Local Consumer Power

As many parts of the country once again lockdown big pieces of the economy, one remedy being projected as a way to soften the impact on the businesses affected is to Buy Local. Patronizing stores and businesses with local ownership rather than multi-nationals or to redirect our spending to online enterprises can be something of a tonic to ease the pain being felt by businesses, owners and employees.

But putting a price or value on the power of buying local is not all that simple so several Saskatchewan communities hired a firm – a local one at that – to assess the economic impact of buying local as a way to help consumers understand how their choices can make a difference.

Moose Jaw and Yorkton are among the centres that participated in the research.

They found that if consumers were to shift as little as 10% of their spending from national to locally-owned businesses, 730 jobs would be created in Moose Jaw with a corresponding GDP increase of roughly $80 million while Yorkton would see 415 additional jobs and a $45 million jump in GDP.