The good folks at Think Local First have had a lot to say about supporting local businesses the past couple of months. And by a lot, I’m talking 15 videos that speak to the Love Local campaign seen late last year, plus this year’s Buy Local Pledge campaign, as currently seen on TLF’s Instagram page.
This time, the 11 video shoots were on a super crunch, so CJ*F rolled up its sleeve to ensure the scripts were all written, organized, shot and edited in just a week’s time…and we managed to pull it off!
Like last time, I had the pleasure of meeting and working with some important business organizations around town, such as The Victoria Downtown Business Association, Sidney Business Improvement Association, The West Shore Chamber, The Esquimalt Chamber, The Saanich Peninsula Chamber, Think Local First, not to mention perspectives shared by local business such as Big Wheel Burger, Red Bard Markets, and Earth’s Option Cremation and Burial Services.
If you are too short for time to have a peek at the videos, here are a few reasons I pulled out from the scripts on why buying local is important:
- Buying from local businesses makes our region better because local businesses give 24 times more per dollar of revenue than multinationals to local causes, fundraisers, sports teams, and events that make our community stronger and more vibrant.
- Small businesses are at the heart of our community and makeup 98% of all BC businesses. They contribute to the vibrancy of our community and they give us unique options for products, experiences, and services.
- Local businesses are the backbone of our economy. Not only do local businesses produce 34% of BC’s GDP, but they also recirculate 63% of revenue back into the BC economy, compared to just 14% by multinationals. Every time you spend a dollar at a local business, it has 4.6 times the economic impact.
- Buying local means you are creating jobs–local businesses create 8 times more jobs than multinationals (4 out of 10 jobs) and employ 1.1 million BC residents.
- We should be choosing to spend our money at local businesses all year round–not just during the holiday season or when Covid closures are at their worst. Because when we make a conscious choice to support local, we make our community and economy stronger, more resilient, and more vibrant.
- Choosing to buy from local businesses on our everyday expenses, as opposed to from large corporations, is the key to ensuring local businesses, and the Victoria community can be strong far into the future.
If those are enough reasons for you to shift at least 10% of the money you already spend on local businesses, please visit BuyLocalPedge.ca to make your pledge today.