What are you doing November 26? Holiday shopping? Instead of patronizing big box stores and mega-malls, please consider paying a visit to your small local merchants. They are the backbone of our economy, friends and neighbors trying to make a living and a difference in their communities. They also provide jobs. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, small businesses created 65 percent of the country’s net new jobs over the past 20 years. The dollars you spend inevitably find their way back into your village, town or city through employee payrolls or when small merchants themselves shop, pay their taxes or reinvest in their businesses. It’s a win-win scenario, don’t you think?
If you are fortunate enough to live in or near a walkable neighborhood, picture yourself enjoying the sights and sounds of the holiday season as you meander from shop to shop, perhaps stopping at a coffee shop for a quick cup of whatever warms you (or cools you, depending on your location). Small businesses preserve their neighborhoods’ unique sense of place, a sense of place that no mall or big box store can claim. Those of you who live in a rural or suburban area, is there such a neighborhood in a nearby community? Try it, instead of automatically turning your car into the nearest WalMart parking lot.
I’ve heard of this and I think it’s the best idea in a long time. Unfortunately, we have no small businesses near us anymore. In the last few years this area has been built up into major shopping areas with, of course, the large chain stores. I plan on searching for at least one small business.
PLUS–I’m sure everyone would prefer a gift from a boutique or small specialty store over something mass produced and expensively shipped by freighter through the Panama Canal from a distant nation.
One is all it takes! I think most of the country lives in areas like yours. If we all patronize just one … Even though I live in a city neighborhood, it’s not really walkable. You have to drive yourself to a grocery store or shopping mall if you don’t want to visit the nearby 7 Eleven, RiteAid or CVS pharmacies for supplies. There are a few walkable communities both within and outside the city, though, that have lots of shops on their main streets. They offer a much friendlier experience than any of the local same-old, same-old malls.
Absolutely! Plus, one can never be sure of the quality of the ingredients or the craftsmanship. Especially so with items coming from China. I avoid Chinese products whenever possible.