by Tom Thomson
With the Christmas retail season now upon us, it’s a good time to reflect on the importance of supporting our business community by shopping locally.
The abundance of shopping options available these days, from internet shopping to urban centre excursions, means the reasons for shopping locally can sometimes be forgotten. But the fact is, keeping money circulating in our greater community is an important consumer decision for local residents, and one that needs to be top of mind, something the Chamber of Commerce has been working on over the years.
Currently, there is no real methodology at work keeping track of just how much money flows out of the area from shopping excursions, or online purchases, but you can safely say it is in the hundreds of thousands, or more likely millions of dollars. Needless to say, those dollars would be put to much better use keeping our own economy vibrant and sustainable. Local shops, restaurants, and services create jobs that keep the economy stable, and the property taxes, sales taxes and payroll taxes helps support the services we have come to expect and what many deem essential to our community.
As a home owner, you watch your monthly bills increase dramatically through the years. If you have ever been in business, you will understand the daily challenges. Costs of leases have been squeezed upwards as landlords are forced to pass along increases in municipal, regional, provincial taxation. Water, sewer and hydro costs continue on a steep upward curve for homeowners, but for businesses, the local tax multiplier is over two times what residential tax increases have been. Utility rates for water, sewer and hydro are also at a fixed rate higher than personal residences.
It takes a tremendous amount of energy and a varied and competent skill set to meet these challenges. Add in the additional problem of locals shopping outside the area, or those that never leave the comfort of their own home and spend hundreds of dollars with a click of the mouse on their computer.
In some ways, I get it. You are just trying to get the best deal, find a greater selection and keep the costs lower for you and your family, but at what cost to your community?
Check out our local shops and restaurants. You will find our local businesses offer a great selection with competitive pricing and quality that’s second-to-none, local experts with product knowledge you won’t find on line, plus home grown customer service. Then, Think Local First throughout the year.
In addition to the vital economy we all want, there are other benefits to shopping locally. For example, it is true that most business owners:
• Live here and have a vested interest in the overall well-being of our community
• Donate to local charities, sports teams, non-profit groups and housing initiatives
• Volunteer and actively contribute to “getting things done”
• Retain local professional services and purchase goods from local producers and suppliers
It’s a shame that every year some local businesses disappear because they are unable to balance the revenue-expense challenge. With a more concerted effort to shop locally, it’s possible some of these businesses could have survived, and the overall health of our community that much better off. Moreover, when you consider the ever-increasing rise in fuel prices, the cost of accommodations and meals, and all the other associated costs, it is clearly more expensive to go on a shopping excursion outside the area. Tack on, say, $400 in expenses for an overnight shopping trip, plus the environmental impact, and the savings aren’t remotely worthwhile.
How do we make shopping locally a habit rather than an idea? The best place to start as business owners is to ensure that we are providing the products our customers want, at a competitive price, with excellent customer service. We need to adopt a Think Local First attitude. We have wonderful retail, accommodation, dining, and service providers in the Nelson area. If you find what you want locally, if the price is competitive and the quality meets your needs, your decision should be easy: Buy it here!
Tom Thomson is executive director of the Nelson and District Chamber of Commerce.