Support Your Local Shops…
There are many reasons to shop local. From supporting your community artisans and farmers to reducing your carbon footprint, here are just a few ways to help your local high street thrive
For many years our local shops have slowly been in decline as a direct result of national supermarkets growing in size and the ever-increasing growing trend for people to shop online.
These factors have had a devastating effect on villages and smaller towns throughout the region – especially now in difficult times.
The truth is, if everybody shopped locally both physically and online with local retailers, focusing less on the supermarket giants this would be a real boost to our local high streets, and their local suppliers too.
Now is most definitely the time to shop local and support our farmers, artisans, retailers and local businesses – help them survive through these testing times and thrive well into the future. Doing so could ultimately encourage new business back into towns and villages across Preston and Fylde.
If we support our local economy by spending more money locally, then our communities will prosper.
There are many reasons why we should consider shopping locally:
• By shopping locally, you are pumping money back into the economy. With local retailers having the tendency to purchase from their community producers, this keeps farmers, makers and manufacturers in business – and in turn, keeps more people employed.
• Keeping your local businesses up and running means that they can generate revenue to support services that make your community a better place to live.
• We’ve all heard of it – your carbon footprint. When shopping locally, people travel less distance and often walk or cycle to do their shopping, significantly reducing the amount of air pollution all of which benefits the environment. Also, locally sourced produce equals fewer transport miles which drastically reduces the amount of CO2 emissions.
• Don’t forget that many of the same goods are available at your local shops, be it at the butchers, bakers or greengrocers. These products are of a similar price but far fresher and better quality than that of the major national supermarkets.
• Local people who run the shops know you and the community! A friendly face and a chat are what people need – for some it may be the only contact they have.
• When you shop local, you may have more choice as smaller shops often stock items that aren’t available at the supermarkets – many of these offer you originality and typically the products are locally made by artisans and can’t be found anywhere else.
Due to challenging times, the rise in interest rates and the fuel crisis has meant that food banks have never seen such a high demand from families and the elderly. The community spirit is evident everywhere and never more so than among the smaller local shops in towns and villages across Preston and Fylde, who are always willing to help out.
Did you know that a recent government-backed study showed that for every £10 spent at the shops locally, nearly £4 is recirculated back into the local economy? So, it really pays to shop local!
