After a long and arduous year, small businesses in Cedar Rapids are depending on holiday sales more than ever. Spending your money with your favorite local shops could help them succeed through the end of the pandemic.
Here are four reasons you should shop small this holiday season.
Finding unique gifts you won't find anywhere else
Local artisans and crafters spend hours creating beautiful and unique items that can then be gifted to your family and friends. These items can become a child's favorite toy, a cherished memory or a family heirloom.
Shopping locally maximizes the individuality and personalization of your gifts. Making the possibility of dual gifts nearly impossible.
Keeping your dollars in the community
When you shop locally you are keeping your dollars circulating in your local economy for much longer than if you were to purchase from a big box store.
According to Northwest Earth Institute's Choices for Sustainable Living, A dollar spent at a locally-owned store is usually spent 6 to 15 times before it leaves the community. If you spend your money at a national chain store 80 percent leaves town immediately.
When you spend $1 at a local small business, you create $5 to $14 in value within that community, which is important for the growth of local small businesses.
Generating jobs for local workers and entrepreneurs
When you shop locally you are supporting a sector that employs more than 600,000 Iowans.
According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, nearly 60 million Americans are small business employees. These small business owners and workers are your neighbors and fellow community members.
“Small businesses are the United States’s economic engine,” said Acting Chief Counsel Major L. Clark, III, “they are the key to the state’s ability to grow economic output, entrepreneurship, and private sector employment.”
Keeping our community vibrant
Imagine what Cedar Rapids would look like without our robust small business community. Unfortunately, this bleak image could very well become a reality after the many hardships our small businesses have faced in 2020.
However, if you choose to spend your money wisely this holiday season you could make a difference in the fate of your favorite local restaurant, bakery, cafe of retail shop.
Buy gifts cards or vouchers now to be used at a later date, share their stories with your friends and family, or make their unique items a part of your own wish list.