3c hapter - Index of

Buy Local, Eat Local . . . Invest Local 45
Ithaca HOURs in upstate New York, to keep money circulating
locally. The largest such system, BerkShares, serving the Berkshires
region of northwestern Massachusetts, is accepted at more than
400 businesses and several banks, and 2.5 million of the notes have
circulated since the scrip was introduced in 2006. The Brooklyn
Torch will soon debut in North Brooklyn.
Meanwhile, local businesses are banding together to raise awareness
among customers of the importance of shopping at local, independently
owned enterprises. Inspired by Civic Economics’ local
impact studies, the 10% Shift, a campaign that encourages people
to redirect a portion of their spending to independent busi nesses,
has spread from New England across the country. Local business
alliances, such as the Austin Independent Business Alliance in Texas
and Local First Lexington in Kentucky, have sprung up in more
than 130 cities. And they’ve had astounding success.
Over the 2008 holiday season, when retail sales everywhere
slumped, the big chains reported punishing declines over the prior
year. Sales at Borders and The Gap slid 14 percent, while Williams-
Sonoma took a 24 percent hit. Independent retailers fared better.
Their sales were down 5 percent overall, but just 3.2 percent in
cities with active “buy local” programs, according to a survey conducted
by the Institute for Local Self- Reliance. The trend continued
over the 2009 holidays, with indie sales up 2.2 percent overall
and 3 percent in areas with campaigns, compared with Commerce
Department–reported sales growth of 1.8 percent in November
and negative 0.3 percent in December for all retail sales. 12
Shifting Fortunes
We’ve seen that a shift of just 10 percent of spending from corporateowned
chains to locally owned merchants can have an outsized
impact on the local economy. What would a similar 10 percent
shift in investment dollars from Fortune 500 to locally owned businesses
yield? Or even a 5 percent shift?
Or, as Slow Money founder Woody Tasch asks, in typically
ambitious fashion: What would the world be like if we invested 50 percent
of our assets within 50 miles of where we live?