KSL News: The Case For A 'Local First' Mentality

Can we see by a show of hands how many of our WCF readers have joined in this burgeoning "shop local" movement, and already make it a point to patronize our locally owned, home-grown businesses first?

Thanks to a tip from another sharp and alert Weber County Forum reader, we'll put the focus this morning on a highly enlightening  KSL News story which will give boosters of our Utah state and local economies something to seriously contemplate the next time the local media breathlessly report that yet another national cookie-cutter-style restaurant chain or cavernous  retail box store outfit sets up shop in their own Utah city or town. 

Here's the eye-opening lede:

SALT LAKE CITY — Spending money at local businesses can have a bigger impact on the local economy than spending those same dollars at national chains, a new study states.
Research conducted by Civic Economics detailing the amount of revenue returned to the local community by locally-owned, independent businesses showed that 52 percent of all revenues went back into their communities compared to about 14 percent for national chain stores.
The report also indicated that local eateries returned nearly 79 percent of revenues compared to just over 30 percent for national restaurants.
Overall, locally-owned, independent businesses return 382 percent more dollars to the Salt Lake City economy than chain retailers, explained Nan Seymour, executive director of Local First Utah.
“Four times the amount of dollars stay in our community when you spend at a local business," she said.

Here's the full article, for our readers' perusal:

• The case for a 'local first' mentality

“The more that we support our local businesses, the better they do.” “The more they can provide local jobs and local products … and the more revenue we all receive from that,” says U of U academic and urban planner Bob Farrington.

“Local is becoming a huge movement,” adds Betsy Burton, co-owner of Salt Lake City's King’s English Bookshop.

So what about it, folks?  Can we see by a show of hands how many of our WCF readers have joined this burgeoning "shop local" movement, and already make it a point to patronize our locally-owned, home-grown businesses first?

The floor's open, O Gentle Ones.