Jul 8, 2009

Valuing independentsBy ClaytonNews-Star.com

To encourage residents to shop at locally owned businesses, Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker and the group Shop Local Raleigh last Thursday issued a statement declaring July 1-7 to be “Independents Week.”

“All of those businesses you know and love, you need to shop with them today if you want them to be here tomorrow,” Meeker said.

That’s true in Raleigh, and it’s also true here in Clayton.

Do you like locally owned restaurants that have their own character, where the owners and servers know your name and family? Then make sure you opt to dine at those places.

Do you like the service and merchandise you get at the family-owned hardware store, gift shop or produce stand right here in town? Then give them as much of your business as you can. And don’t forget about your neighbors who provide you quality services – folks such as your local accountants, roofers and mechanics.

Even during good times, local businesses struggle to capture a decent share of Clayton residents’ spending. Every year, tens of millions of dollars’ worth of spending “leaks” from Clayton when local residents shop in Garner, Smithfield or Raleigh – or online.

That hurts our community. Local businesses constitute the largest group of employers nationwide, Shop Local Raleigh says. According to N.C. State economist Michael Walden, based on average values for North Carolina, every $100,000 that stays in the hands of a local retailer creates another $50,000 of local spending through a multiplier effect. What’s more, this $150,000 of total spending is associated with two new jobs and $1,300 of local property taxes, Walden says.

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