Most good ideas are not new
So said Socrates
There’s a bit of maths that says if you spend £10 in a local shop that sells stuff from local producers the amount of money that goes back into the local economy can be over £50!
Well if you imagine that when you buy a locally-made pie from a local shop, a big part of your money is passed on to the local piemaker. The shop employs a local accountant or even a decorator. In turn the piemaker who sources his meat from a local farm spends a big percentage of his money with the farmer. The farmer then spends some of his money at his local garage, the garage owner etc. etc.
With each step, around 80% of each spend goes into the local economy. So in effect the money that stays within our locality gets more & more.
Local independent businesses are far more likely to use other local firms than any of the big national giants would – it’s what makes them tick and they know the true value of keeping it “Totally Locally”. It’s also a lot easier!
The more everyone spends within our area the stronger our economy grows, which means more jobs, better facilities, a vibrant town centre and a nicer place for us all to live.
This can be applied to everything from a college to bike manufacturers, to music shops, to food producers.
If you compare this with buying online & outside the area – where none of the money comes back into the local economy – it seems to make sense really. Add to this a smaller impact on the environment due to less transportation and you have good reasons for keeping your purchasing Totally Locally.
It’s not about protectionism, it’s about small decisions that have a big impact on where we live.
Only by following the money trail do you get a true sense of the knock-on effects of buying Totally Locally Dunbar. It takes you in all kinds of directions, ping-ponging from groceries and clothing, to tradesmen and accountants, each time adding to our economy. The trail is staggering.
So when you go for your next purchase, be it eggs, a sofa or new pair of shoes, consider the true effect of how you buy.
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