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February 2009
Buy Local Marshfield - the beginning.
Melissa Darr for Buy Local Marshfield
What is Buy Local Marshfield? It’s many things. It’s a group of people dedicated to making Marshfield a better place. It’s a movement to educate citizens and businesses on the need to buy local. It’s an avenue for continued growth in Marshfield. It’s a way of life.
Buy Local Marshfield began as a topic of discussion at Leadership Marshfield. Leadership Marshfield is a program that MACCI has developed to mold a new generation of leaders for the Marshfield area, by bringing together members from various parts of the community for a common good. The participants from every class have been full of great ideas for improving Marshfield, for doing great things. The class of 2008-2009 is no exception.
One theme that penetrated the discussion was Buy Local. A Buy Local campaign for Marshfield. A way to keep stores in Marshfield. Improve shopping. Increase restaurant choices. It is from this, that Buy Local Marshfield, comprised of five individuals from throughout the community, was born. Many nightly meetings and much brainstorming brought us to the definition of the mission:
Enhance the economic and social vitality of our local community by involving local residents and businesses in a sustainable fashion; as evidenced by increasing resident and business spending within the local area.
The idea is simple, really. BUY LOCAL. Spend your money here. Support local businesses, and they will continue to grow. Create a positive local economy, and more businesses will come. When more businesses come, we have more options. Buying local has immediate positive influence. Immediate results. Money in the economy. Tax revenue for municipal services. Good jobs. But it doesn’t end there. Buying local has a huge impact on the future growth and success of Marshfield. And we can all help.
What makes you go back to a community you’ve visited before? Is it the hotel you stayed at? The restaurant you ate at? Shopping in a quaint downtown? A park or museum you visited? It’s probably not one of these things at all, but a combination of them. Each of these things makes up a piece of a community’s identity, and character. A positive feeling when you leave Marshfield makes you want to come back. If we can create a unique identity, leaving visitors with a positive experience, we will become a “destination” for tourism.
A strong local economy is also a draw for future potential businesses. Seeing a community with great support for local businesses shows our investment in the local economy. As more businesses come to Marshfield, our local economy improves even more, and the options for shopping and eating in Marshfield grow.
An even more abstract benefit of supporting local businesses is that of population growth. A strong local economy, with booming shopping and entertaining are one of many aspects that draw residents to our community. Buying local directly affects the quality of life in Marshfield, and makes it a great place to move to!
While the idea to Buy Local is simple, the work involved is not. There is developing a budget, creating a marketing plan, designing a logo, defining our scope, creating a website and promotional materials, and above all, educating consumers and businesses alike on the benefits of buying local. All of this hard work will kick off on March 3rd, with a press conference launching the program to be held at the Marshfield Public Library. Help us help Marshfield, BUY LOCAL!
Buy Local Marshfield…coming soon to a store near you!
The Leadership Marshfield project group consists of Rita Meier (Blue Heron Brew Pub/West 14th), Peg Odness (Marshfield Savings Bank), Jolene Sternweis (Roehl Transport), Craig Cook (Saint Joseph’s Hospital), and Melissa Darr (Figi’s, Inc.)
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