November 16, 2004

Asking Santa Fe To Shop Locally-owned for One Day

By Wren Propp
Of the Journal
   
BUSINESS NOTES: In a town that hypes diversity on a daily basis, Elaine Sullivan is hoping for an entire City Different of purists on Saturday.

    That day has been declared Santa Fe Unchained day— a day when shoppers are being asked to join pocketbooks with others across the nation and shop local.

    No big boxes, no chain stores on Saturday, says Sullivan, a member of the Santa Fe Alliance, the day's sponsor. The alliance's aim is to keep locally owned, independent businesses alive and well.

    Along with Santa Fe shoppers, there will be unchained consumers Saturday in Albuquerque, Austin, Kansas City, Mo., St. Louis, Tampa, Fla., Boulder, Colo., Cleveland, Louisville, Ky., and Phoenix.

    Sullivan, a retired consultant from Seattle, said the shop-local light dawned for her two years ago as the alliance geared up.
    The idea was worth buying into for a couple of serious reasons, she says.

    For example, she could combine economics with helping a community thrive.

    Just in the past several months, the alliance's directory of local members has grown from 230 businesses and nonprofit organizations to 570. The directory will appear in its fifth edition in a few days, she says.

    The alliance hasn't sponsored an unchained day before but put on an Independents Week, when shopping at independent businesses was encouraged, she said.

    Shopping unchained and locally has tax consequences that shores up infrastructure, according to the alliance.

    For example, about $3.6 million gets spent in Santa Fe on a daily basis. If all that money was spent in chain stores, only 13 percent would remain here and the rest would go to corporate headquarters elsewhere, according to the alliance. If all that money was spent at locally owned businesses, about 45 percent would stay here.

    "It ends up costing the community a lot" to patronize national stores, Sullivan says.

    As its business membership grows, the alliance is looking for a way to get the attention of those Sullivan calls "multiple community members"— people who work and live in Santa Fe, but don't own businesses.

    They may do their shopping based on what Sullivan calls "myths"— that the bigger the store the better the deal, for example— and haven't stopped to consider what deals are available at locally owned stores.

    Annoying errands also became more personal and pleasant when she shopped locally, Sullivan says.

©Albuquerque Journal 2004

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