Are You Shopping Small This Holiday Season? You Should Be. Here’s Why…

I’m sure you hear all the time that it’s really important to support local businesses but you may not know the reasons behind that. The purpose of this month’s blog is to teach you 10 reasons why you should be supporting local businesses especially during the holidays.

1. Shopping Local Helps Improve Your Local Economy.

By shopping small instead of at places like Walmart or the likes, more of the money you spend is kept in your community. Even small businesses like to shop small by purchasing the things they need to keep their businesses up and running. The sales taxes you spend by shopping locally goes directly into the city you live in which ultimately helps pay for street repairs, police and firefighters, etc. 

Let’s be honest. The small yet adorable shops really breathe life into our communities and we really shouldn’t forget about that. They break up the monotony of corporations and make the community feel more appealing. I guarantee that your favorite cities and towns have lots of these unique shops that you may or may not know about. Even shops you know of already may be hosting really cool and unique events so make sure to follow them on social media and keep up to date with the things small businesses do in your community. 

2. Local Businesses Help Create Jobs.

Unless a small business is a sole proprietorship, shopping locally can help your economy by creating more and more jobs. The more you support a small business, the more likely it is that they'll have a need for more employees. Seeing a growing small business encourages other aspiring small businesses to open up store fronts in the same area which will lead to not only more and more jobs in your local communities, but will give you and your community more cool places to shop.

3. Local Businesses Are More Personal and Their Customer Service is Unbeatable.

Small businesses are unique and most of the time will give you a better customer service experience than a nationally-owned business. Small businesses are run by individuals so unlike when purchasing from a corporation you'll get to feel like you know the person behind the products. This personal touch is something you won’t get just anywhere. Think about it... How amazing would it be if you walked into your local coffee shop and they knew your order? Then not only are you more likely to get your product faster, you’re getting it from, and supporting, a friend. By creating bonds with small businesses, you’ll be able to have those more personal experiences.

4. You Help Small Business Owners Provide For Their Families.

For many small businesses, the holidays are the busiest time of the year. Much of the money they make goes back to their families so they can provide meals, shelter, and other necessities. Because of the pandemic, a lot of people lost their jobs and needed to find a way to make up for the lost income so you know what they did? They started their own businesses based around their own special niches. The number of small businesses has grown significantly over the past few years and that’s great! The more money small business owners earn, the more their families can thrive. Even if they aren’t solely supporting their families with their businesses income, every bit of money earned helps. 

5. It Helps Reduce Your Carbon Footprint.

Shopping locally can help reduce your carbon footprint. Your carbon footprint is the amount of greenhouse gasses emitted by your actions. The average American’s carbon footprint is 16 tons, making it one of the highest rates in the world! Locally-owned businesses tend to make more local purchases which require less transportation for the creation of their products. By setting up their shops in the town or city they're from, small businesses also play a role in preventing habitat loss. 

6. You Can Potentially Cut Down Your Travel Time/Distance.

Since we’re talking about reducing carbon footprints, this is another great way to do so. Because small businesses are generally set up in towns and shopping centers, they’re all likely within walking distance of each other. If you're close enough you can walk or ride your bike there and between shops but even if you do have to drive to them, small businesses tend to be clustered together preventing you from having to drive all over town to shop multiple stores. This helps reduce the air pollution your car would be causing. Plus everyone could use a little bit of exercise every now and again.

7. You Are Supporting Someone’s Dreams.

Isn’t it everyone’s dream to be their own boss and make their own schedules? Truthfully, it’s hard out here in the world of small business ownership. By showing small business owners support of any kind, you are helping them to follow their dreams especially when they’re just starting out. It’s a huge risk to start a business and to be successful, we can’t do it alone. We need all the love and support we can get because without it, we wouldn’t get anywhere. Every sale truly means the world to us small business owners and whether you see it or not, there’s a chance that with every sale comes a little happy dance.

8. They Are Well-Informed Of Their Products/Services.

When was the last time you went into a department store looking for a specific item but you needed help making a decision? Chances are you asked an associate for help and guidance. Because that store sells so many items and workers aren’t necessarily trained to know specifics on each item, the associate may not have the proper knowledge required to help you make your decision. Small business owners are more likely to know the ins and outs of everything they sell which makes them much more helpful in helping you make the decision on purchasing a product.

9. You Can Oftentimes Customize Your Products.

Because many small businesses make their products by hand, you might be able to get something customized just for you! Wouldn’t it be great if every store worked that way? How many times have you turned down a product simply because of the color or pattern? With small businesses, all you have to do is ask if they can create something for you! You’ll definitely receive a more unique product that way.

10. Better Prices For Quality Products.

A lot of the products you’ll find at retail stores are cheaply made but priced still as if they were top of the line. With small handmade businesses, the opposite is true. You may still pay higher prices, but you’ll be satisfied knowing you got the highest quality products. Sometimes small businesses even allow trades or barters which you definitely won’t get from a traditional retail stores.

So there you go. There are 10 reasons you should be shopping locally, even though we could have made this list go on forever. If you can think of anything else we may have forgotten, feel free to leave your input in the comments below!  We’d love to hear your thoughts!

We challenge you to visit 1 new small business each month. Your community is likely full of them so who knows what you’ll discover. Even if you can’t support businesses monetarily, there are still so many ways you can help them grow without touching your wallet. We wrote a blog about that earlier this year so if you’re interested in other ways you can help, click here. 

Also as a special thank you for reading this blog, take 10% off your next order with promo code: “BLOG10”!