Let's Keep It Local

Dear Fellow Local, Independent Business:

Thank you for taking time to review an exciting new let’s Keep It Local program for Southwest Washington. Our goal is to educate our residents about how locally owned and operated businesses are a frequently overlooked benefit to our community. Research estimates show that for every $100 spent with them, locally owned businesses return up to $68 to the local community as compared to as little as $14 from non-locally owned stores operating in the same community. Locally owned businesses directly contribute to maintaining the unique character of Southwest Washington.

The Lower Columbia Alliance for Living Sustainably or “LOCALS” is a nonprofit business alliance established to educate and further a local living economy. This winter LOCALS is kicking off a let’s Keep It Local program with a SHIFT 10% campaign to inform Southwest Washington residents about the myriad benefits of choosing a locally owned business first. The highlights of the program include:

  • 1. A SHIFT 10% campaign to educate residents about the benefits of local purchasing through extensive publicity and outreach efforts. We will be asking the consumer to shift 10% of those dollars they currently spend outside of Southwest Washington to local, independent businesses.
  • 2. A website at www.DiscoverLOCALS.org created to identify and link participating local businesses as well as provide information and resources.
  • 3. A let’s Keep It Local kit for participating businesses to help spread this important message. The kit includes a window decal; a customer-targeted poster and thank you handout listing the benefits of supporting local, independent businesses; a sheet of suggestions for in-store activities to support the campaign; and lapel buttons with the Shift 10% message.

In communities across our nation, businesses have come together to promote this important message. The key to success lies in widespread involvement of our local, independent businesses.

Here are just a few benefits of involvement in the program:

  • » Businesses can be very successful when they cooperatively market themselves to local consumers. Studies have shown that over 80% of consumers prefer to shop with local companies. Advertising and identifying your local business will drive customers to your door.
  • » Other local business alliances have found that member businesses also shift their spending to other members bringing even greater returns.
  • » Diverse and numerous small and independent businesses provide for a more stable tax base. Generally these communities require a less costly infrastructure thereby providing a good return on investment to local government.
  • » Our community stands to gain the most from a let’s Keep it Local campaign. Consumers get the products and services they desire closer to home. They also enjoy more stable employment and a stronger tax base to support schools, public projects and other cultural activities.
  • » In Southwest Washington our efforts stand to have a far greater return due to the revenue leakage to sales tax free Oregon: nearly 720 million dollars from Clark County in 2007 alone!
  • » LOCALS provides other programs to assist business owners in learning about and implementing sustainable practices for improved long-term profit and a more sustainable community.

We are inviting you to join LOCALS now! Not only will this allow you to participate in and contribute to the success of the let’s Keep It Local program, but it will entitle you to all the benefits of membership in LOCALS which you will find outlined on the website along with an application. One year membership for a small qualified business is $175; for a business with annual revenues over $1,000,000 it is $350. There are additional levels of participation starting at $500 if your business would like to join those businesses shown to the left, who we thank for their generosity in sponsoring the let’s Keep It Local program.

If you have any questions, please contact any Board member shown on the reverse side. Otherwise, we do hope you’ll join LOCALS today!

Program Sponsors