Nancy Bradley of RelyLocal Matthews, Mint Hill and Indian Trail - an effort that promotes small merchants in those areas - recently announced Cash Mob dates for 2013.
With local Cash Mob movements, shoppers use social media to pick out a local business, then all go at once to shop. The idea is to help support local entrepreneurs.
“We are coordinating six Cash Mob events in 2013 to give local retail businesses a bit of economic stimulus while fostering a sense of community,” Bradley wrote in a recent Facebook post.
Those dates are Martin Luther King Day, on Jan. 21; President’s Day, Feb. 18; Memorial Day, May 27; Labor Day, Sept. 2; Veterans Day, Nov. 11; and Small Business Saturday, which falls on Nov. 30 in 2013.
RelyLocal also runs a Shift $20 Campaign, encouraging residents to shift $20 of their spending each month to local businesses.
Find Rely Local on Facebook at /RelyLocalMatthews, or on Meetup.
Monday, December 17, 2012
A shop local movement makes 2013 plans
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5 comments:
Alas, the madness continues...
The shop small/shop local trend seems to be continuing unabated by logic or reason. I would like to know if Ms. Bradley has any financial incentives in promoting this idea? Is Ms. Bradley promoting these "Cash Mobs" out of pure altruism, or because it will benefit her clients or a local trade association of some kind in the Matthews/Mint Hill area?
Aren't most small businesses closed on national holidays?
we have a local campaign in cabarrus county as well. www.thinkcabarrusfirst.com
These campaigns are based on a fallacy. The RelyLocal web site contends that every dollar spent in a locally owned business " creates up to 3-1/2 times more local economic benefit than dollars spent at a chain." In practice that is simply ot true and the proponents of these sites eithe know or should know that they are perpetrating a hoax.
In order for that statement to be true, even assuming the 350% multiplier to be accurate, every bit of economic activity associated with the transaction would have to be local in nature, and every bit of economic activity associated with a transaction at a chain outlet would have to NOT be local in nature. That is literally NEVER the case. For example assume that you buy a cup of coffee at a locally owned coffee shop instead of at Starbucks. The equipment used to produce and serve the coffee is not going to be locally produced at either shop. The coffee is clearly not going to have been grown locally, and the employees who are paid to serve you that cup of coffee are clearly local in both cases. The only component that is different is the owner. And that means that the only money that can possibly remain in the local community in the local store that would not remain here at the chain is the profit in excess of what the chain would pay for a manager. That is likely to be a very small number.
That is true of almost all businesses that sell goods. The real winner in all "buy local" campaigns are the owners of the businesses concerned. The impact on the community at large is negligible.
It is a great start - Making people aware is first thing. Manufacture local - buy local - employ local!
It promotes local transportation - restaurants - logistics - engineering and designs - supplies - govt, everything benefits.
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