This holiday season we once again have launched a Shop MainStreet Campaign. For the past three years, we have had great success working with MainStreet communities and encouraging people to do their holiday shopping in our downtowns. We have posted community holiday events to our website and produced a Shop MainStreet poster for businesses to display.
The purpose of the campaign has been to build awareness of the quality services and retail businesses in our MainStreet districts. Moving beyond the national trend of “shop local,” we believe in supporting the investment of the business owners who have chosen to locate in our historic commercial districts that we are working so hard to revitalize.
This year we have taken Shop MainStreet to a new level and launch a year round campaign. The theme for 2014-15 is “Support Our Homegrown Businesses.”
It is a proven fact that dollars spent with locally-owned businesses recirculates in the community more than dollars spent in chain or big box stores: for every $100 spent in a locally-owned business, $68 stays in the community compared to $43 in non-locally owned businesses. In MainStreet districts we can take that statistic a step further. Business owners who work downtown are more likely to bank, eat, and shop in the district, thereby reinvesting their money into other local businesses.
At the launch of the 2013 Shop MainStreet Campaign last year in Corrales, a local business owner shared the story of her $100. She spent $100 at a neighboring restaurant, then the restaurant owner spent $100 at the local bike store, then the bike store owner spent $100 at the local co-op market which benefited five market vendors, each of whom ended up back at her business spending $20. Thus her $100 circled and benefitted nine different entrepreneurs, including herself.
Shopping locally is a good thing to do to support your community, but this year we encourage – and even challenge – you to Shop MainStreet. Choose to look to the businesses and services in your MainStreet district first, not just for the holidays, but for the entire year.