The impact of COVID-19 on our economy is yet to be seen in its entirety and may not be for some time.
Fortunately for Franklin and Papakura areas, the sense of community is strong, and I believe it won’t be long before many businesses are back in full swing and it is up to all of us in the community to support them.
The expected move to Level 2, hopefully mid-May will see many more businesses open and with sensible shopping, we can all do our bit to ensure the livelihood of the small businesses owners in our communities are secured.
At elocal, we have always supported the idea of supporting local, and over the next few months we will be doing all we can to promote the local businesses in our area. Many of the businesses that have featured in recent elocal editions are open for some sort of business, whether it be buying a takeaway meal from Autobahn, or enquiring online about the purchase of a new car from Ebbetts or Roger Gill, jewellery for Mum for Mother’s day from Wrights Jewellers or ordering carpet samples and arranging carpet installation from Flooring Xtra, who have branches in both Pukekohe and Papakura.
All of these businesses and many more are owned by people just like you and I, people who work tirelessly to provide for themselves and their families, who due to events out of their control have found themselves in a situation that they could not have foreseen.
There are many benefits to shopping and buying local. When you buy from an independent, locally owned business rather than a regional or nationally owned business, your money stays local to make purchases from other local businesses and service providers. This continues to strengthen the economic base of the community. Small local businesses are the largest employer nationally and, locally, provide the most jobs to residents.
Local businesses often hire people with a better understanding of the local impact of products or services they are selling and take more time to get to know customers. They are owned by people who live in this community, are less likely to leave, and are more invested in the community’s future.
By choosing to shop local, buy local and eat local, we all become ultimately responsible and invested in our community, and the benefits of that is something we will reap tenfold in years to come.