We all know that it’s important to shop local, but why? Shopping local is essential to keep the economy flowing, support small businesses, and experience unique products and services. We know that it is important to put money back into our community, but it is so meaningful to the shop owners. Take a look at some of the reasons why it is important to shop local and see where our team likes to go on our blog Shopping Local: Our Fave Spots!

Reasons to Shop Local

In a world dominated by big box stores and online retailers, it is important that we still shop at local businesses. Let’s take a look at a few reasons why it is important to shop local!

1. Support Local Businesses

While places like Amazon may have a large selection of products, they also undercut creatives and make sales difficult for many businesses. By shopping local, you may pay slightly higher prices, but each sale is significantly more meaningful to the company. It also helps keeps local shops open and able to bring in new and exciting products that may not be available at online retailers.

2. Support the Local Economy

Making purchases in local shops helps keep money in the community. This then helps promote more growth that could include new stores, events, and overall better living conditions. By making a small change in our buying habits, we can create a large impact in our community.

3. Keep Shops in Your Community

In addition to supporting business and the economy, it is also important to keep the character of the community intact. Buy shopping locally, stores stay open, and more stores may even open up. The iconic businesses that make up the character of the town or city are the heart and soul of the community, and they need support to stay open, and even thrive. These places encourage tourists and locals alike to seek them out and are vital to the character of the community.

4. Encouraging People to Stay

When a city has thriving and interesting local businesses, it encourages people to stay in the community instead of seeking other places to live. More shops mean more jobs and activities for community members to enjoy which helps retain the population.

5. Support the Environment

Did you know that shopping local helps reduce your carbon footprint? Local companies typically source products from other businesses, manufacturers, or growers in the area. The number of fossil fuels used from start to finish for a business are significantly less than global retailers.

Thanks for Reading Why It’s Important to Shop Local!

Read Shopping Local: Our Fave Spots to find out our favourite shops in our local communities.

Listen to our episode of Magic Hour where we talk with the owners of Far + Wide. Find out about life behind the scenes of owning and operating a brick-and-mortar shop, what it was like starting a second company during COVID, and how important it is to support women in business.

Connect with us on Instagram and check out our other blog posts.