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July 22, 2025
You’ve probably heard the phrase “Shop Local” bandied about on social media from time to time. With the internet at our fingertips, it’s easier than ever to get swept up in the immediacy of online shopping at big box retailers, which is why so many community banks spend our time and marketing bandwidth promoting local business.
Choosing to shop locally does not mean deciding between convenience and supporting local businesses. In this blog post, we’ll explain why shopping locally is not only important for supporting the local economy, but how it can also benefit you personally. We’ll start big and work our way down to the stuff that impacts you directly.
It’s no secret that big box retailers have put the squeeze on small businesses. In many communities, the locally owned stores that once littered main streets have largely disappeared, unable to compete with the convenience and pricing of large retailers who can negotiate lower prices with their suppliers due to the volume of business.
You may be thinking, “So what? As long as I can get what I need for cheap, what does it matter where I shop?” However, the closure of local small businesses has several knock-on effects that can impact the broader community.
Small businesses strengthen the local economy far more than retail chains. The money that you spend at a local business tends to circulate within the local economy more often than it would if you shop at a big box store. Independently owned small businesses are more likely to buy from other local businesses, contributing more to the local tax base. This means more money for police and fire departments, street repairs, and trash collection!
If you’re worried about the negative impacts your purchasing decisions have on the environment, shopping locally is a fantastic way to reduce your carbon footprint. Because small independent businesses tend to source their goods locally, this cuts down on emissions from transportation. Small businesses also consume fewer resources by nature of their size.
Because they can’t compete on price, local businesses pride themselves on offering high quality or one-of-a-kind products you can’t find at a chain store. While you can’t find everything at a small business, you will find products created by people dedicated to their craft. These are people who can provide expertise with regard to the products they sell; small businesses are an excellent resource for when you have questions or need advice about products.
For the same reason, small businesses are passionate about their products and have the freedom to get to know their customers. This translates into better service and a personalized experience you can’t find at a large retailer that needs to deal with thousands of customers every day.
While big box stores can offer a wide variety of products, their large customer bases can lead to a homogenization effect, where you will find the same brands at different stores with little diversity. By contrast, local stores carry inventory based on what their customers want and often carry unique items from local artisans and farmers. A fitting example would be the Allentown Farmer’s Market; it’s one of the only places in the Lehigh Valley where you can get a cheesesteak pretzel wrap!
As members of their community, local business owners show greater support for local nonprofits and other organizations. “Studies show that nonprofits receive 250 percent more support from small businesses than large ones,” explains Dr. Sue Lynn Sasser, professor of economics at the University of Central Oklahoma.
Many small businesses host or volunteer at local events, contributing to the unique character of the community. New Tripoli wouldn’t be the community it is without the annual Applefest at Ontelaunee Park, and Emmaus wouldn’t be the same without its annual Farewell to Summer Festival! These types of events can only happen with the support of small local businesses.
It is crucial to keep in mind the impact your purchasing decisions have, not only for you, but for your community. When you decide to order from a big box retailer, you are contributing to the homogenization of your unique community. We should all strive to support local small businesses so they can grow and become job creators, so we can foster connections between members of the community, and so we can preserve the distinct character that makes our communities special.
John Hemak is a Vice President of Commercial Lending for New Tripoli Bank and sits on the board of the East Penn School District Education Foundation. He has been involved in commercial lending for decades and has been a commercial lender for New Tripoli Bank for over 12 years.
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