The Benefits of Shopping Local

Shopping locally can have a whole host of positive impacts; for local businesses, for the planet and for the quality of what you receive. When we shop locally for products, we are reducing our carbon footprint because products have often travelled less distance to reach us.

Shopping in local boutiques or going to farmers markets means you ensure you know where your product has come from as well as what is in it. Alongside this you will have the experience of meeting local producers and experiencing the products your local area has to offer.

In recent times, peoples’ online browsing habits when looking for anything from a new laptop to beauty treatments is starting to reflect the desire to buy and shop local. For example, more people than ever in the UK have been searching for things like ‘laser hair removal near me’ and ‘laptop repair near me,’ suggesting a strong desire to shop local.

There are far too many advantages to count when it comes to shopping locally, but here are a few of our favourites:

Saving the planet – Shopping locally can be an easy and effective way to shrink your carbon footprint. Buying products from local shops rather than online retailers means that products have potentially travelled less distance to get to you, reducing the amount of carbon it has taken to get them to you. Better still, if you can buy local produce from your local area, you’ll be guaranteeing that your product has travelled as little as possible, meaning it will be as fresh and as eco-friendly as it comes.

Experiences – There are some things we simply cannot do online. Part of the joy of shopping or receiving a service is the actual experience of shopping. Visiting the shop, browsing, getting advice or conversation from the person behind the counter, these are all valuable and enjoyable elements of shopping. The reality is you just don’t get this experience online.

Getting an in person pamper – When it comes to shopping locally a beauty salon may not be your first thought. But there are some things that should be done by a trained professional, and ideally a local one. Seeing a local beautician for all your beauty needs has a whole host of benefits.

Firstly, you will get to build a relationship with your beautician meaning they will get to know what works for you. Secondly, there are a whole host of fully trained and experienced beauty practitioners across the UK. For treatments like laser hair removal, a local salon will be able to offer fully trained clinicians and outstanding service. Building a relationship is also important as you need to trust your clinician and be happy to visit them session after session.

Convenience and speed – The Covid pandemic showed the importance of shopping local and even to date, searches for things like ‘travel covid test near me’ sees strong interest online, once again indicating the importance of shopping local for goods and services. Logically, by shopping closer to home, it makes the process of buying goods and services much quicker and more convenient, simply through distance.

Support local business – Headlines have been riddled with stories about highstreets struggling to stay afloat and local businesses going under while industry giants continue to grow. Shopping locally means you will be doing your part to keep the highstreets open and supporting local businesses means more employment in your area and supporting local entrepreneurs.

Saving you money – Without shipping costs, shopping locally can end up saving you money, avoiding the need to have to look for small, personal loans like a $500 loan to get you through the month. Not only will you be doing your part for the planet, supporting local people and getting a fantastic customer experience, but you may also be saving yourself some money! What could be better than that?