I wonder out of the thousands that frequented Stockland last week how many knew what they were specifically going to buy that day and checked the internet to see if they were getting the best bang for their buck.
“No one cares about shopping local these days, it’s all about price; hey things are tough you got to make the buck stretch”, that’s the type of comment and justification I’ve received in trying to drum up support for a comprehensive shop local campaign.
“The buck stops here – Jobs stay here”, might pull a couple of heartstrings but supposedly doesn’t have impact at the till.
Yet I suspect very few of the thousands that frequented the shopping centres last week bothered to check online before making their purchases.
Okay it wasn’t the warmth of buying local that led to their purchases, it was most likely the lure of post-Xmas sales with the fuzzy suggestion of fantastic bargains being offered.
Can’t a shop local campaign develop a similar shopping without much pre-checking tactic also?
Why persist and not just accept that the trend is for more locals to shop online elsewhere?
Jobs is one major reason, our community is the other. Small locally owned businesses are at the very core of our communities. Just sit by and allow them to erode sees our very communities do the same. Locally owned small businesses provide jobs and re-investment into their communities.
Of course small businesses can’t just expect local support; their prices need to be reasonable, service exemplary and support for their community genuine.
Central Queensland businesses can also be where others go online to shop. Be they interstate or international. Wild Harry is one CQ business reliant on internet sales, Born Country is another.
CQ has got to stop just seeing itself as a victim. Yes other regions have stadiums, casino’s, bigger populations, more entertainment options, more government money spent there; but CQ is great, great diversity of landscapes, opportunities, character and characters. At the end of the day it’s what we decide to do with what we got and supporting those locals that have a go.
I get a regular email from Yaraka, a very small CQ town that’s determined not to die. Lately the emails tell of the rain, the green it brings along with the bugs that turn windscreens into Abstract Expressionism art and that they limited tickets sales to their B&S Ball to 500. That’s a community who knows where the buck stops.