Did you know that when you shop at local businesses and establishments more than 70% of the dollars you spend stay in the local economy? Dollars spent on locally produced items, or in local shops, contribute to schools, police and fire departments through local taxes. Additionally, your money goes towards wages for local staff members, income for local business services, and investments in community social programs. In contrast, if you spend $100 at a non-locally owned business, only $43 will stay in the local economy. 57% of your dollars will leave your community to go towards purchasing supplies, inventory and businesses services from non local suppliers.

Michael H. Shuman, author of Going Local writes that “going local does not mean walling off the outside world. It means nurturing locally owned businesses which use local resources sustainably, employ local workers at decent wages, and serve primarily local customers.” Shuman also mentions that shopping locally helps to bring control from corporate boardrooms back to the community where it belongs. Supporting local businesses helps to assure that community members will have jobs and a source of income. Additionally, with more community members’ working locally, the environmental impact of their commuting is lessened.

Becoming more environmentally sustainable is becoming more and more important to many concerned citizens. Shopping local is one of the best ways to help protect our environment because your goods are traveling considerably shorter distances to reach you. This means less carbon released into the environment through shipment. Additionally, local manufacturers tend to be more concerned with the impact their products have on their local environment, and as such, produce more sustainable eco friendly goods. Most local shops set up in the center of a town rather than on the outskirts as many malls and big box stores tend to do. By staying close to the center, local businesses increase a community’s walk score and cut down on urban sprawl, habitat loss, and pollution.

Remember, you have more power than you think! By choosing local you are voting with your wallet and exerting influence with your purchasing decisions. All businesses respond to their customers, however it is shown that local businesses are much more respondent to the values and desires of their customers than large national chains.