We-Commerce: 5 Reasons to Shop Local this Holiday Season

We have lots of choices in life, but when you choose to shop at small local businesses, you do so much more than just acquire new ‘stuff.’  Here’s 5 reasons to support our community’s small businesses this holiday season:

1. More money circulates our local economy. By shopping local, we keep more money in our local economy, promoting business growth and the potential for higher wages and better benefits.
2. Preserves local character. Our southwest Wisconsin charm makes our communities truly unique places to live and visit.  Shopping local increases the sustainability of our one-of-a kind small to medium-sized businesses, and keeps us from looking like other areas of Corporate America.
3. Creates jobs and promotes employee empowerment. Small local businesses are the largest source of employment nationally.  Also, since employees of local businesses often times know they play an important role in the vitality of the business, local employers can provide their people with a level of satisfaction and empowerment that is so often lacking at big corporate companies.
4. Encourages entrepreneurship. People bring their new ideas and businesses to areas in which they feel they are sustainable.  A positive business climate encourages more people to take the leap and pursue their entrepreneurial dreams, which also increases unique product/service selections.
5. Customer service. In southwest Wisconsin we care about our communities and we care about each other, so we do our best to provide the highest-quality products and services; and when we inevitably make a mistake from time to time, we make it right.

By shopping at small local businesses, we do our part in keeping our local economy strong, and in return, we get:

• More diverse employers and career opportunities
• Higher wages and better benefits
• More unique product/service offerings
• The kind of customer service that you can only get in southwest Wisconsin

So this holiday season, advance your friends and neighbors by shopping local.