The Dexter Leader
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Shopping local is the best thing since (locally bought) sliced bread
PUBLISHED: May 22, 2008
You might have noticed a series of articles on the fairly new Think Dexter First group that has sprung up in the purview of the Dexter Area Chamber of Commerce and the even newer discount card that the group recently launched.
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There are a number of reasons why the group and the card are getting so much coverage.
For starters, it's simply a fantastic idea that makes sense. Just follow the logic. Shopping at your local grocery store employs cashiers and stockers living in your community. The local restaurant has waitresses that live in your neighborhood. That lawyer in town might live in a nearby township that is in your school district. All of these entities pay taxes to local municipalities and the school district or pay rent to a landlord that does, and when you pay them for their goods and services, some of that money is making it back to you. That support of local government and schools cannot continue if you don't support them.
Maybe this is clearer to me being the local reporter, because I follow the money and talk about the money with Dexter area officials. In the broader context of my career and life, I've always been cognizant of the relationship between how much money is being invested into something and its vitality relative to that investment.
But that's just part of the cycle. If people in a municipality see a decline in public services and education quality because the local economy isn't being supported as stated above and just five percent of those people move elsewhere, a vicious cycle has begun.
With fewer people in the local market, businesses will see reduced revenue, people will be laid off, fewer taxes will be paid and those things that rely on local tax dollars will decline further in quality and the cycle will just repeat.
I think the TDF group and card are a great way to not only avoid that doomsday scenario, but bolster the local market that is already there and build awareness of the meaning of shopping locally.
Not to mention that it's just a good deal.
Last week's article was just a brief look at a few participating businesses, and before I was done talking to two business owners, they had proven to me that a cardholder could save hundreds of dollars in just a couple of purchases. Most people are going to buy wedding invitations and eyeglasses in their lifetime, so why not pay $20 for a discount card and save over $400 on those two purchases alone?
The other thing that I learned was that not a lot of people have used the card yet, which in my mind translated as, "Not a lot of people would pick up a one hundred dollar bill found lying on an otherwise empty sidewalk."
If you can name an easier and, pound for pound, flat out better deal for local shoppers, I'd love to hear about it. In the meantime, I'm going to continue to follow Think Dexter First for our readers.
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