It has often been said that for every $1 spent at a local business, nearly half of that dollar is reinvested locally. More tax dollars go to schools and roadway repairs. Healthy businesses employ local residents and create jobs as they expand. A sense of community is created when you buy local, from the hands-on assistance you receive at a local shop to that shop’s sponsorship of a local softball or Little League team, local businesses give back more to the community.
When you stop to think about it, it makes sense that buying local not only helps us, but creates a community, improves our environment, and sustains our local economy. When we buy locally-produced goods, oftentimes we save money because goods do not need to be transported from far away places or constructed using exotic and expensive parts. This is especially true for locally-grown food, but is also true of so many other products we can find right on our own Main Street.
There are so many opportunities to buy local and support local businesses. From florists to stationery to clothing to office supplies – you can find it all on your local Main Street, and I know these businesses would be grateful for your patronage.
I welcome all residents of Orange and Rockland counties to Buy Local-Shop Local. In fact, I am launching my new Buy Local-Shop Local initiative on April 30 in the Village of Goshen. I hope residents will consider joining me to learn more about the variety of high quality and affordable goods that are for sale on Main Street, and I invite all business owners to participate with me in a roundtable discussion.
The roundtable discussion for business owners will take place at 9:45 a.m. at Tony’s Place on New Street and Greenwich Avenue. After the hour-long discussion, I invite residents to join me as I tour the shops along Main Street in the village and the kick-off will commence with a press conference at noon outside of Linda’s Office Supplies.
This month, as we celebrate Earth Day and begin our spring cleaning, I challenge the residents of the 97th Assembly District to think before they shop; think about the environmental impact, the communal impact, and the impact on your quality of life. I hope you all will come out, if not on April 30, then sometime soon, to visit your local shops and see what they have to offer.
As always, I welcome you to join the discussion on Facebook and Twitter or to e-mail your thoughts and ideas to rabbitta@assembly.state.ny.us. Please join me to Buy Local-Shop Local.