Local, Fun, and Valuable

Keep It Local, by Barbara Lawrence – Feb. 15, 2012

Exploring locally provides an opportunity to discover the assets and people of your community. In the rush to work daily and take care of family, it is easy to miss so many special places and people.

It takes the typical resident six months of passing by a new business to notice the business is open and take the time to stop by. It is a part of our patterns in creating new habits. The new business owner is so happy to see you come in and get acquainted and often hears, “I didn’t know you were here.” 

This week’s place to explore

Time Flies Country Store owners Kerry McCallum and Sue Camacho are bursting with energy and have added so much to the exploration and fun factors in visiting downtown Mount Holly. You can find NC-produced cheese, jams and specialty food items; toys and woven handbags made in the USA; and, for your sweet tooth, fudge and ice cream.

Time Flies Country Store is definitely not like WalMart

Add some exploration of your local community to your outings. You will enjoy the experience, meet new people, and help build our local economy. Why does this matter? Every penny and dollar you spend, when added with others, adds up and helps us all.

Your dollars can multiply

Imagine everyone in America buys just one Coca-Cola in one day, with a current US population estimate of 313 million people, at a price of $1 this provides $313 million to the Coca-Cola Company in one day. Of course that money then goes to buy goods from other businesses and pay workers who go out, in turn, and spend most of the money on other goods.

Small companies have big impact

Donovan Rypkema, of PlaceEconomics.com, in Washington, DC has been the “go to” economist for downtown revitalization for many years. In a keynote speech at the NC Main Street Conference in 2010, he shared this information:

• 87 percent of all NC businesses employ fewer than 20 people.
• In the US, small businesses were employing 1.3 million more workers in December 2009 – after a massive recession – than they employed in 2000.
• Giant firms were employing 3 million fewer workers in the same time period.

Every dollar you spend in a local business translates into supporting the local economy and jobs. Doug Loescher, Director of the National Trust Main Street Center, stated in the September issue of “Main Street Now,” “The New Localism gives power to the people in a new way – by giving them opportunities to get involved and have a voice in shaping commerce.”

There are many new ideas and new models for business development. One of my goals is to connect local individuals with skills and ideas to develop collaboration efforts for future business.

Let us hear from you, and explore your community this week. I’d love to hear about what you discover.

About Barbara Lawrence - Barbara has a background in economic development and real-estate research. Her work has included revitalization of downtown Boone, downtown Gastonia and now Mount Holly.