Comments on: Buy here now.

By: Margot McNeeley

Margot McNeeley — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 20:51:27 +0000

Bravo to Leah!

Buying/supporting local is all part of loving where you live.

Think of these small locally owned restauranteurs and their staffs who work hard day in and day out to put awesome meals on the table for us. Sending a kind note to the chef (or a glass of champagne!) and an extra few bucks to your wait staff speaks volumes to supporting their hard work.

Cheers and happy holidays everyone!

By: Alistair Windsor

Alistair Windsor — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 20:16:52 +0000

Cafés are a great example. Rather then a visit to Starbucks why not try a local café like Café Eclectic, Otherlands, Java Cabana, or Bluff City Coffee.

I buy my running shoes from Breakaway Running because they give back to the community in many ways.

I fear that $50 a month goes directly to Boscos.

Easy Way is great but by far our largest monthly expenditure is on food at Kroger. A gourmet grocery store in Midtown would be a great addition.

By: Aaron Shafer

Aaron Shafer — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 13:28:45 +0000

Our second home is Cafe Eclectic or maybe Central BBQ? Live and love local. Our family has yet to visit the new Midtown farmers market but it sounds interesting.

Never heard of Groupon.

By: Amie

Amie — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 06:35:04 +0000

Awesome post, Leah! I completely agree that supporting locally-owned business is crucial.

By: Leah Wells

Leah Wells — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 20:47:36 +0000

Thanks Gene! Someone alerted me today to an interesting new trend called Groupon.com that leverages collective buying power and is city-specific. I’m just learning about this idea and I’m not certain that it’s reached Memphis yet. I’d be interested to know if any fellow Mid-Southerners have registered or participated in Groupon?

By: Gene Peaarson

Gene Peaarson — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:59:34 +0000

Leah:

Bravo! What a great way to think. I grew up in a small town in north Mississippi, close to Oxford, and in the 1950s my dad, who was part of the Chamber of Commerce, constantly promoted “Shop at Home”. He was concerned about dollars leaking out of the local economy to Memphis at a time before big boxes and on-line shopping. The problem was that Memphis was a fun place to visit with a larger selection of higher quality goods. Today’s Memphis still has a better selection, particularly in the retail examples you cite; and the small gift stores with locally made crafts in Midtown and Downtown offer great items at good prices. Maybe someone should publish a list of locally owned businesses that have locally made products. This ties into the local movement – “Live Where You Live”.

Gene Pearson