How local is local?

The question reminds me of a similar question I faced as a gardening enthusiast.  I concentrated on growing native plants, but the question arose: how native is native?  On one end, some gardeners argued only plants that our first settlers would've found growing in what is now my backyard is native.  On the other end, as long as the plant could be found in the state, it is native.  Most gardeners fell somewhere in between, usually narrowing the definition to a smaller geographical area such as the county or a hundred-mile radius where the garden is located.  Purists, however, argued there was no such thing as a native plant since most of our native plants have the genes of non-native or hybridized cousins. 

The same range of thought exists with what one defines as a locally owned and operated business.  Some argue that only businesses within or very near one's town is a local business.  Others argue that businesses founded in the state are a local business.  Most people fall somewhere in between.  Purists, however, argue there is no such thing as a locally owned and operated business as most businesses require the services or products from outside of the region in order for the owners to conduct their business.

The answer to what defines a locally owned and operated business is further complicated by other factors.  Some would argue that a locally owned franchise should qualify as locally owned and operated.  Others would argue that a business, whose owner has moved out of state but still maintains the business locally, is locally owned and operated.

Now here is a trick question.  Is Delmarva Buildings a locally owned and operated business?  They have operations in MD, VA, NJ, and even an office in OH.  What about Goose Creek?  Their locations are concentrated on Delmarva, but they are home to Subway, which is not locally owned and operated.  Surely some investment group outside of Delmarva must own them.

In both cases, how The Original Shop Local Delmarva's defines locally owned and operated means both businesses fit the definition of locally owned and operated.  Delmarva Buildings is headquartered in Wyoming, DE and Goose Creek is a subsidiary of Cato Oil, headquartered in Salisbury, MD.  While personal information is private, there is enough readily available public information to reasonably believe the owners of the two different companies live on Delmarva at least part of the year.

So, yes, The Original Shop Local Delmarva considers both companies locally owned and operated.  

As for the Subways in the Goose Creek stores—they pay a lease or rental fee to the Cato Oil business owners to operate inside the store. A stand-alone Subway wouldn’t count as “locally owned and operated,” since the company is headquartered in Connecticut and franchise owners benefit from free, nationwide advertising—something our Mom-and-Pop shops can’t afford. But the Subways inside Goose Creek stores do pay a local leasing fee, which means they’re putting money into the local community (through Cato Oil), just like a bag of potato chips made and packaged outside Delmarva puts money into the community when someone buys it from the store.  

There are probably as many definitions to "locally owned and operated" as there are people who try to answer the question, how local is local.  Shop Local Delmarva considered all the ranges of thought on the subject, but discovered the definition came down to two key questions: what sort of business keeps most of its money circulating within the local community and what is the "local community"?

With those two questions in mind, Shop Local Delmarva first defined "local community" as all of Delmarva.  The reasoning was based on the fact that most of Delmarva is rural in nature and one couldn't expect to find everything they would need in their local town.  One may need to travel thirty miles or more to the next nearest town, but they could still support the local businesses there instead of relying on the national chains.  A strong Delmarva economy is more helpful for our small towns than the national economy, alone.  The thought is that studies have shown for every hundred dollars spent at Mom and Pops, sixty-eight dollars stays in the community to fund our schools and local projects compared to forty-eight dollars for a franchise or thirteen dollars for a national chain.

Ultimately, the definition of a locally owned and operated business is up to the individual to decide for themselves.  Whether one only considers shopping local in his/her immediate community or a larger geographical area, the important thing is shop local, Delmarva!  If everyone made a ten percent shift in their spending habits towards locally owned and operated businesses, your local economy would see huge benefits. 

Cuddles' notes:

Shop Local Delmarva excludes franchises and absent‑owner businesses because both send profits and decision‑making outside the community, limiting local economic benefit and identity.

Cuddles' notes:

The Original Shop Local Delmarva defines local as the geographic area south of the C&D Canal down to the mouth of the Chesapeake at the Bay Bridge Tunnel and bounded by the Susquehanna and Chesapeake Bay on the west side and the Atlantic on the east side.

Make the 10% shift

Here's the biggest obstacle for many to shopping locally: Why should I pay $1.09 for a widget at a locally owned and operated business when I can get the same or equal widget for $0.99 at a Big Box Store or off the Internet?

The shop local message is directed at two audiences: one with disposable income and one who budgets from paycheck to paycheck.

For those who have disposable income, the message of why one should shop local rings loud and clear and are, most likely, shopping local as much as they can.

For the majority of people who are living from paycheck to paycheck, budget is important and no matter how many stats one posts about the benefits of shopping local, the shoppers' bank account determines where they'll shop. Invariably, these consumers will opt for the widget that is ten cents cheaper.

Getting people to shop local or at least thinking about breaking their routine and visiting some locally owned and operated shops is a three-pronged effort being undertaken by The Original Shop Local Delmarva.

First, educate the average shopper on the benefits of shopping local. The benefits one would see in their community if everyone shopped local is a bit intangible to some yet immediately conceptualized by most, regardless of their budget.

Second, show the average consumer that not everything is "overpriced". Sure, one could save by buying some "necessities" at a big chain store, but there are plenty of locally owned and operated businesses that offer competitive pricing, and, yes, even cheaper pricing. Not only do they offer competitive pricing, but they also offer a variety of products, often locally produced or in a "niche market" that one would never find in a big box store.

Third, offer an opportunity to encourage the average shopper to shop local and discover what the big box stores don't offer. Big box stores want you, your family, your neighbors, and friends to have everything the same because mass-produced items can be sold cheaply. Your locally owned and operated businesses offer a variety the big box stores can't. 

Some studies suggest that a 10% shift in spending habits aimed towards our locally owned and operated businesses would result in $140 million in new local economic activity, create over 1,600 new jobs, and provide $50 million in new wages. No matter how tight one's budget is, making a 10% shift in spending habits is a doable goal for most people.

The Original Shop Local Delmarva plans to create a Shop Local Delmarva Day to help the average consumer learn more about why it is important to shop locally and to help achieve the 10% (or more) shift in spending habits. By designating one day a month as Shop Local Delmarva Day, the average consumer can decide the best way to support their local community by supporting their favorite locally owned and operated businesses.

Let's say a couple spends $1,500 per month in all the major areas of expenses such as food, clothing, household, home improvement (including yard and gardens), and entertainment. To meet the 10% goal, the couple could choose to spend $150 all on Shop Local Delmarva Day in several different locally owned stores or spread the spending out over the entire month (about $34 per week), depending on the couple's budget.

With the numbers broken down, the couple can easily make conscious 
buying decisions. Thirty-four dollars per week isn't a whole lot of money. They can decide to stop at a produce stand on their way home from work to buy fresh, local produce (food); buy a new pair of shoes and a new shirt or blouse at a local boutique during their lunch hour (clothing); stop at the local hardware store on their way home from work for odds and ends hardware (nails, hinges to fix a cabinet, or some paint or wood finish to bring new life to a piece of furniture or room) or stop at a local garden center for a bag of mulch, pest control products, or new fencing (home improvement); and stop at a locally owned restaurant, deli, or grocery market to pick up something to eat and drink instead of going through a  national chain's drive thru (entertainment).

With little changes like these, the couple would easily make the 10% shift in spending habits towards our locally owned and operated businesses. It may not sound like much, but if everyone made the tiny shift, the effort could be the difference between a community surviving and a community thriving.

Subscription Scrutiny

One of the most frequent questions I receive is why there are different levels of monthly subscriptions.  The question is usually framed in the context that the business owner does all the work listing their business, and then the listing just sits there.  Why should they pay for that?  Let's break the justification for subscriptions down into smaller pieces.

You own your business description

A new customer's first impression of your business will be made through your business description on the app.  Who better to write that description than you?

"But I'm terrible at writing," you might think.

So are professional writers.  Did you know when Stephen King wrote Carrie, he wrote about three pages of his idea for a novel and threw it in the trash?  Those three pages included the famous shower scene that led to Carrie being bullied by her classmates.  His wife dug those first three pages out of the trash, read them, and threw them on her husband's desk telling him he had something good there and needed to finish the story.  

You might be wondering why he didn't like it in the first place.  His primary thought was that he felt unqualified to write convincingly from a female perspective.  His wife promised him to help fill in the female perspective.  Two weeks later, with the help of his wife editing the female perspective, he finished Carrie.  The rest is history.

No one expects a business description to rise to the level of a best seller.  But King's story (verifiably true, by the way) teaches us two valuable lessons. 

• We all have a story in us.  The story of your business is yours, and yours alone.  Only you can tell it honestly.
  
  
• We aren't perfect at getting the story's tone and perspective right no matter how good of a writer you are.  It's ok to seek help where our writing might be weak.

Write your business description.  Let it sit for a couple of days.  Re-read it and you'll be surprised how many edits you'll make yourself. 

If you think it's still not good enough, get your spouse, kids, best friend, or even your neighbor to read it.  Their suggestions might help you see your description from different angles.

If you still are doubtful, hire a professional.  They've dealt with business descriptions and know what works and what doesn't work.  Be aware, though, they might be wrong, or at least not completely on target.  They don't know your voice or fully know the tone you want to set for your business.

If you're still in doubt after trying all of the above, there's always AI.  This advice comes with lots of

Click pic to enlarge

 warnings.  The first is you should understand that AI is a tool about as smart as a library.  Like a library, AI has all the information it needs to write a business description, but it lacks the human experiences and emotions to write one that will connect with other people.

Bottom line: trust in yourself.  Your customers value honesty and a real human face more than they trust a cookie cutter business description.

What about all those subscription levels?

Running an app like The Original Shop Local Delmarva comes with a development cost and a baseline monthly cost.  The development cost, at this point as is, has already been paid for.  The baseline monthly cost I had calculated as an expense I would be willing to pay for a while as I built and launched the app.

As the app grows, my baseline costs go up.  The more people who add themselves to the directory, the more my baseline rates go up once I surpass my maximum number of entries.  The more people who use Google maps to find businesses, the more my baseline costs go up.  The most expensive cost is the monthly maintenance fee to my developers, who ensure that any Google Play updates (which is, in itself, another baseline cost) are compatible with the app.  And I still have to get Apple to accept my app (hopefully at the beginning of next year), which will add to that baseline cost.

I'll be honest here.  If everyone decided to stick with the free subscription, I most likely would need to shut down The Original Shop Local Delmarva.  To cover all the current and potential costs, I had to come up with a subscription plan.

Ok, you're panhandling.  How much should I throw in your cup?

A million dollars would work.  But seriously, I'd rather build a new economic model that makes our local communities on Delmarva stronger and more financially independent by relying on our locally owned and operated businesses instead of relying on state, regional, and nationally owned businesses.  Ultimately, that is my ten-year goal for SLD, economic independence from outside retailers.

We're in Phase 1 of that development.  I built the starting tool, The Original Shop Local Delmarva app.  In this phase, I am trying to build a useful and viable app that gives shoppers and consumers the confidence that they are truly supporting Delmarva's locally owned and operated businesses.  That is the reason for my stringent requirements to ensure that only locally owned and operated businesses are listed.  If potential users of the app see franchises or national chains listed, the app has lost its integrity.

Phase 1 is the ground floor entry point for everyone.  Getting listed is free through the Shorebird subscription level.  Do it once and then renew it every month and you're done as I keep building the effort behind the scenes.  You have nothing to lose except a couple of clicks a month to renew, free.  (You can list your business here.)

During Phase 1, you might want to consider the Oriole level.  For twenty bucks a month, you get an extra hundred words in your business description plus a link to your website or social media account and a link to your online menu, if applicable.  You can always update from your free listing to an Oriole subscription at any time with a few clicks of your mouse.  

The Oriole level, available in monthly or annual rates, should cover SLD's monthly baseline costs plus allow SLD to grow and change to better fit your needs.  First up will be to change the monthly renewal requirement of free accounts to a biannual, or even annual, requirement.  The renewal requirement for free accounts is only to ensure there are no "dead end" businesses, that is, businesses that are no longer operating, and could lead users on a wild goose chase.

Past there, at this stage of development, the other subscription levels offer more, but not all aspects of what I envision to offer are available yet.  That means the Osprey and Heron levels might become valuable to you down the road (projected to be maybe 3-5 years from now) as SLD continues to grow.  Just like upgrading from free to Oriole is a matter of a few clicks, upgrading to the other levels is quick and easy.

What could possibly justify an Osprey or Heron level subscription?

In my 5–10-year plan for The Original Shop Local Delmarva, I see your business listing as your personal advertising platform where potential customers can discover their locally owned and operated businesses in a "one stop" virtual shopping tour.  I believe that in five years, we’ll see a shift in shopping habits: shoppers will regularly browse and buy online, then either pick up in-store or have items delivered. What’s now a convenience practice will become the standard way to shop.

Experts claim that after 2030, only five years from now, AI will see explosive growth we can't even begin to fathom.  Doubtful?  Look how far AI has come in three years.  That means, with AI, for the first time in history, Mom and Pop might be able to effectively compete with the national chains in visibility and service.

I want SLD to be your resource for the rapidly changing technology, economy, and consumer habits coming.  You can bet the big-name stores are already on top of it and have plans in place to succeed in the new, evolving economy.  Since AI will be available to everyone, not just the Big Boxers, I hope to put Mom and Pop on a level playing field with them through education and visibility.

The two higher subscriptions will offer access to any new AI tools for marketing development, a resource library to learn how to use the new tools, and participation in a "Delmarva Dollar Days" program that is still in its planning stage.  

Couldn't I wait until later to sign up when all these other things are in place?

Your participation now will bring the ten-year plan to fruition.  It costs nothing to get listed, but that first step builds a directory that others will find useful and start using.  The more people who download and use the app, the more valuable the Oriole subscription might become.  The more valuable the Oriole becomes, the faster SLD can grow and become a positive economic and political advocate for Mom and Pops on Delmarva.

There are no shop local programs on the regional scale that even comes close to the model I envision for SLD.  There are a few efforts that incorporate some ideas I hope to use, but there’s no blueprint for what I hope to build with your help. While plenty of ‘shop local’ campaigns have come and gone, few created real ownership, and none combined media, education, advocacy, and commerce across an entire region.  With your help, we’re not following a model; we’re becoming the model.

I hope Delmarva can meet or surpass all other shop local milestones by 2030.  By 2035, I hope Delmarva is the model for all other communities to follow.

I can't do it without you.  Please add your business to the directory today:

👉 https://businessowner.shoplocaldelmarva.org/login

Please feel free to share this newsletter with anyone and everyone. 

If you received this newsletter from a friend and like what you see, please sign up for future issues here:

👉 https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/1461570/152240065949467848/share

And, as always, shop local Delmarva!

Fixing the Leaky Bucket

When our business leaders, planners, and politicians look at ways to revitalize local towns and rural areas, the usual proposed solutions focus on ways to bring more money into the community.  Typical approaches to bringing in money involve promoting tourism, agriculture, corporate relocations and other forms of inward investments.  What is often overlooked is the important concept of money flow within the community.

Think of your local economy as a bucket.  Bringing in money to your community is like pouring water in the bucket.  The bucket is going to have some holes in it and some of the water will leak out.  Some of the holes can’t be fixed so you will always have a leaky bucket.  The state and federal government will collect taxes, for example.  That is a hole that can’t be fixed.  

Other holes can be fixed.  Residents who shop at a box store, for example, will shop locally if the locally owned store offers the same product or service at a competitive price.  A strong shop local movement and messaging encourages more local shopping.   Locally owned and operated businesses have more flexibility in offering locally grown produce or locally caught seafood products.  Locally owned businesses often fill a niche that chain stores often fail to fill.

The idea of the leaky bucket illustrates the importance of money flow through a community.  The longer the bucket holds water, the less frequently the community needs to refill the bucket.  All that money flowing in and through the community can be used to sponsor a little league team or build a new park instead of finding new ways to keep the tap flowing into the community.

Let’s put the illustration in simple dollars and cents.  Some studies suggest that for every dollar spent at a locally owned and operated business, sixty-eight cents stays in the community.  The same dollar spent at a nationally owned store sees thirteen cents staying in the community.  In the middle are our locally owned and operated franchises.  For every dollar spent with them, forty-eight cents remain in the community.

Now an important concept comes into play, a concept called the multiplier effect.  The sixty-eight cents from your dollar that stayed in your community is spent by that business owner or employee at another locally owned and operated business.  Forty-six cents remains in the local community.  If the person who received the forty-six cents continues the trend of spending locally, the money will pass through seven more hands—for a total of nine of your friends and neighbors—before the leaky bucket has taken it down to two cents.  

At the national box store, the employee, who received the thirteen cents in his pay, spends it at another nationally owned business.  Only two cents remain in the community.  In effect, the original dollar you spent at the national chain is gone after passing hands to only one of your neighbors or friends.

In the middle are the locally owned and operated franchises.  You spend a dollar there and forty-eight cents stay in the community.  The business owner spends that forty-eight cents at a locally owned or operated franchise and a quarter remains in the community.  Continuing the trend on down the line and that original forty-eight cents would pass through the hands of six of your neighbors or friends before it disappears from the community.  

In the real world, it isn’t always practical, and often not even possible, to spend your money exclusively at locally owned and operated businesses.  But you do have the power to slow the leaks.  Several independent studies have concluded that a 10% shift in our spending habits to support locally owned and operated businesses would create hundreds of new jobs and tens—if not hundreds—of millions of dollars in new economic activity.

You have the power to patch some of the leaks in your local economy's bucket.  Here are steps you can take to slow, and maybe stop, some of those leaks:

• Whether you're a business owner stocking your store, a contractor stocking your toolbox and truck, or a shopper who needs something different, think local first.  Even if you think local once a month, you've taken a big step in slowing the leaks in your community's bucket.
  
  
• Download The Original Shop Local Delmarva app.  Currently, the app is only available for Android devices, but Apple devices are coming soon.
  
  
• If you are a business owner, get listed in the app.  You don't need an Android device to list your business.  Once I get Apple approval, the app shares the same database as Google.  I'm hoping for approval from Apple around the start of the new year.
  
  
• Follow The Original Shop Local Delmarva on Facebook and Blogger.  Get the latest news and updates before they even hit Cuddles Clipbbord.
  
  
• Participate on the monthly Shop Local Delmarva Day.  Details to be announced on Facebook and Blogger.

Please stay tuned.  A lot is coming.  As always, feel free to let me know what you want.  Email or call me.  The Original Shop Local Delmarva app is your app.  Help design the app and shape the Shop Local Delmarva movement the way you want it.

Tips on getting listed in the app

It's not mispelled,  It looks like Old English to me.
Please remember Cuddles is doing his best.

When I first started planning the development of The Original Shop Local Delmarva app, I was faced with an initial, but crucial, decision.  How should I get locally owned and operated businesses listed?  Now that sounds like a very straightforward question, but the answer carries serious implications about what sort of website or company you are dealing with.

Let's take Yelp as an example.  Like most online business directories, Yelp scrapes the Internet for businesses, lists them, and then provides a link for the business to "claim" their listing.  Until the business finds out that they are listed on Yelp, they rack up reviews unbeknownst to the owners.  Any negative reviews go unanswered, which could cost the business new customers.  

If you search "Locally owned and operated businesses in [your town], [your state]", you might end up on the site www.chamberofcommerce.com.  It might look official to you, but it is not.  They, too, scrape the Internet for business listings without the owner's permission.  You are expected to know your listing is over there getting reviews, some of which might be negative.  Users might believe they are on an official Chamber of Commerce website, but they are not.

And then you have legitimate Chamber of Commerce websites that list local businesses, but their listings include every business that pays their dues to the Chamber.  Users have no clue which businesses are truly locally owned and operated as opposed to any business (franchise or nationally owned) with a physical presence in the town the Chamber is located.  My Chamber of Commerce, for example, listed a business headquartered in Texas.  I'm willing to bet a sizable portion of residents think of it as a locally owned and operated business, but it is not.

My developers gave me the option of scraping the Internet to load the SLD directory.  I rejected their suggestion.  My philosophy was, and still is, based on a simple idea.  Your business listing is yours and you should have complete control over where, when, and how it should be used.  

I didn't develop The Original Shop Local Delmarva to make money other than what is needed to run the app.  I set out to level the playing field for the Mom and Pops so that they can effectively compete against the franchises and national corporations.  (There is a caveat in what I just said about franchises, but I'll cover that in a future article.  If you are a franchise owner, please feel free to contact me.)  

I reckon with what I just said above, either I have much longer range of views for SLD (I do) or I'm getting tired of typing (I am).  But you, the business owner, and you, the user, share the SLD driver's seat.  I'm just the navigator.  Bots roaming the Internet best stay in the marked crosswalks.

With that said, please allow me to address some of the sign-up concerns I have heard and the workarounds you can use to get listed without feeling like you might be compromising your privacy concerns or feeling overwhelmed by the technical requirements.

• What's with this W9 requirement?
  
  The W9 helps me confirm that your business is both real and locally operated.  In reality, the W9 only lists your company (verifying you're not sixteen-year-old Sally selling hair ribbons out of her bedroom) and business address (your headquarters aren't outside of Delmarva).  In other words, your W9 doesn't share important information that might be a privacy invasion.  The W9 simply states the information that is already public information and is used regularly in business-to-business transactions.  It is one of a few tools I use to ensure the integrity of the directory.  The tools aren't perfect, but all are a matter of public information.  Some of those same tools are used by those scraping websites I mentioned.
  
  
• What if I simply don't want to send you my W9?
  
  Don't send it.  Contact me instead.  You can email me at support@shoplocaldelmarva.com or call me at 410-463-4196.  (If I don't answer, please text me.  Some day I might figure out how to set up my voicemail.) 
  
  It's not too hard to convince me you are locally owned and operated.  Once I'm convinced, I'll send you a properly formatted form to substitute in the W9 field. 
  
  Here's a thought for you.  You want to get listed, but how do you know I am a locally owned and operated directory?  You don't until you talk to me.
  
  
• What if I'm a home-based business and want to conceal some private information like a home phone number or address?
  
  The address and phone number fields are not cross referenced by the app.  You will want to make sure your town, state, and zip code are accurate to ensure your potential customers at least know the general area your business is located.  Your phone number can be real or masked.  If, for some reason, you don't want anyone to know your phone number, you can enter 555-555-5555 and you're good to go.  My developers, however, assure me that they followed proper protocols to protect your information from bots that roam the web looking for phone numbers and emails.  While an incomplete street address might go unnoticed, a masked phone number or email address may raise some eyebrows among your potential customers.
  
  
• Where is my information stored?
  
  Any information you share with SLD is stored in the cloud until you delete your listing.  The only people who have access to your information is my development team and me.  For example, if you submit your W9, it is stored in the cloud that only my developers have access to.  The app then emails me a copy so I can review it.  I review the copy and then delete it.  None of your information is shared or sold to anyone.
  
  Oh, and once my developers send me a contract completion form to sign (it's in the works), even they won't have access to the cloud and your information anymore.
  
  
• I'm busy and don't have the time to figure out the technical aspects of listing my business.  What do I do?
  
  Simply email me (support@shoplocaldelmarva.org) with a description of the problem you are having.  Together, we'll get you listed.  
  
  
  
  

I'm very big on privacy. When new technology hit the market in the form of the telephone, privacy rights were immediately raised.  In 1928, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Olmstead v. United States that wiretapping phone lines didn’t violate privacy rights because the lines were public property. Justice Louis Brandeis dissented, famously stating that the Constitution protects "the right to be let alone."  It took another almost forty years for the US Supreme Court to reverse that 1928 ruling.  During Nixon's presidency, the US Supreme Court ruled that a warrant is required to tap the phone lines.

While our Congress hasn't exactly caught up with the Digital Age, I strive to operate in the digital world under the strictest of privacy considerations that I think should be, not what is.  My guiding principle is you have a right to be left alone. My app relies on third party entities, and I try to make sure the third parties follow the same principle.

Don't you just hate it when you're enjoying a chicken neck and a net scrapes you up and throws you in a basket?  You won't find any of that tomfoolery going on around here.

Grow with The Original Shop Local Delmarva

Yes, I know he spelled it "Clipbbord", but Cuddles is doing his best.

Anything worth building takes a lot of careful planning and time.  Sure, I could throw some straw together and call it a house or some sticks and call it a mansion, but neither creation would stand for very long.  We all know it is the house of bricks that stands strong for just about anything that blows its way.

I started The Original Shop Local Delmarva (SLD) fifteen years ago.  I originally built it out of straw, namely on the Facebook platform.  While that Facebook page is still going strong today, it wasn't strong enough to support the shop local movement on its own.  So I built a website.

The website offered stronger support, until the hosting site upgraded its servers.  The website crashed and my efforts to fix it ensured it stayed crashed.  I followed the hosting company's instructions, but nothing worked.  I faced taking on two possible solutions: rebuild the site from scratch or build something new that would be stronger and more useful for supporting locally owned and operated businesses.  That something new was an app.   

Cuddles' Notes
You can find the app
in Google Play Store.
Apple version coming soon

I maintained (and still maintain) the Facebook page:


https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100057578195068  


Right now, my website is a simple landing page:


https://businessowner.shoplocaldelmarva.org/


The site is a page where you, the business owner, can list your business with the ability for you to update and add to it anytime you want. 

When you load your information, it is instantly uploaded to the SLD app.  There's no need for a shopper or tourist to visit a website and plan out their shopping trip ahead of time.  They can pull out their phone, click a few options, and find their locally owned and operated businesses near them...or up to fifty miles away, on the spot, no pre-planning required.

While I saved the money over the last ten years to get the app built, I also developed a three, five, and ten-year plan of how to grow the app and the shop local movement.  Like any business plan, it sets goals.

In the three-year plan, the goal is to get 500+ businesses listed and 1,000+ users per day.  The first three years are mostly building the foundation.  The whole Shop Local Delmarva movement can't happen without a solid base of participating businesses and users.

In the five-year plan, the goal is to develop your listing as your personal advertising platform.  That's where the subscription levels will become important.  By five years, I aim to have a skeletal advertising design in place with room to expand for the AI technology coming. 

We're beginning to see what the AI technology can do.  Its capabilities are predicted to take off like a rocket after about 2030.  Gone will be the days when big corporations were the only ones who could afford flashy advertising.  Mom and Pop will be able to create a catchy, two-minute video over their morning cup of coffee at little to no cost.

In the ten-year plan, the goal is to have 75% of the locally owned and operated businesses listed with usage levels rivaling, or even surpassing, other business directory sites like Yelp or Angies List.  I also have a lot to learn in the next ten years because I'd like to see The Original Shop Local Delmarva (that's all the locally owned and operated businesses and supporters) gain the political clout needed to cut the red tape in starting and running a small business, receive tax incentives on par with the national corporations, be eligible for health insurance benefits on par in cost and benefits as what the big box stores have, and even qualify for wholesale pricing that narrows the gap between Mom and Pop and the out-of-towners.  

Cuddles' Notes
You can list your
business regardless
of the phone you own

The Original Shop Local Delmarva’s plans and goals may sound like a tall order of lofty dreams, but none of it can come to fruition without your support. It all starts with listing your business.

Get listed today:  https://businessowner.shoplocaldelmarva.org/

The Original Shop Local Delmarva is growing!

Before we could build something, we needed a tool.  I built The Original Shop Local Delmarva app to be that tool. 

Now we’re building something together using that tool.  We're building a stronger local community and a louder voice for our locally owned and operated businesses.  But we needed another tool to tie the app, businesses, and people together. 

So, I built another tool.  Over in the right-hand column you'll see a newsletter sign up form.  With this tool you will be in the loop as The Original Shop Local Delmarva grows over the next ten years.  Yes, The Original Shop Local Delmarva has a five-year plan and a ten-year plan.  Its ultimate goal: build a model of a shop local movement that builds sustainable local economies and communities that local communities across the country will want to emulate.

Please sign up for the newsletter to stay in the loop.  Your email will not be sold or used by anyone other than The Original Shop Local Delmarva to deliver you our newsletter once a month or so.

The first issue will be coming out in about a week.  The first issue will explain how to list your business, where to find help, how to advertise with The Original Shop Local Delmarva, and will start sharing the long range dream The Original Shop Local Delmarva holds.  Don't miss it!  Sign up over there on the right today.

Shop Local Delmarva app goes live

 From Shop Local Delmarva Facebook page:

Sneak peek of the new Shop Local Delmarva app

Here's your first look at what to expect with the new Shop Local Delmarva app in pictures.  Please keep in mind the app you will see tomorrow is not the finished product.  It is the foundation for a project that will be in work for at least the next ten years.  Your feedback is important to shape how the app will grow and adapt to your needs.  What you will get tomorrow is Shop Local Delmarva 1.0.  You will shape its future versions as the Shop Local Delmarva community grows.  

Please note as you browse through the pictures, all businesses you see are fictional and were test businesses in developing the app.  They will not be listed in the live version being released tomorrow.

First up is the warm up page.  As the app downloads the directory, you'll see the place holder page with the new name, The Original Shop Local Delmarva.  Since I didn't hold onto my Shop Local Delmarva name and website from eleven years ago (that would've cost a lot of money), someone else now uses the name and .com website that goes with it.  I had to rebrand my business name (adding "The Original") and change the website, that will be coming sometime in the future, to .org instead of .com.  There is a .com website out there, but it is not affiliated with the app or the work I started fifteen years ago.

Once everything loads up, first time users will have the option to sign up as a user or business owner (vendor).  Users can create a personalized account or simply use the app as a guest.  Business owners, however, will be required to set up an account.  Don't worry.  It's free to sign up and maintain a business account.  Once you've set up an account (user or business owner), you won't see this page any more.  The app remembers who you are.

You will next be taken to the page that greets you every time you open the app after being set up.  The app will load the businesses within a five-mile range of where you are currently located.  You will need to have your location activated for this to be accurate.

The important feature on this page is the search field.  Of course you can search by business name, but the most helpful tool will be the three transit line menu in the right hand side of the search bar.  There are two sets of filters.  One sets the distance radius to search from zero to fifty miles out.  The other filter searches by category and subcategory of the business.

The miles slide bar is self explanatory.  If you want to search all businesses by miles only, you're done.  Click the "apply filter" button.

The category filter is also self explanatory.  You get to select one main category and then the subcategory becomes active.  The subcategory is tailored to each main category and so will be different for each main category.  You can select as many subcategories as you like.  Click the "Apply Filter" button and all businesses meeting your search requirements will be shown.

Please note you can use both filters at the same time.  For example, you can search for retail (main category) businesses in a 15-mile radius of your location that are nurseries/garden centers, roadside stands, or florists that offer loyalty programs or rare and exotic plants.

As a business owner, you will want to take advantage of the category and subcategories.  Category and subcategories are how most people will find you.  All business owners get to pick one category.  Paid subscriptions determine how many subcategories you can pick to describe your business.

When you select a business, you'll see the details of the business.  The one pictured below is the Heron level subscription.  It has the most features available.  Subscription levels range from Shorebird (free) through Oriole (a bit more options, yet affordable) to Osprey (even more options) to Heron (the most options).

Since the app is new, Shorebird and Oriole are the best options to select.  We need a sizable directory to attract users, so I wanted to make the subscriptions attractive and affordable.  The Osprey and Heron levels are competitively priced for the features they offer but not cost effective right now.  The nice thing, though, is as the app grows, business owners can change their subscriptions at any time.  If by summer, for example, we have 500 businesses in the directory and 10,000+ users, the business owner can easily change their subscription to the level with more features to attract more customers than a basic free Shorebird or Oriole level can attract.

If you click on "Profile" in the lower right hand corner, you'll see your personalized account (means you can add your picture), but more importantly, you can find all the important fine print.  

And there you have it, the buck ninety-nine tour of the Shop Local Delmarva app.

Right now the app is only available for android phones.  The iOS phone availability is coming at a later date.  As a business owner, though, you don't need an android phone to add your business to the directory.  Tomorrow I will be posting a landing page where all businesses owners can load their business information.  It's a lot easier to upload the information from a desktop or laptop than on the tiny screen of a phone.  Also, the link to the landing page will be accessible in the right hand column of this page.

Shop Local Delmarva Day this Saturday

The second Saturday of every month is Shop Local Delmarva Day.  If everyone were to shift their spending by 10% towards our locally owned and operated businesses, the local economy would see a boost to the tune of $350 million new revenue and fifty to one hundred new jobs created. 



Old habits die hard

<sigh> Old habits die hard.

Almost two months ago, I realized that supporting our locally owned and operated businesses can mean more than just stopping in a local business once in awhile. Every Saturday, I buy beer, and it's always Budweiser, in a bottle. I have a few decades-long brand loyalty to Bud. When I asked for suggestions to switch to a comparable locally produced beer, Lee Weldon, ...a strong supporter of this site and manager of Habitat ReStore, suggested National Premium, the favorite old beer that has gained new life through the efforts of the owner in Easton. (In fact, I had an interesting learning tour of the efforts of entreprenuers across the country bringing back the old brands of various products that had long since disappeared off our shelves.)

Long story short (too late, I know), National Premium is a bit more expensive than Bud, but I vowed to treat myself to a six-pack every once in awhile. After a long day at work (only a ten-hour day, today, no breaks or lunch), I stopped at my locally owned and operated liquor store and bought...Budweiser. Just habit. Tired from a long day, grabbed my beer, and headed home. Cursed myself out once again for not getting the National Premium after I had gotten almost halfway home.

Yes, old habits die hard, especially when one gets up in age. I refuse to accept that I am an old dog so I am getting me a six-pack of National Premium this week even if I have to walk the thirty miles uphill, both ways, to the nearest store in subzero temps and in a raging blizzard.

Top Ten Reasons to shop local for the holidays

10. Your only threat of being trampled is by the store owner's hound dog who may be a bit over-exuberent in greeting you.

9. Mrs. Baldwin might share her family secret recipe for that fruit cake of hers you've loved since you were a kid.

8. Mr. Baldwin might share his family secret recipe for homemade rum that goes in that fruit cake.

7. Catch up on all the news going on around town.

6. Discover that you are actually living an exciting life that's more fun-filled than Bond, James Bond's life, at least according to your neighbors and friends.

5. Don't know what to get for that person who has everything? Bet that shop around the corner has something that hard-to-shop-for person doesn't have and the national chains have never heard of it.

4. Which would you rather hear when you stop to grab a bite to eat: "You want fries with that?" or "Hey, honey, how have you been? I've heard you've been leading an exciting life lately. How are your kids?"

3. Find fresh preserves, jams, and relishes packed in real Mason Jars and send them off to your kids in the military or college. They'll think you slaved for hours in the kitchen making the special taste of home because you love them so much.

2. Sardines blindly follow each other and get packed tightly in a can. Striped bass blaze their own trail and never get packed in a can. Which do you want to be, a sardine or a striped bass?

And the number one reason to shop at your locally owned and operated businesses this holiday season:

1. Give a gift to your community. For evey $100 you spend at a locally owned and operated business, $68 remains in your community to support your friends and neighbors, sponsor a field trip for your local school club, provide after-school or summer activities through your local civic organizations, or upgrade a playground at your community park. The same $100 spent at a national chain leaves $13 in your community to achieve the same things.

Are you really shopping local?

Let's have a serious talk...even toot your own horn, if you like.

I just spent the last two hours looking at shop local videos on YouTube trying to learn what works and doesn't work. Of course, it's Saturday night and I have my Budweiser with me. Budweiser is the only beer I drink and have drank since my college days. I have sampled other beers as long as I can buy them one bottle at a time, but... when I buy to stock my fridge, Budweiser is all you will find.

Then I came across a video where a chef took to task the shop local message. His point was that consumers are driving the shop local message, but are local shop owners practicing what the consumers are preaching? Since he is a chef and owns a restaurant, he pointed out that in his restaurant he carries almost exclusively locally produced beers, wines, and spirits and he suggests them to his diners over the national brands, like Budweiser.

His comment got me thinking on three fronts.

First, as much as I push "buy local", I have been remiss on supporting our local breweries. I have a few decades of brand loyalty to Budweiser, yet I bet the folks at Budweiser couldn't find Delmarva, much less Toddville, on a map. Sure, when I first started drinking beer back in college, there was no such thing as locally produced beers, but now there is. Unless Budweiser gives back to Toddville by sending a couple of ice cold kegs via Clydesdale horses for a community crab feast every year for the next thirty years (my time investment in Budweiser so far), I need to find a comparable locally produced beer. At least I know if I spend my ten bucks every Saturday on a 12-pack of a locally produced beer, $6.80 will stay in my local community, adding to its strength and vitality it so desparately needs. That's a much better investment than the $1.30 that Budweiser leaves for my community. I do want to see those Clydesdales up close so, if Budweiser is listening, I'm willing to negotiate a year-to-year deal.

Second, if you own a restaurant or bar, how much of your inventory is locally produced beers, wines, and spirits and do you often suggest or actively advertise them, like with plenty of signage, verbal suggestions to every customers, or in printed ads?

Third, I figure I have a lot of "brand loyalty" to many basic household items, food, and drinks in addition to my brand loyalty to Budweiser. I need to take a closer look at what I am buying and try to find an acceptable, locally produced alternative. If you are a locally owned and operated business, will you join me in the quest to find locally produced alternatives your customers will love?

This is where you get to toot your own horn. If you are a locally owned and operated producer of goods, tell us. I know I need to find new brands. If you are a locally owned and operated business that sources its products locally, first, tell us. I need to know where to go to experience the true flavor of shopping local. And if you are a shopper who already knows where the great locally owned and operated businesses that offer locally produced goods are, tell us. That's a secret everyone should know!

Shop Local Delmarva encourages Dorchester to "keep it local"

Almost four years ago, I attended a Dorchester County Economic Development Plan meeting.  The meeting almost exclusively focused on a new technology park to be opened adjacent to the Bucktown Airport.  The park would hold technology focused businesses.   Much ado was made over a call center (telemarketers) opening up shop.  The park would bring in hundreds of new jobs and much needed revenue to the county.

Red flags began popping up in my head.  The park meant the loss of farmland and an influx of national companies.  National companies usually bring in their own management teams, who, in turn, usually hire people they know to fill key positions.  The end result is that few, if any, of the better paying positions would go to local residents.  The influx of "hundreds of jobs" easily translates to "hundreds of at or near minimum wage jobs".  The influx of new people from outside of Dorchester County also meant that new houses would need to be built, which means more woods and farmlands would be lost.

On a more personal, albeit less significant, note, construction of the park meant the destruction of the colorful wild hibiscus that lined both sides of Bucktown Road every summer.  Every summer I looked forward to the line of whites to red and every shade in between.  Every fall I looked forward to collecting some seeds to get the wild hibiscus to grow down here where I live.  Progress meant the annual natural beauty would be lost forever.

Construction began on the park.  The old farmhouse in the field was demolished, a paved entrance way built, and a stop sign at the end of the entrance erected, but then construction stopped about three years ago.  The colorful hibiscus are gone except for one small stretch on the opposite side of the road from the unfinished technology park.  Last week, I collected my seeds from the survivors.  With a planned ribbon cutting ceremony for the park next spring, these last few hibiscus probably grew for their last year. 

Progress can be a good thing and colorful flowers can always be replanted once a project is done.  The Dorchester County Regional Technology Park is off to a good start and appears to be headed in the right direction.  Construction of the park is being done by a locally owned and operated construction company, Willow Construction, headquartered in Easton.  Willow Construction plans on hiring local contractors to build the park. 

Hiring a local construction firm is an important step and a good sign the Dorchester County Economic Development Department's director, Keasha Haythe and her team, are "thinking local".  The task of selling the fifteen available lots, however, was given to a national firm, Cassidy Turley, headquartered in DC.  Their job is to lease the fifteen available spaces to technological start up companies.  Only time will tell how concerned Cassidy Turley is with the "think local first" philosophy when leasing the available fifteen lots.

Dorchester County has the second highest unemployment rate in the state at 10% as of July of this year.  In fact, only Dorchester and Somerset counties have double-digit unemployment rates in the entire state.  (Baltimore city, separated from Baltimore County, has the actual highest unemployment rate.)  Any development project that brings jobs should be welcomed, but the quality of those jobs should be questioned by every resident.  The price of bringing those jobs is lost farmland and woods, natural resources we won't get back, and a loss that could potentially change the very identity of Dorchester County over time.  Every member of the Dorchester County Economic Development Department, every political leader, every business leader, and every citizen of Dorchester County has a vested interest in bringing quality economic development and jobs to Dorchester, development and jobs that will enhance residents' standard of living while preserving the county's unique, rural identity.

The Dorchester County Regional Technology Park is being constructed under the One Maryland Tax Credit statute.  The idea of the statute is to encourage economic development in designated stressed areas through tax incentives.  As written, One Maryland strives to improve the living standards of residents living in depressed areas by increasing the tax base of the county and providing jobs for the residents.  The language of the statute, though, allows companies to skirt the intent of the program.

While any start up technology business looking to open its doors in Dorchester County is required to offer a minimum of twenty-five "qualified positions" (jobs), the only stipulation is that each qualified position opened nets one new job in Maryland.  What that means is a company in Delaware could relocate to Dorchester County, bring all twenty-five of its employees with them, and qualify for the tax credits.  What this means: for the state of Maryland, a gain of twenty-five new jobs; for Dorchester County, an increased tax base; for residents of Dorchester County, nothing - they are still unemployed.

It also means that a start up company in Anne Arundel County can open a branch in Dorchester County, bring as many employees as they want with them, hire replacements for the vacated positions in Anne Arundel County, and fill the remaining open positions in Dorchester County with local residents, or with anyone willing to commute to Dorchester County, and the company still meets the definition of creating one net new job for Maryland for each position filled.  What that means is the company receives its tax credit, Maryland receives a net increase in jobs, Dorchester County increases its tax base, and residents are left either unemployed or with a job opportunity starting at $10.87 per hour, the poverty level defined by the government for a family of four.

Shop Local Delmarva encourages the Dorchester County Economic Development Department and local politicians to insist the realty company seeks tenants for the fifteen available lots with Dorchester County start up companies.  The search can then expand to regional start up companies, starting with the mid-shore counties and then expanding to all of Delmarva.  If there are still lots available, the search for tenants can expand to the Western Shore of Maryland, and, if need be, to other states.

Once the search for tenants expands beyond Dorchester County, preference should be given to those companies that vow to hire more local residents than employees the company bring with them.  The One Maryland program is intended to help the residents of depressed areas so it logically follows that companies most willing to hire local residents should be given preference to open its doors in the new technology park.

When I first discussed this concept with Ms. Haythe, Director of Dorchester County Economic Development Department, about four years ago, she expressed concern that such tenancy selection procedures could be construed as discriminatory.  Shop Local Delmarva, as well as every resident of Dorchester County, needs to ask, "If the intent of a statute is to improve the economic conditions of a depressed area, how can setting guidelines (not rules or laws) to fulfill the intent of the statute be viewed as discriminatory?"  The answer, of course, is the statute, itself, is discriminatory if the depressed area has no leeway to set guidelines in an attempt to fulfill the intent of the statute.

With such an important project slated to open within the next year, possibly as early as this spring, Shop Local Delmarva encourages every resident of Dorchester County and friends of Dorchester County to contact the Dorchester County Commissioners, the Dorchester County Economic Development Department, the county manager, and the realty company, Cassidy-Turley, with their concerns to fill the technology park with local start up companies, first, and then regional companies, second,  and then outside companies willing to hire local residents, for all, or most, positions, third.

Please call and/or email the following contacts with your concerns that the technology park opens with the best interests of Dorchester County-owned businesses and Dorchester County residents' interests as the cornerstone to a successful development.

Dorchester County Economic Department:
Keasha Haythe, Director
410-228-0155
email (online): http://choosedorchester.org/contact/


County Commisioners:
Jay L. Newcomb (D)
410-397-2134
email: jaynewcomb@docogonet.com

Tom Bradshaw (R)
410-943-1212
email: tbradshaw@docogonet.com

William V. Nichols (D)
410-221-1371
email: wnichols@docogonet.com
Rick Price (R)
443-521-5518
email: rprice@docogonet.com 

Ricky Travers (D)
410-228-1532
email: travers@fastol.com

County Manager:

Jane Baynard410-228-1700
email: jbaynard@docogonet.com


Cassidy Turley (realtor for the 15 available lots):
Joseph Stettinius
202-463-1367
email: Joe.Stettinius@cassidyturley.com

Is Phillips Restaurant and Seafood a locally owned and operated business?

Residents around OC as well as visitors to the beach are probably familiar with Phillips Restaurant and Seafood. The company has a long history here on the Shore.  Augustus E. Phillips opened a packing plant on Hooper's Island in Dorchester County in 1916. Forty years later, son Brice and his wife, Shirley, moved to OC and opened a crab shack to sell excess crabs from the Hooper's Island processing plant. The restaurant has since grown into a worldwide company with processing plants in Latin America and Southeast Asia to ensure a year-round supply of seafood to its restaurants concentrated in the Mid-Atlantic area, including the original restaurant we're all familiar with in OC.

A visit to Phillips' website shows the corporate headquarters for the restaurants is located in Baltimore. On their website, their "about us" section leaves the impression that they are still a "Mom and Pop" type store here on the Shore.

The restaurant in OC is not "true blue" certified. (True blue certified means that a restaurant serves crab products that are at least 75% Maryland blue crab.) Their commercial on TV, today, claims they serve "Maryland crabs", but we can see from their worldwide operations that the crabs they get most likely are coming from Southeast Asia.

By Shop Local Delmarva's definition of "locally owned and operated", Phillips Restaurant and Seafood, despite being founded as a locally owned and operated business, would not be considered a local business any more. The reason is the headquarters are in Baltimore, the owners' primary residence cannot be determined (at least 50% of the owners must live in the county where the business is located), and after extensive research, it appears Phillips Foods, Inc (the parent company of the restaurant in OC) all but abandoned support of the local communities (OC and Hooper's Island) where the company's roots are.

I really value the opinions of the fans of this page and Shop Local Delmarva. What do you think - locally owned or not?  A collection of articles about the company as published in The Baltimore Sun may help you decide. Wikipedia has a brief history of the company as well. And of course, you can always visit their website.

Are Maryland blue crabs really from Maryland?

Are Maryland Blue Crabs really from Maryland? Probably not, even when in season. The demand is far greater than what the Bay can produce. As a result, up to 95%, depending on the productivity of the Bay in any given year, of "fresh steamed, Maryland Blue Crabs" you get at a restaurant are shipped to local seafood houses from North Carolina and the Gulf states like Louisiana and Alabama. The seafood houses, in turn, sells them (along with the harvest our watermen do get) as Maryland Blue Crabs.

In fact, when the NC harvest of blue crabs is good (NC has lax restrictions compared to MD), our local watermen suffer. Last year, for example, our local watermen fetched $65/bushel. NC had a bumper harvest and the price per bushel was driven down, even though the average consumer still shelled out around $200/bushel.

This year, the NC crab harvest isn't so good so our watermen are getting $100/bushel. The average consumer can still expect to pay around $200/bushel.

If you're wondering why the retail price per bushel is about the same as last year, but the watermen are getting 17.5% more per bushel, it's because the seafood houses (many are locally owned) need to meet the consumer demand, but they can't "import" the cheaper NC crabs and pass them off as "Maryland blue crabs", so they have to pay our local watermen higher prices for what they catch.

Yes, it's our seafood industry's dirty little secret. As long as the crab passes through our seafood houses, it's a Maryland blue crab even if the crab was caught in NC.

Can you tell I am researching where our crabs really come from? I am surprised to learn two things:

1. There are no laws dictating that to be called "Maryland blue crab", the crab needs to have been harvested from the Chesapeake and it's tributaries.

2. Our own, locally owned and operated seafood houses willingly buy the cheaper NC or Gulf states' blue crabs, pass them off as "Maryland blue crabs" and our local watermen are forced to accept the lower prices per bushel. Especially during lean years, that lower prices can mean the difference between eking out a living wage for the day or spending more money to take the boat out than what they can earn in their catch.

When it comes to our "Maryland crab cakes", the fraud is even more severe. You may be buying a "Maryland crab cake" at your favorite locally owned and operated restaurant thinking you are supporting our local watermen, but there's a good chance you're supporting an Indonesian or Venezuelan waterman.

I don't know what happened to the "True Blue" labeling effort, but, as consumers, we should start asking our restaurants to sign up for it.

The next stage?

Possible good news in the next stage of development for Shop Local Delmarva.

The Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation founded a program a few years back by retired U.S. Army Master Sergeant Joe Giordano called Project Opportunity. The program selects eligible veterans from the nine counties of the Eastern Shore for a 10-week, crash course in researching, developing, and eventually creating their own business. The program has been so successful at helping veterans launch their own business, it has expanded to include southern Maryland on the Western Shore up through Annapolis. At orientation tonight, the expansion has gone even further to include Columbia and Glen Burnie.

Shop Local Delmarva, namely, I, have an upcoming, hour-long telephone interview to further determine Shop Local Delmarva's acceptance into the program. The two-and-a-half hour long introduction course tonight went well, but the upcoming phone interview will be a milestone. If accepted into the program, I will be able to formulate a business plan and, after ten weeks, possibly pitch the plan to potential partners or investors to take Shop Local Delmarva to the next stage of development.

A key reminder to current members of Shop Local Delmarva and to locally owned and operated businesses considering listing with Shop Local Delmarva: your basic listing is and always will be free. That is one key point that any business plan developed between now and November will include.

Sadly ironic....

Sadly ironic, but, yes, the story drives home the importance of shopping locally. After 22 years, Zia's closed, the owners citing competition with the big chains forced the decisions. Cracker Barrel, a national chain restaurant, plans on opening at Zia's old location. This is what happens when local people choose not to support their locally owned and operated businesses. The uniquely local businesses close their doors, and Your Town, Your Community becomes Any Town, USA.