living Weekly
re-circulates close to home rather than flying off to chain store owners. Shopping local is also better for the environment, since it reduces processing, packaging and transportation waste. The local food movement alone has grown nearly $12 billion in the U.S. since 2011. People not only prefer to buy locally grown and prepared food, but also are willing to pay more for it, reports the Journal of Food Distribution. Consumers view it as better for their health, the environment and the local economy. This isn’t exactly news to Barb Kaiser, owner of the Great Harvest baked goods store at 1668 Alpine Road, Rockford, in Highcrest Centre. Barb opened the store with her late husband, Steve, in 1996, and recently transferred ownership to their son, Andy. “Buying local” has caught on, says Kaiser. “We’ve been here a long time
Dec. 18
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and are going on our second generation of ownership. That trust has been built up with our good service and products and we want other local businesses to know they can have such a success story, too.” Food is an ideal gift, she says. “We always have a big demand for our products as corporate gifts to clients and customers. It’s cost effective and everything is made with high quality ingredients and from scratch.” Today’s fashion shoppers want something beyond the “cookie cutter” items found at chain stores, says Lisa Tatosian, manager of Eurostyle+, 510 E. State St. “People like one-of-a-kind items, something unique that not everyone is going to be wearing, and they also like to help local merchants stay in business,” she says. Hot selling items this year include
