I have written about varied interests over the last 6 months. One interest that I haven’t touched on is the issue of Shopping Local. Shop LOCAL can mean a lot of things, from just shopping within a few miles of where you live to keep fuel costs down or the convenience of being just down the road from your house. To me as a small business owner it means patronizing local small businesses. I shop at small mom and pops as often as I can. In this day an age of Big Box retailers, you can’t possibly get the same level of customer service from the BB’s as you can from a small independent retailer. I am not suggesting that all your purchases have to be from a local independent shop, but at least give them a chance.
Rebuild our Local Economy
In my experience the idea of shopping at the Big Guys involves the time it takes to navigate the cavernous aisles and then get in and out of the giant parking lots. Sure some of the prices are lower, the door stoppers and lost leaders, look around and the prices are not that much cheaper. The level of quality is usually not that good and the throwaway value is always present. Why purchase a product that will degrade and fall apart in a short amount of time when a quality product will give years of service. If you do go to a small retailer and the owner or employee is not very friendly or appreciative of your business let others know, which always happens. If you are treated with respect and the service that you were given was good or even exceptional – give a shout out on Facebook, Yelp, Google Places or Yahoo Local. Speak up and take the time to do a review. I see the negative reviews, seems people always find the time to write those, but when they get super treatment you don’t see those.
The 350 Project
When you do visit a smaller retailer, service business or trades person thank them for putting themselves out there and if you don’t see what you are looking for mention it to them, most of us would be more than happy to add that service or product if available.
Thank you to all my Customers – I truly appreciate you and your patronage. Over the years I built friendships with you and continue to add new friends on a daily basis. On this Memorial Day Weekend lets thank all the Service Men and Women who protect us now and those that have past.
We will never forget
