Think Globally. Shop-Locally. It’s a perfect fit.

Live local. Buy local. No amount of marketing or advertising would match the effect lockdowns had on shopping locally. Did you discover new stores in your locale? Plus, many local stores also offer the eCommerce store so they can continue to get your custom now COVID-19 restrictions on movement have lifted.

Did you know the buy local has been a thing for many years? In 2009 Time magazine did an article on how the national economy can be boosted when consumers shopped locally.

How would shopping locally grow the national economy? Well according to Time it’s all about how money flows.

The Power of Local

Shopping locally creates the “velocity of the dollar” – the more the same dollar gets spent locally, the more everyone, including the local consumer, benefits.

Supporting independent local businesses increases the velocity of money in your area. The wellbeing of a community correlates to the health of its economy – i.e. the flow of money to keep residents employed and to pay for infrastructure (roading etc.).

Local businesses shouldn’t attempt to compete with the big-box stores. Instead, seek to fill gaps in the local community.

For example, the local fast food outlet will offer a higher quality burger than McDonald’s, which locals will be willing to pay more. Buying the burger locally can also be a more rewarding experience. The fast-food outlet may be family-run and also intergenerational with the family known in the local community. Every time you visit, the experience is more rewarding and friendly. We all need to know we beyond, and shopping locally reinforces why we live in the area.

Online Shopping

When you own and operate a local store, you can think globally and accept customers offshore from your eCommerce shop. This is not possible with a fast-food offering, but a gift store is a good fit for extending your customer base beyond your location. Online shopping is here to stay, even though many consumers have a keen eye on buy local.

This study a year since the outbreak of COVID-19 confirms an increase in online shopping habits. Notably, in Italy, where eating out is a favourite pass time, 45% of respondents said they did and will continue to shop online more often than before the pandemic.

Buy Local More Environmentally-Friendly

What will keep the local stores in business? Consumers keen to reduce their carbon footprint. For locally-made products, it makes sense to buy local and support the local economy. Younger generations are more focused on sustainability and buying locally is their way of making sure they are doing their bit for the environment.