COVID-19 has already wreaked havoc on the economy, with stock values plummeting, businesses and production shutting down, people losing the steady incomes they rely on. But it’s not Amazon or Trader Joe’s we should be worried about. These companies are too big to suffer irreversible damage even during this global crisis. Small businesses, on the other hand, have much more to lose. That elderly woman downtown who weaves baskets to sell at the market; that young couple making their own soy candles in their living room; those two best friends that make bathing suits out of regenerated ocean plastic. These are the people we need to look out for, especially now during COVID-19.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham offers three benefits of supporting small businesses:
“Excellent, Personalized Customer Service:” Small business owners want to build a relationship with their community members and rely on these members to tell others about their company. Such businesses also often have a smaller staff, which means each of them will be able to give you detailed information on their products or services and answer any questions you may have. Their desire to connect with their community and keep you coming back for more will guarantee a pleasant experience each and every time.
“Innovation and Competition:” In order to stay afloat when competing with larger corporations, small businesses need to continuously create new products or services and new customer benefits. This means you can often find more unique and personalized products at small businesses (and likely of better quality too) than you would at bigger companies, who tend to focus on quantity over quality and often have sweatshops overseas, where factory workers must produce their products at unreasonable speeds and under horrific conditions. Plus, small businesses help prevent such corporations from establishing a monopoly over a certain area of the market, which would give them absolute power and control over that product or service, allowing them to demand any price they want.
“Community Support:” Supporting small businesses allows you to put money back into your local economy and keeps businesses going in the area. This will provide support for your community and thereby create strong relationships and connections among its members.
Additionally, Judith D. Schwartz writes in an article for Time that supporting small businesses also prevents communities from turning into “’ghost towns,’” which are neighborhoods “devoid of… shops and services,” or “’clone towns,’ where Main Street now looks like every other Main Street with the same fast-food and retail chains.” Schwartz does acknowledge that small business prices can often be higher than those of big chains, but the benefits of increasing local employment, establishing relationships within the community, the lower transportation costs and environmental impacts, and the guarantee of the safety and quality of the products arguably outweighs this small disadvantage.
While COVID-19 locks us all in our homes and keeps us away from our usual excursions, please consider buying from local and small businesses instead of Amazon or whatever comes up as the first search result on Google. These companies are suffering the most right now, and it is our duty to help our fellow community members and our local economy in any way we can. Many of them provide curb-side pickups or delivery services, so you won’t have to put yourself and others at risk by entering a public space or even leaving your house. To get you started, here are some links to small businesses in the Rochester/Oakland County area, and some online small businesses from around the world (that ship to the U.S.!) that would greatly appreciate your support at this unprecedented time:
Oakland County:
Online with U.S. shipping:
I was very happy to see that you chose a topic that is so relevant to what is happening right now. I think it is important for community members to give as much as they can to help small businesses during this time. Without local support, it is hard for them to stay afloat. We all need to do what we can to help each other during such a crucial time. I really liked how you broke this post up into sections. I think it was very easy to read and you sounded very credible given what you were discussing.
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