Support the Economy; Support the Community
by Kirsten Moore, Cooperataive Services Director
2020 has brought both personal and economic strife to people, communities, and businesses throughout the local region and well beyond. At the time of writing, the Federal $2.2 trillion economic stimulus bill called the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act had expired and negotiations for new aid remained at a standstill. Here at Willy Street Co-op we have always believed that a strong local economy can help weather financial storms, and now the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic are putting the strength and support for local economies to the test.
Pandemic Puts Focus on Local
Nothing gets more local than our own bodies, families, and neighbors, and the pandemic has certainly called for us to reexamine how we take care of ourselves as well as how we interact with and protect each other. This year has changed the way that people think about their homes: what we put in our homes to meet our needs and keep ourselves fed, healthy, safe, comfortable and entertained; and who we welcome into our homes, for how long, and with what personal protections. Leaving our most immediate locality, our dwelling, has its own new questions: what are the rules at the places we are going; how many people will be there; is it safe to go further away; is safe to work or visit our extended family and friends; or is there a way to achieve our goals without leaving the safety of personal space at all? The pandemic has definitely made an impact on how we think about local food: how much food do we need to make it to the next shopping trip; how was our food handled or prepared before we bought it; can we make more of the foods we enjoy ourselves; and how can we support the people we know in our communities who are producing and selling our food from a distance? And we face new concerns about the impact the pandemic is having on our local culture and economy: will we, our families, and our neighbors still have our jobs, health, and homes on the other side of the pandemic; and who in our community is being most impacted by or left behind because of COVID-19? The pandemic has definitely impacted some individuals, families, and communities more than others, but one way it has impacted all of us is that it has required us to think more about our most local needs and how we can support each other.
Co-ops and Their Suppliers Rely on Local Support to Thrive
When we become Owners of the Co-op, we agree to keep our Ownership active and in good standing by remaining current on our equity payments until they are invested in-full and by making a purchase at least once per year. Our active Ownership has grown and grown over the years to almost 36,000 at the beginning of 2020. 77% of our active Owners reside in Madison and Middleton, 88% reside in Dane County, 95% reside in Wisconsin, and five people reside outside the US. Some people travel quite far to keep their Ownership active by shopping once a year, and this year, the pandemic has made it hard for some to leave their more immediate localities to come and shop here. As a result, we have seen our active Ownership decline by just about 5% since the beginning of March, which accounts for approximately the same percentage of Owners who live out of state. It makes total sense: if you shop at the Co-op because it’s close to where you work, and you work at home now, you might not come to the Co-op. If you are a student, or a relative of a student in the Madison area, and school is out of session, you’re not coming to Madison and stopping at the Co-op. And the further away you live, the less likely you are to make that seasonal trip to southern Wisconsin to visit us under the current conditions. That’s why now, more than ever, we rely on our most local shoppers for your support, and you are making the difference in the economic health of your Co-op! We appreciate all of our Owners who find us local and safe enough to visit. You’re not only supporting your Co-op, but your employees, suppliers and producers as well during this difficult time. We also appreciate our Owners afar, and we look forward to being able to be of service for you when it’s safer and more convenient for you to travel again.
When You Shop Local, More Money Stays in the Community
Civic Economics studied the local economic return from independent businesses and found that on average 48% of revenue from independent businesses like ours is recirculated locally. This is compared to chain retailers, who recirculate only 13.6% of their revenues in the localities where they do business. When you shop local products at your local Co-op, even more of your money is recirculated locally. Currently, for every $20 you spend on local products at the Co-op, about 92% of that money stays local. $12.80 goes to the local producers; $5.10 goes to employee wages and benefits (all our employees are local too); $0.40 goes to local events, sponsorships, donations, promotions, and the Access Discount; and $1.70 is left to cover our occupancy and overhead costs.
Our local producers not only employ people to provide food, health and beauty products, housewares, clothing, and other products and supplies that sustain and give joy to our communities, but they also help us employ people in our local area and give back to other businesses and people in our area who support others or simply need our support outright. When we think about the times we are in and the fragility of our community health and the economy around us, it is certainly not a stretch to say that shopping and eating local is essential to sustaining the local community.
Your Local Spending Multiplies Local Impact
We’ve written about the economic multiplier effect before when talking about shopping local, and it never hurts to review. The nonprofit New Economics Foundation says “A higher proportion of money re-spent in the local economy means a higher multiplier effect because more income is generated for local people. More income retained locally, or nationally, means more jobs, higher pay and more tax revenue for government, all of which may lead to better living standards.” So when you spend locally, you’re recirculating that money locally, and then the local people you paid recirculate that money locally, and the impact of that money within the local community multiplies.
Support Local Beyond Your Co-op
As you think about Eat Local Month, please don’t stop at what you can buy and who you can support at the Co-op. Perhaps more than ever before, our area organizations, businesses, and neighbors need your local support to further multiply the value of our dollars in our community. Not all small businesses gained access to the Federal aid made available by the Paycheck Protection Program offered as part of the CARES Act. In fact, UnidosUS, a nonprofit serving the Latinx community recently reported on the racial inequities present in the distribution of the PPP. In a nationwide survey they learned “nearly half of [Black and Hispanic] small-business owners say they anticipate closing within six months; only one in 10 received funding they requested.” Due to capacity restrictions and other regulations in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19, our local restaurants need those who can purchase takeout or those who feel comfortable dining at their establishments to do so. Some smaller farmers do not sell to retailers, and they may be relying on your direct purchases through local farmers’ markets, another business model strained by COVID-19. Nonprofits are also reporting challenges meeting their fundraising goals to continue to provide for the people they serve.
Local Considerations
When considering Eat Local Month we may also be looking at how we’ll make our personal earnings, income, and/or savings last through the pandemic and the personal and economic waves in its wake. If it’s within means, there are a few things we can consider when we do buy the things we need or desire. Is there someone local to support when making purchases? Are there local businesses and suppliers that have been overlooked who could really use the support? And when we do spend locally (or if we don’t), who is benefiting from that income, and where else will that income provide further local support?
These are tough times, and as the saying goes, “it takes a village.” You are the village. Whether you shop the Co-op because it’s located conveniently for you or because you make a point of buying local on the regular, it’s our work together as a cooperative and our collective commitment to local businesses and neighbors that will continue to allow for us to make a real difference in local lives. Thank you for playing an active part in keeping our locality strong, and for considering how spending your dollars locally has a multiplying impact.