Editor:
Whether it’s the latest iPhone, a local author’s book, or kitchen gadgets that you’re shopping for, you can find it here on the Sunshine Coast. Shopping locally offers Sunshine Coast residents a chance to give back and promote locally owned and operated business.
Shop local is a lot more than just a saying to get you to buy something. Shopping locally actually helps boost the local economy because more money stays on the Coast. Also, much of the spending done by a business is also local – which means dollars you spend grow exponentially in your community.
The single most important part of the shop local idea is that the local businesses are more invested in the welfare and future of our community. They are oftentimes your neighbours and they employ your friends and family. Local businesses are asked by dozens of organizations on the Coast each year to donate for sports teams, events, charities and so on, demonstrating that these businesses go far beyond just operating a business.
Our local businesses who keep their doors open when it is raining sideways and no one wants to be outside, or donate year after year to a good cause and provide us with the services we rely on and goods we need, are a treasure to our community. The best way to give back is by being a patron in their shops.
We all know you can’t find absolutely everything here, but the Coast has over 500 small businesses and most are, in fact, independent. So be sure to check out our unique shops and perhaps ask if they can bring in an item for you that they don’t carry. It’s true you may pay a dollar or two more in some instances, but keep in mind that a minimal increase is most likely the result of shipping costs and that, instead of a warehouse off-Coast, the store will benefit – which in turn benefits our community.
So when you are looking for that perfect gift this holiday season, please be sure to shop local wherever possible. Every dollar counts!
Theressa Logan, Executive Director, Sechelt Downtown Business Association
