Get More Out Of LIFE In 2011: Discover Your


Local Shopping Scene " F


orget the mall; shop small!” proclaimed a post on Ameri- can Express's Small Business Saturday Facebook page. 2010's holiday season kicked off with a well-publicized “Buy Local” campaign. Mall traffic rose +16% to 65% during the past holiday season, according to satellite reports, but on Small Business Saturday, foot traffic still hadn't reached the Post Road. By mid-afternoon we found few shoppers on Fairfield's Post Roads. “The street's been dead,” confessed one small store owner.


LIFE (Local Initiative for Fairfield's Economies), a new non- profit group of small business owners, is hoping to change that. LIFE is Connecticut's first chapter of BALLE (Business Alliance for Local Living Economies), a nationwide non-profit pioneer in local economic sustainability. With a mission of promoting public awareness of local, non-”brand name” shopping alter- natives, LIFE's co-founders believe Fairfield County residents would patronize local businesses if they could achieve the same top-of-mind awareness as national chains and franchises. Along the way LIFE hopes to explode a few myths. Thanks


to big chain and Internet marketers' relentless discount empha- sis, most folks believe small businesses are higher priced. Yet “Independents here offer the same discounts as you can find at the mall,” claims one Post Road shop owner. To entice Fairfield County's savvy shoppers, locals strive to separate themselves from big chains with better-resourced, more original merchan- dise mix, at highly competitive price points. To help independent store owners get their story out, LIFE


employs mobile video clips, mini-'movie trailers' sent to the cell phone that, within seconds, convey each shop owner's person- ality, philosophy and product mix. Anyone can opt in for free to find out about their local scene by texting LIFE to 68707 or visiting www.shoplocalLIFE.org and signing up. Mobile mes- sages will be customized according to neighborhood, interests, and personal preferences. Shop owners who join LIFE get professional video shoots and editing tailored to Mobile's small screens. Rather than pro- moting price discounts, LIFE encourages its members to share tips, ideas and expertise. For example, Ridgefield's Move2Well- ness will share 'wellness' moments, :20 spots demonstrating easy exercises to do anytime, anywhere to reduce stress and enhance well-being. “We independents have to do something new and differ-


ent,” says Rob Young, LIFE co-founder and owner of Move2Well- ness. “Mobile videos introduce, in a quick and engaging way, the store owner; put a face to a name, show what we're all about, what we have to offer and how it helps you, the con- sumer. If we can demonstrate our value in just a few seconds, people will make that connection to us as a neighbor.” To help folks discover what's in their own backyard, LIFE will host meet-ups exploring neighborhood shopping enclaves. Visit www.shoplocalLIFE.org to connect with meet-ups nearby. Shifting just 10% of what we'd ordinarily spend with na- tional chains to local businesses would bring over $500 million


32 January 2011


a year “extra” into Fairfield County's economies, raising living standards. Cornell sociologist Dr. Thomas Lyson found coun- ties characterized by many small local enterprises enjoy more home-ownership, less income disparity between rich and poor, higher educational outcomes, lower worker disability, lower crime and higher voter turnout than counties dominated by a few big corporations. Local decision-making fosters local supply sourcing, more tax revenue, spurs demand for bookkeeping, legal and accounting services, and shrinks the community's car- bon footprint. Non-profits benefit too: local independent shops contribute 2 to 4 times more cash as big corporate chains. Buying local brings more than economic rewards. LIFE is


collaborating with the Cultural Alliance for Fairfield County, a non-profit promoting the local Arts scene, to offer reward merchandise created by local artists, musicians and performers. Attainable only by shifting away from mass market chains to “buy local,” reward merchandise will not be offered for re-sale. Customers will text a code whenever they shop LIFE member stores to collect points redeemable online. What better way to get more out of LIFE than by discovering Fairfield county's unique shops, encouraging cash to flow through more hands, and embracing what makes this a great place to live?


Discovering what's happening with Fairfield county's local scene is easy. Visit www.shoplocalLIFE.org and sign up to get 'inside scoop' videos on your Mobile phone. See ad on page 21.


www.naturalnutmeg.com


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