Shop Local

The other night a friend of mine referenced Sally Brewster, the awesome owner of Park Road Books, about how shopping at local businesses impacts the community. I emailed Sally to get her actual statistics, and here they are:

For every $25 that you spend in Charlotte, here's how much stays in our community:

• Park Road Books or any other locally-owned store: $13.75
• Borders, Costco, or any other chain store: $3.90
• Amazon: "a big, fat zero"

I think this says it all. Make it a point to frequent your locally-owned businesses, whether for books (Park Road Books at Park Road Shopping Center), school uniforms (Educational Outfitters, right near--yes--Costco), produce (here's the Charlotte Observer link for local farmer's markets --many have their own websites, too--and here is the list of pick-your-own farms), wine (Pasta and Provisions--which of course has much more than wine!), toys (Black Forest in Myers Park and Bedford Falls at Park Road Shopping Center) and more.

I think one of the best things about shopping locally is that you get to know the owners and employees, and they get to know you. I can walk into Park Road Books and Sally will say, "Have you read the new Stephanie Kallos?" because she knows I like that kind of book. Or, I can say, "I need a chapter book for a beginning reader who likes animals" and Sherry (the children's books specialist) will point me towards a character I had never heard of before. I LOVE shopping for wine at Pasta and Provisions because I know nothing about it, but I can walk in and say, "I have 20 women coming for dinner--what kind of wine should I serve?" and they can hook me up.

I also want to give a shout-out to a group of self-employed or locally-employed businesspeople that keeps my household running:

• Jason Duff of JD Audio (704-654-0880) who sorted out our stereo/TV system and comes over to fix it whenever I've screwed it up or added something strange--like our karaoke system and the wii--to it
• Scott Fletcher of Scott Fletcher Appliance (704-605-5037), who has now repaired every appliance I own except the ice maker
• Debbie Roberts of Gopher Dogs (704-778-7743), whose mobile dog grooming is a lifesaver for those of us whose dogs don't behave well with other dogs
• Drew Harkey of Drew Harkey's Window Cleaning (704-362-0026)
• Alan Williams of Fiber Services (704-543-0903) who treats my rugs and furniture so stains won't last forever
• Alicia Shumate (704-759-0054) who tunes my piano and harpsichord beautifully
• Queens Texaco on Providence (704-334-8427), where they always say "bring it over" when I have a car crisis
• Sylvia Fletcher, who bring pilates to me so I don't have to humiliate myself in public
• Ginny Mabry of Sterling Brownell Travel (704-987-3139), who does everything from family trips to Disney to girls' shopping trips to Italy (not that I have done one of the shopping trips, but a girl can dream!)

To Do: Shop local and support locally-owned businesses. You help the whole community.

The Purple Martin and the power of organization

Last night I went to the launching of a new Charlotte company, The Purple Martin & Co. The Purple Martin helps you create a Family Handbook to compile all important data in one place. The handbooks are beautiful binders with calendars, important phone numbers, family schedules, contact info for every service provider you use, etc.

Lori Martin--possibly the most organized person I've ever met--is the brains behind this venture. She is mother of three and in her former life worked for an investment bank. I first discovered Lori's gifts when I asked her to help me throw a class party with activities for the kids and she showed up with a completely detailed plan with everything neatly organized and stored in bins and boxes! No fool I, I tapped her to help a teacher organize his classroom when the academic dean discreetly asked if I knew anyone with those skills.

Lori created her family binder after she was unexpectedly in the hospital and realized that just having the preschool number on the fridge and the insurance card on the counter was not enough information for her family. Click here to read her story.

Lori will work with you at any level--you might be a very organized person and just want a pretty binder and a few suggestions about what to include. On the other hand, you might be someone whose stuff is scattered all over the place and have no idea where to begin. Click here to read about things you might put in your book.

I think her services are particularly handy for someone who has grandparents or a nanny who help out--these books have all the info they need at their fingertips. Lori offers a yearlong updating service as well, so when soccer schedules end and swim team begins, you can adjust your book accordingly.

Lori is donating a percentage of her profits to The Relatives, a co-ed, 9-bed emergency shelter for runaway, homeless, and other youth in crisis from ages 7-17 run by Alexander Youth Network. What a great way to give back to the community.

For more information on the Purple Martin & Co., check out Lori's website by clicking here.

To Do: Get organized, be stylish, help youth.