Well, Halloween has gone and Mariah Carey has defrosted so it is totally acceptable to start talking about Christmas? For a couple of years now we have been trying to shop local for Christmas gifts wherever possible. I thought I would share how we have got on as we intend on stepping it up even more this holiday season.
For reference, we live in St Helens, about 10 miles from the centre of Liverpool. St Helens is not renowned for its huge selection of independent local gift shops so we have learnt to be creative where we find our local businesses. It makes me even prouder when I manage to find an independent, sole trader who happens to be local as well as finding the perfect gift for friends and family. I especially love to feature independent businesses in the Christmas Gift Guide that I produce every year.
Why is it good to shop local?
Other than the obvious which is to support the local economy, there are plenty of reasons why shopping locally can be beneficial:
- Better for the environment – The gifts you buy are far less likely to have accumulated air miles, aswell as being less likely to use copious amounts of unnecessary packaging that larger, national businesses tend to use.
- If you are looking for unique gifts, you are much more likely to get them from local, independent traders.
- More chance of personalisation – My kids have all loved seeing their name on gifts, we have had much more success with getting them written on gifts from small suppliers – particularly Millicent!
- Availability – Go into a local shop and you will see exactly what they have in stock. No more placing an order only to get the dreaded message a couple of days later saying they are supply chain issues.
- Actually seeing and touching the products – How many times have we ordered online only to find when your products arrives it is thin and see through? (Bedding anyone?) By shopping local, actually going into a store, you actually can touch the products to feel the high quality, feel them, smell them (I will never know how people order perfumes and candles online!) You may not be so popular if you go into fresh fruit and veg stores and expect to handle all their goods though!
- The human contact – Your local business will appreciate your custom so much more than your national firms. You will get the warm fuzzy feeling that you have really made a difference to someone’s day with your purchase!
- The price point may be even cheaper than big businesses. Although local small business owners do not necessarily benefit from economies of scale, they often have smaller premises that benefit from lower rental and lower wage costs due to running the business themselves.
When is the best time to shop local?
The perfect time to start shopping for the perfect Christmas Gift is as earlier as possible. If you are looking at something homemade or unique, you don’t want to miss the boat and them sell the perfect gift to someone else. Local artists may not have time to recreate something in time for Christmas if you leave it too late.
What are the perfect local gift ideas?
Handmade crafts like handmade jewelry
Locally-made products -Your local jams, honeys and handcrafted nut butters are brilliant to put into Christmas hampers.
Handmade pottery
Fine Art is a great option and you are likely to find something really unique and individual
Build a gift box filled with lots of small Christmas gifts from local shops.
Things to be aware of when shopping locally
Do your local shops have a returns policy – Awkward to ask if a friend is running the business but still necessary, especially if you are buying an expensive gift.
Have you heard any recommendations (or negative recommendations) about the local organisation?
Health & Safety – Homemade items may not be registered with safety marks, particularly important if you are buying cuddly toys for young children, clothing and furniture.
Food Hygiene – Be wary if you are buying high risk items such a cheesecakes and meat products. Sweet cones and brownies are much safer! You can find Food Hygiene ratings on your local council websites.
If you are buying a gift card, service or booking for a future event, you are taking a chance that the business will still be trading when the time comes to use the gift. To be honest though, so many major stores
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Where to find local businesses
As I said earlier in the post, we do not have tons of small local shops around are area. It doesn’t mean that we don’t have plenty of places where we can shop local for Christmas though. Some of the places we have found opportunities to shop small and local are:
Christmas Fayres
There’s plenty of them around with all manner of different businesses and great gift ideas at them. Church halls, local primary schools and your local women’s Institute all hold Christmas Fayres. I’ve found so many gifts for stocking fillers and Christmas Eve boxes – in fact, I wouldn’t know where to get Reindeer food without these one-stop shop events.
Other local shops
I love the sense of a local community that will build other businesses up – Local Supermarkets, Post Offices, Chemists and even the local barber all have noticeboards that will have leaflets on display for offers and gifts.
Many local cafes now host evening events where they showcase the products from another local business – For instance, our local cafe has just had a Clarins evening supplied by their nearest Beauty Salon. I love this way of collaborative working and helping each other out and really believe this is a great way to build a local communities.
Farm Shops
We always try to support our local farmers by getting our Christmas tree from them rather than the likes of big DIY stores or even Ikea. Most farms also have a gift shop – It will be no surprise that I never come out with only a Christmas Tree! Many farm stores also hold all year round local makers markets full of products from local artisans which are full of unique items.
Local Facebook Pages
I always get sweets and decorations from local Facebook pages which make the perfect stocking stuffer. Often through friends of friends, these are the small cottage industries that appreciate your custom the most.
What to get for the person who is impossible to buy for? Buy Services not Things!
I love the idea of not clogging up someone’s home with items that they just don’t need. Everyone has a family member who has more than enough coffee mugs and home goods so services and events make the perfect holiday gifts.
Some suggestions for services that may end up as the perfect presents are:
- Pay for an oven clean.
- My friend has just had her bathroom steam cleaned (also good for the environment) and absolutely highly recommends it.
- 3 hours of ironing.
- Gift cards for your local coffee shop or restaurant.
- An afternoon visit from the local gardener – My mum would love this!
- Theatre tickets for your local theatre or concert tickets for music lovers – You may even get to go too!
Small Business Saturday 2022
There is one day of the year when we are encouraged to use small businesses in the UK more than any other. This is Small Business Saturday which is celebrating its 10 year anniversary this year.
The aim of Small Business Saturday is to celebrate small businesses, encourage us to use small businesses and support local small businesses in our community. A lot of small businesses really like to get involved with the day which is great – They need all the publicity that they can get, especially this year when consumer spending is said to be affected by the cost of living crisis.
I will say that I have some concerns about this day. Many small businesses put on sales and Christmas offers which is better for the consumer but can be difficult for the small businesses. Of course, some businesses can withstand this no problem, but for some local small businesses it can really affect their income.
What if I can’t get what I need from the local store?
I’ve mentioned several times already in this post that our local area can be fairly limited in terms of availability of some types of shopping. We are not lucky enough to have many shops from different ethnicities and for many types of world foods in particular, I would have to travel to Liverpool or Manchester or shop online.
I have good news though. There are some online sites that have popped up though where ‘local’ shops nationally are highlighted and if you buy a particular product, the website hosts will do their best to send to you from as local as possible. My experience of some of the sites is that some are easier to navigate than others but I really like the intention.
Some suggestions that have been named to me are Its My Local Market, where you highlight the area that you are interested in shopping from and Shop Local Online
And so the shopping is done! All you need to do now is relax, enjoy your Christmas Dinner and start to make your 100+ New Year’s Resolutions!
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Ohhhhh! I love this post!
This is exactly what I did at the weekend when I visited a local craft fair! It was great to speak to all the local crafters, it totally made the whole experience having chats about Strictly with fellow crocheters!
I love shopping in my village… walking into the butchers and they know my name… they even follow me on Instagram! I think more people will be shopping local this year!
I love the sound of your village! Really hope that people do shop local this year x