Support local shoppers
There is a coffee house in Mt. Sterling. I have been there a couple times. The shop has good coffee and cookies, but I do not stop on a regular basis. It’s not that I wouldn’t or that I don’t want to. I can’t. The shop is not open when I leave town in the morning and is closed by the time I arrive home. On Saturdays, when I leave a little later, it is still closed. It is not open on Sundays.
The shop is a snapshot of my frustrations with local businesses. Recently, I have had a series of unpleasant dealings with a couple of local businesses. I want to support local businesses — the more local the better. I buy my gas at a local station that charges me several cents per gallon more than others I pass. I buy my running shoes from a running store, rather than online, even though I order the same shoe in the same size as I have for years. I pick up pizza from a mom-and-pop shop, not a quicker chain that delivers.
I want these places to stay in business. I think most people do also.
But I and other shoppers need some help.
We need to know when local businesses are open. We need to know that when the sign says a shop will be open, it will be open. We need to know that a store will have a regular inventory. We expect businesses to know their customers, what they want and when. We know local prices will be higher, but we don’t want to feel taken advantage of. We don’t expect perfection but we need to know the local place will try to make it right when mistakes are made. We need to know that when we enter a local store, there will be helpful clerks paying attention. We don’t want to be ignored and we don’t want to be treated like idiots or inconveniences. We expect that local businesses will support other local businesses.
Many, probably even most, local businesses do a great job of meeting and far exceeding these benchmarks.
Unfortunately, some need to do better. If you think these simple standards are unrealistic or that I am picking on local businesses with this column, you are probably one that is not meeting them.
And the problematic businesses aren’t just hurting themselves, they make shoppers wary of using any smaller retailer.
As we move into the holiday shopping seasons, I believe it would be best if we all consider using our local shops. By keeping our money local, it repeatedly benefits our community even after we have spent it.
But I would ask the local businesses to help give us a good experience.
-Mac Cordell is a reporter for the Journal-Tribune.