On Friday, Pick Three, Spend Fifty

The economy is in bad shape, forcing many small, locally owned shops to close their doors for good. That’s why the Darien Chamber of Commerce has endorsed the 3/50 Project, a unique business model that’s boosting economic recovery through retail therapy; and today is 3/50 Friday.

Cinda Baxter founded the 3/50 Project in March of this year to boost retailer and consumer morale in a kind of local business crusade. An independent stationery storeowner for fourteen years, Baxter could empathize with retailers and customers alike when the economy sank. Determined to stay positive, Baxter came up with the 3/50 initiative. The idea is simple: pick your three favorite local shops, and each month spend $50 among them.

“We ask consumers to think about which three stores they’d miss if they disappeared, then remind them to return there,” explains Baxter.

On 3/50 Friday, Baxter urges customers to stop into at least one independent, locally owned shop and pick up a “little something.”

“It’s the only way to assure they’ll still be here next Thanksgiving week, after all,” she said.

The Darien Chamber of Commerce is one of many organizations throughout the country that has endorsed Baxter’s plan. President Carol Wilder-Tamme says participation in the 3/50 Project complements the CoC’s push to “Do Business Locally.”

“I read about the project, and it seemed to fit in nicely with the Chamber’s mission,’” said Wilder Tamme.

The CoC’S three-phase “Do Business Locally” movement launched last fall. Phase one provided all local businesses with reduced price advertising in local media. Phase two brought the Distinction Card, a $25 rewards card that offers an almost unlimited number of discounts and deals at Darien stores. And earlier in the fall, the CoC launched phase three with the endorsement of the 3/50 Project.

Participating in 3/50 is free, and the project does not ask customers to spend any more money than usual. What the project asks instead is that customers rethink where they shop and to choose the independent local businesses over the regionally or nationally recognized mega store.

“The local brick-and-mortar independent business needs extra support to stay afloat because it does not have the benefits of the ‘behind the scenes support’ of a chain,” said Wilder Tamme.

Even local "chains" are feeling the pinch. Anne Taylor Loft in downtown Darien recently closed its doors as a result.

For every $100 spent in locally owned stores, $68 dollars returns to the community. Spend that in a national chain, and only $43 dollars stays. Shop online, and virtually nothing goes into your local economy.

These numbers may seem small in comparison to the billion dollar figures used in stimulus discussion, but they add up quickly. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, if half the employed population spent $50 a month in independent businesses, their purchases would generate more than $42.6 billion in revenue.

“3/50 is a mindset. It’s an awareness,” said Wilder Tamme. “Shop in your patch!”