It's sponsored by American Express (I know, I know big bank, blah blah blah), but I think it's a great idea. It encourages you to spend your Christmas dollars with local small businesses. I personally think it's a great idea. We all know the economy is bad. Everyone is hurting, you just need to turn on the news to be reminded of it. While local small businesses can be more expensive than Wal-Mart, I personally feel in the long run they may be cheaper. We have become a disposable society. Things are made to be used for a short while and then tossed. I have an idea, why don't we buy things that are made to last? I don't know about you, but I'd rather spend more to have the item last longer.
It is my opinion dear reader, that your local small business has higher quality items. I would guess in most cases they procure their items from local craftsmen or they might even make the items themselves. Which means you are investing your hard earned dollar back into the local economy, not some sweatshop in China (Don't we owe China enough money? Why voluntarily send them more?).
Now, since I am a Small Business owner ( http://www.chrysalisjewelry.com ) this post may seem a little self-serving. Admittedly, though I'd love to get a ton of jewelry orders tomorrow, that is not the purpose of this post. I want to encourage you to shop your local small businesses. If we all start helping each other, we all win. It's quite simple: Keep the dollars here. Help small businesses. If small businesses grow, they add more jobs. Local jobs.
So there you have it. Shop your local businesses tomorrow. This will help your local economy. As for me, I will be by my phone ready to take jewelry orders - Melissa
The following may not be local, but I would like to recommend these craftsmen:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/maybeads?ref=seller_info
http://www.clockworkcouture.com/
I like the idea of Shop Local Saturday. I'll be making my presents this year, but if I run out of anything, I'm going to try my local creative reuse center first -- all their profits go to the local schools!
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to check out the artists you listed. Excited! :)
I love the idea of making Christmas presents. I've done it for years. In college it was out of being poor (as college students are). Now I find it just means more. When you make a gift, it's personal. Even though I can knit or crochet anything I want, my favorite scarf is still the one my mom made me about 6 years ago.
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