Talking Localism on the West Coast

This week, Stacy Mitchell, author of Big-Box Swindle: The True Cost of Mega-Retailers and the Fight for America's Independent Businesses (Beacon) and senior researcher with the Institute for Local Self Reliance, is in the midst of a five-city West Coast tour. At each of the stops, she's speaking to local officials, indie business alliances, retailers, and residents about the growing Shop Local movement and the benefits to local economies.

"The main message of my talk focuses on support for local businesses -- how it's a growing movement and shows signs of hope -- but in the context of our current economic times," Mitchell said. "This [environment] makes my message all the more urgent -- how local businesses provide more [positive] economic impact for communities."

Mitchell's tour is taking her from California to Oregon:

• Sunday, November 16, at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Redwood City, California, presented by the Hometown Peninsula Independent Business Alliance and the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Redwood City
• Monday, November 17, at the Trinity Methodist Church Social Hall in Chico, California, sponsored by Lyon Books and the Institute for Sustainable Development at California State University
• Tuesday, November 18, at the Eureka Women's Club in Eureka, California, sponsored by the Humboldt County Independent Business Alliance
• Wednesday, November 19, at the Medford Public Library in Medford, Oregon, sponsored by Ashland Food Cooperative, 1000 Friends of Oregon, Friends of Jackson County, and Thrive
• Thursday, November 20, at the First Unitarian Church in Portland, Oregon, sponsored by the Sustainable Business Network of Portland and the Economic Justice Action Group

Mitchell, who spoke to BTW following Sunday's gathering in Redwood City, noted that the many indie business owners participating in the event were excited about the movement's potential to have a positive impact on their businesses as well as the surrounding communities.

Kepler's Books' owner Clark Kepler, the founder and president of the Hometown Peninsula Independent Business Alliance, said earlier in a statement: "We are now realizing how the collapse of real estate property can destroy families and communities. We need a strong, vibrant, healthy business community. Independent business owners are our neighbors. They shop, buy, volunteer and send their kids to our local schools. Independent business owners invest in our communities. We should invest in them."

Heather Lyon of Lyon Books, who is working with other local business owners on the fledgling Think Local, Chico, reported that, despite an emergency meeting of the local city council, Monday's event drew "a good group of local businesspeople."

Having Mitchell address the Chico community was very timely, Lyon said. "We are a community of local independent businesses, but there are also big box stores. They keep coming, and we're facing the prospect of a Wal-Mart Super Center and that's in addition to the one we already have."

Noting that Chico's Shop Local events "tend to be well attended," Lyon added, "This is a message that we'll keep presenting. It takes a while for people to understand the effects" that big box stores have on the local community.

Mitchell's appearance in Chico garnered coverage from the local media, including Chico News & Review, which ran the headline "The Hidden Cost of Big Box Stores." The paper noted that Mitchell's travels around the country have enabled her to see "first-hand 'how far-reaching and profound an impact' [big box] stores have in communities across America." Mitchell is optimistic, however, because of rapidly expanding Shop Local efforts.

Chico News & Review reported that in "the past 12 months Walmart has pulled out of 20 applications for new stores (including a supercenter for North Chico)." Mitchell told the paper: "As time goes on, there is more evidence of the hidden cost of big-box stores -- that they eliminate more jobs than they create," and during her presentation cited a report "by a UC Irvine professor who studied the economic impact of 3,000 Walmarts and found that on average each takes 150 jobs away from the community."

Countering arguments that say opposition to big box stores cost local jobs, Mitchell said, "Well, if you have ever walked around the aisles at Home Depot looking for an employee to help you, you know these places are understaffed. It's part of their profit model," as reported by Chico News & Review.

As for what "Always Low Prices" mean for consumers, Mitchell explained that they don't always translate into savings, as manufacturers often make two versions of their products: a quality version for the independent stores and a cheaper version that looks the same but is full of cheap plastics -- and will need replacement sooner -- for the big boxes, according to Chico News & Review.

Mitchell will be one of the speakers at ABA's Pre-Winter Institute Conference on Local First/Shop Local initiatives in Salt Lake City in January. (See related story.) --David Grogan