Let's provide our own stimulus for local economy

Tona Connolly is a convert to the concept of shopping locally. The co-owner of Big Shots Men’s Hair Salon and Spa in downtown Sedalia has focused more on keeping her dollars in the local economy since she became a business owner herself.

“I realize how crucial it is” for small businesses’ success, she said. “I feel for local business owners, since I am one of them.”

The federal government has issued various stimulus packages in efforts to rev up the nation’s economic engines. The impact has been largely a sputter rather than a “vroom.” And local business owners wonder when the promised impact of those packages will arrive, because to date they just haven’t seen it.

“We can’t wait any longer ... (the federal stimulus funding) is not coming in fast enough,” Connolly said.

Terri Bacon, a member of the family that earlier this year opened Bacon’s Smokehouse BBQ across from State Fair Community College, said shopping locally “keeps your stores from going out of business.”

We don’t need to wait for a federal economic stimulus — we can boost Sedalia’s economy on our own, with our own dollars, benefiting local businesses, workers and residents.

The Sedalia Democrat today launches “Spend $25 on the 25th,” a local stimulus initiative encouraging residents to kick-start the Sedalia-area’s economy by spending $25 they would not otherwise spend, and to spend it at a local business on July 25. This is a chance for us to help our neighbors, and ourselves, by infusing the local market with some much-needed cash.

According to the Web site ShopLocalsFirst.com, “Studies have shown that for every $100 spent with a local, independent business, (more than) $73 remains in the community and in the local economy” while that same $100 spent at a big-box retail chain only leaves $43 in the local economy.

What is the impact of supporting local businesses? Consider this, also from ShopLocalsFirst.com:

“Local, independent businesses assist the community through a ‘multiplier effect:’ one dollar spent at a locally-owned business will return almost five times that amount within the community through city taxes, employees’ wages, and purchase of materials and supplies at other independent businesses. In addition, these businesses will turn that dollar back into the community through school funding, social services, and contributions to local non-profit organizations.”

According to U.S. Census Bureau statistics, there are about 30,750 adults age 18 and older living in Pettis County. If each of them was to spend $25 at a local business on a designated day, the result would be an influx of nearly $770,000 into the local economy. Using the multiplier effect, that number becomes $3.8 million. Talk about an impact.

Genie Bacon, also a member of the Bacon’s Smokehouse BBQ family, said it would not be hard to find a local merchant to support.

“Everything is here — if you look around, you don’t have to go anywhere else,” she said. “You can find anything you need here.”

Bacon believes “Spend $25 on the 25th” is “a great idea. Some people might say they don’t have enough money to take part in it. But if local businesses offered special discounts on that day, people might save up to take advantage of it.”

Merchants are a big part of the initiative. The Democrat will provide special advertising rates for participating businesses, and we will invite residents to use a portion of our Web site, sedaliademocrat.com, to  tell us where they would like to spend their $25. Readers without Internet access can drop off a form containing the same information at our office at 700 S. Massachusetts Ave. From those postings and entries, we will select random winners who each will receive a voucher for $25 for use at a participating business on July 25. The merchants then bring those vouchers back to The Democrat to be applied to their advertising bill.

“We can really boost our economy,” with the program, Genie Bacon said.

Click here to tell us where you would spend your $25

Linda Christle, executive director of Economic Development Sedalia-Pettis County, sees the program as “a great opportunity for businesses to promote themselves from within.

“This is a chance to help our local economy; we need to do creative things to help ourselves rather than sit back and wait.”

She found the potential $770,000 in economic impact “phenomenal. It goes back to opening our heart to help others in our community.”

Where would Connolly spend her $25 on the 25th?

“I’d probably go out to eat,” she said. “We’ve been eating at home more” since the economy tightened up.

That was a thought backed up by Christle.

“People could go out and do things they haven’t been doing” such as eating at a restaurant or “doing a little extra for someone else,” she said. Christle offered that she might spend her $25 — or more — on “fun things for my grandchildren” or in support of a group such as ChildSafe.

The Democrat has always had and always will have a vested interest in the success of the local business community. We want to do our part to help ensure the vitality of Sedalia and Pettis County, to do the best we can to make this a great area to live, work and play.

Sedalians have a knack for pulling together to help one another even in the toughest of times. We are hopeful that local businesses and residents will join us in this effort, as we strive to bring people together to benefit the whole area.

Bob Satnan is editor of The Sedalia Democrat.