Buy Local is Growing!

Is Your Business Capitalizing on this Growing Trend?

'Buy Local' is a fast-growing trend that will continue to impact small businesses in the coming years. This renewed interest in purchasing local products and services is gaining popularity with people who are trying to live in a more environmentally conscious way. There is currently a growing consciousness around aspects of community-building and our responsibility to, and interdependence with, our immediate resources – both human and natural. When you buy locally, you are investing in your own neighbourhood or town, its people and its products, and this leads to an increase in your area's overall economy.

In each and every village, town and city across the country, the trend toward small businesses whose products rely on others in their community is growing, helping the local economy grow. 'Buy local' is going to continue its growth in popularity, and if you can find a way to create demand for your products with a local emphasis, you'll see business growth as a result.

How do 'Buy Local' programs work and what are some of the steps toward encouraging one in your own community? Successful programs have a strong desire to boost sales and support for locally grown, manufactured and designed products and services. The entire effort focuses on teaching consumers to use local businesses whenever possible in order to keep and create jobs and further sustain the neighborhood economy. Here are some of the reasons behind this growing trend.

'Buy Local' Emphasizes Local Roots and Ownership

People are naturally and intimately connected with where they live. They cheer for the home town sports team. They love to brag about locally owned and operated businesses - especially if those businesses sell something you can only get in your town! Most people have home-town pride and care about the history and roots of their community. There is value in connection with the community; it fulfills our human need of belonging and relationship, and we form a pride in all that's around us. The motivation to buy local comes from a desire to support the little guy in your community who's offering something truly home grown, something we feel connected to and ownership with.

'Buy Local' Strengthens the Local Economy and Community

There is a strong and growing sense of unity and commitment to independent business owners in many communities around the country. Buying local makes good financial sense too. Buying local puts dollars into the community and keeps them where everyone can benefit from them. Buying local supports local businesses growth. As businesses grow, they provide jobs for people in the community who then have an income to spend in the community. It's circular; if you can buy the same thing at a reasonable price from a small, locally owned business rather than at a huge big box store, why wouldn't you do it? Whether it's agriculture, technology, retail, or restaurants, people like the idea their money is staying in and contributing to the health of their community.

'Buy Local' is Good for the Customer.

Consumers know that the better their local economy does, the better their quality of life in that community will be, and business is the core of the local economy. When businesses can supply local products and services, they can keep their costs lower, which consumers like.

'Buy Local' is a Mindset

A few years ago, Vancouverite Darren Barefoot made a commitment to cut back on imported goods and buy only Canadian products and services for an entire year. His message, ultimately, was about "thoughtful consumption." Barefoot says it was about, "Looking more carefully at what I put in my home and put in and on my body." Barefoot joins a host of others who have undertaken similar personal quests and commitments, which honour the fact that the choices we make at the till do have a ripple effect on the economy and the environment. The way people buy is changing and becoming more thoughtful. The 100-Mile Diet, Farmer's Markets, Second Hand, Consignment and Restore stores and eating at restaurants that serve local food are all examples of a shift toward greater mindfulness in peoples' decisions on how they spend their money. This is a mindset that will continue to grow as more people discover the benefits of growing their local economies by buying local.

'Buying Local' is a Green Practice

No matter how you look at "Buy Local" efforts, they tend to be far more environmentally responsible in nature than shopping with national retailers. Not only does the purchasing philosophy benefit local businesses and spur the local economy, it also reduces the carbon footprint in each community where those practices are being used.

Shipping and sometimes packaging is greatly reduced as goods do not need to be trucked cross country, saving fuel, avoiding carbon emissions and reducing landfill from packaging or goods that don't make it intact or go bad during the journey.

Going green is an equally strong and prevalent trend that isn't likely to go away any time soon, so if buying local contributes to a greener community, it makes sense for people to support the buy-local movement. Most consumers care about the environment. They care about recycling, excessive packaging and the costs (in both dollars and energy) of shipping goods from other countries. They care about a greener planet for themselves, their children and grandchildren. Focusing on what people care about is always good for business; consumers are more likely to spend money when they sense the company they are dealing with has integrity – and who has more integrity than a local business?

How can your business benefit from the 'Buy Local' mindset? Get creative. Find out if you can order products from a local distributor rather than an international one. Investigate the possibilities of partnering with other local businesses to create a local focus. If your community doesn't have a formal 'Buy Local' program, talk with your local Chamber of Commerce or business development association about starting one. Small businesses often feel isolated in their business efforts, but there's strength and power in joining forces to create a stronger more self-sustaining community.