Advertising feature
What goes around comes around, as the saying goes.
And this is particularly the case with locally-owned-and-operated businesses who tend to support those that support them. There’s a long list of well-documented benefits to communities and individuals by choosing local, including:
Self support:
Several studies have shown that when you buy from an independent, locally-owned business, rather than nationally-owned businesses, significantly more of your money is used to make purchases from other local businesses, service providers and farms – continuing to strengthen the economic base of the community.
Community investment:
Local businesses are owned by people who live in this community, are less likely to leave, and are more invested in the community’s future. A multitude of small businesses, each selecting products based not on a national sales plan but on their own interests and the needs of their local customers, guarantees a much broader range of product choices.
Group support:
Non-profit organisations receive an average 250 per cent more support from smaller business owners than they do from large businesses.
Creating jobs:
Small local businesses are the largest employer nationally and in our community they provide the most jobs to residents.
Better service:
Local businesses often hire people with a better understanding of the products they are selling and take more time to get to know customers.
Uniqueness:
Where we shop, where we eat and have fun – all of it makes our community home. Our one-of-a-kind businesses are an integral part of the distinctive character of Bunbury and the surrounding areas.
Reducing impact:
Locally-owned businesses can make more local purchases requiring less transportation and generally set up shop in town or city centres as opposed to developing on the fringe.
Local prosperity:
A growing body of economic research shows that in an increasingly homogenised world, entrepreneurs and skilled workers are more likely to invest and settle in communities that preserve their one-of-a-kind businesses and distinctive character. So, while it’s not always possible to buy everything you need locally, customers are being encouraged to think local first, especially here in Bunbury and the surrounding areas.