When I was the publisher at the newspaper in Paris, Texas, I gently chided the gals in our coverage area who used to get very excited about their shopping trips out of town on Black Friday as I espoused the virtues of shopping local instead.
I mean way out-of-town, like Frisco, Texas, an hour and a half away.
I went to Paris from Monroe in 2009, and here we are a decade later and I’m going to gently chide you ladies who are taking a much different kind of shopping trip.
Yep, the one where you don’t even get off the couch.
I’ve already seen on social media a number of my friends who are ladies (because calling them lady friends would cause eyebrows to raise) getting very excited about doing their Christmas shopping on Amazon or some other national online retailer, even before we have made it to Black Friday, annually the biggest shopping day of the year.
About the Writer
Patrick Graham is the owner of The Covington News. His email address is pgraham@covnews.com.
In fact, today’s newspaper has eight inserts and The News & Advertiser will have as many as 11 so that everyone in Newton County will know what kind of deals local retailers are offering for Black Friday and beyond.
I can rattle off the stats about how important it is to buy local. I don’t even have to look them up anymore. I have them memorized.
I could tell you how every dollar spent locally turns over three more times in the local economy. Go online and those dollars are turning over somewhere else, not Newton County.
Or I could tell you about the infrastructure projects and school funding generated from the sales tax on local purchases. If you go online, you are going to be helping pay for someone else’s projects and schools rather than your own.
But the main thing I want to tell you is buying local means your friends and neighbors here in Newton County get to keep their livelihood. That might sound like I’m being dramatic, but I’m not. That’s how it works, folks. We have new shops and businesses opening all over Covington and Newton County, but they won’t stay open if you don’t buy from them, especially this time of year.
So don’t do all your Black Friday or Christmas shopping online. Get up off that couch and go do business with someone you know.
You’ll be glad you did.
