On Thursday, Oct. 6, all Buy Local Lincoln County members are invited to a free barbecue event in Lincoln City. Not a Buy Local member? No problem – membership is free, and you can join any time at buylocallincolncounty.org.
In 2009, Lincoln County was being hammered by the Great Recession. Businesses throughout the county turned to local shoppers and asked them to consider where they were spending their discretionary income. Specifically, they asked local shoppers to try redirecting to local businesses just 10 percent of the spending they currently did out-of-county or via online sites.
This was the message spread by Buy Local Lincoln County, a non-profit formed by the Oregon Coast Community College’s Small Business Development Center and volunteers from throughout the county, supported by a grant from the Kellogg Foundation.
Seven years later, the Buy Local Lincoln County organization still thrives, and its focus remains on promoting the value of shopping locally.
At the Thursday, Oct. 6 event, from 4 to 6 p.m. at Oregon Coast Community College’s North County Center in Lincoln City, Buy Local will host the “Buy-B-Q,” featuring fresh-grilled cheeseburgers and the chance to meet with different Buy Local individual and business members. The Buy-B-Q is free to all Buy Local members.
“We hope Buy Local business members will take the opportunity to grab a microphone – after putting down their tasty cheeseburger – and tell the Buy Local members present about their products and services,” said Misty Lambrecht, one of the volunteer board members for Buy Local.
For more information about the Buy-B-Q, or to join Buy Local by phone, call 541-994-4166.
Why ‘Buy Local’?
When Buy Local was formed, at its core was the value of the “multiplier effect,” or how a dollar spent locally moves around the community, being spent again and again on products, services and payroll.
A study commissioned by the founders of Buy Local showed that if every household in Lincoln County shifted just $44.57 of the discretionary spending they already spend online or out of the county each month to a local business, roughly $10 million in additional funds, $4 million in additional wages, and over 120 jobs could be brought into or remain within Lincoln County.
“We don’t know how many households have made a conscious effort to redirect that $44,” Lambrecht said, “but that’s not really the point. The point is that Buy Local helps keep this discussion going and with its radio show, website and the hundreds of stickers on hundreds of vehicles plying Hwy. 101 each day, we’re spreading the message and helping all of us remember that small businesses are the lifeblood of Lincoln County and it behooves us all to help ensure they survive and thrive, even in this Internet age.
Membership is free to individuals and families. When they join, by visiting www.buylocallincolncounty.org, new members are mailed a Buy Local window sticker for their vehicle, and a Buy Local keychain tag.
