‘Tis the Season…to Shop Local

The holiday season is upon us and, along with parties, food and family gatherings, it is shopping time. Whether you are a last minute shopper or a get-it-all-done-early shopper, our Highland Village businesses would like you to shop their stores.

Recently there were rumors flying that the Highland Village Kroger was closing. A lot of folks were upset by this and rallied the community to shop exclusively at the store in hopes the sales boost would convince corporate to keep the store open. Fortunately the store is not closing; however every business in Highland Village would gain from this type of loyalty.

What if we all decided to only shop and dine locally, particularly in Highland Village? I guarantee you our local businesses would feel the love and benefit from it! You may be thinking you can’t do that, you’re too busy, or maybe you shop online in the evening after the kids are in bed, maybe it is your habit to travel to another city for your shopping experience. I don’t need to go through the list of why shopping locally is a good idea, suffice it to say keeping our dollars local benefits us all.

Here are a few ideas to help you shop local:

• Think local stores when you make your shopping list. It may be your habit to travel to another city for your specialty grocery items or Christmas shopping. Keep your shopping dollars local by intentionally looking local first. Instead of heading elsewhere for your special grocery items, plan to shop the Highland Village grocery stores first.
• Prefer to browse online? Look for the “store availability” or “pick up in store” option. You can browse online and select your item then have instant gratification of picking up the item locally instead of waiting for a delivery. And, even though Highland Village is a safe community, by picking up in the store you remove the potential of having your delivered items stolen from your front porch.
• Plan your shopping day and include breakfast, lunch or dinner at a Highland Village restaurant. Shopping works up quite the appetite, or so I’m told. Plan to fuel up at a local coffee shop or juice spot. Take a break at lunch or finish the day at a Highland Village restaurant.
• Not sure what retail and dining options are offered in Highland Village? Check out the Highland Village Business Association online directory. Every brick and mortar business is listed there. Just go to www.thehvba.com and search for the category or store.
• Consider a unique or homemade gift for that special someone. We have many home-based businesses in Highland Village that offer one-of-a-kind jewelry, artwork, blankets or quilts. Again, check out the Highland Village Business Association website for a listing or ask around.

These are little things, but they make a big difference to our local business owners and managers. They’ve chosen Highland Village as their home and we should support them.

When we contacted Kroger’s corporate office about the rumors of our Kroger closing, the director said, “Kroger is committed to Highland Village, there is no truth to the rumors Kroger is closing.” Kroger like all our other local businesses have made a commitment to Highland Village. Let’s reciprocate that commitment and shop local. I challenge you to give it a try this holiday season.