I've been meaning to note a couple of interesting local-economy initiatives. I think a lot of the "buy local" talk is oversimplified -- trade has been going on since humans began, and international trade is not new. But massive multinational corporations at the scale of Wal-Mart and Pepsi and many others takes us beyond trade to a frightening level of control and ownership, and that's why it's smart to return to an awareness of supporting local businesses.
I like the 3/50 Project, which asks participants to spend $50 each at 3 locally-owned brick-and-mortar businesses each month. If you can't spend $50, well, whatever you can; I think consciousness is the point. This came naturally last month; I supported my beloved auto care shop,woman-owned and locally-owned Hoshi Motors; my hair salon, owned by a very nice man named Paul; and a local store with a phenomenal inventory of ribbons, beads and some very fancy fabric. Not bad, considering that I have been doing very little shopping for quite some time now.
Then there's Project 95, subtitled Fabric Shoppers Unite. According to their totally unattributed statistic (really, it's so much more meaningful when we know where the numbers come from), 95 percent of fabric purchases are made at chain stores -- Joann's, Hancock, Michael's and Hobby Lobby, I presume, are the leaders.
In theory I support this 100 percent. In practice, the only local fabric store that remains within 25 miles of me seems to have an institutional policy of condescension and rudeness to customers that has simply exhausted my good intentions over the years. I rarely go there, and I rarely buy garment-sewing fabric anymore -- online buying is challenging. And when it comes to notions and patterns, no question, I go where the bargains are. For fabric, I would definitely spend money at the local store if it were a pleasant place to go. And sadly, my lovely local quilt shop closed a few months ago.
Beyond the nice round numbers and sound-bite missions, can these projects make a difference? Well, yes they can. Grassroots movements are incredibly powerful. As noted, though, they only work if there are alternatives to chain stores, and in the fabric world, we haven't really made those alternatives viable. I have a dear friend who created and owned one of the world's best fabric shops here back in the early 1990s; she worked hard at it but couldn't make a living. When she had her going-out-of-business sale, the vultures descended, of course. Today, more sophisticated in our understanding of marketing and trends, we might say she was undercapitalized, or her timing was off, or whatever -- but it was a big loss to the creative community here. And to me.
Where do you shop? I know many of my readers use unique ethnic textiles or repurposed fabrics, or are lucky to live near a great fabric shop. We are only as good as our tools and supplies, but we also do find ways to be resourceful.
Disturbing but not surprising: Rob Walker notes in his Murketing column that Americans average 20 square feet of retail space per person, versus European countries that top out at 3 per person.