Let’s shop local this Christmas | #ShopPeel

Jobs are becoming harder and harder to come by, investment is winding back and there is a noticeable drop in the kinds of disposable income available to support local business.

Times are getting tougher for everyone.

This is why businesses in Mandurah and across the Peel region need our help this Christmas.

They don’t need our charity, they don’t need our kind thoughts, they need us to think twice about buying our Christmas gifts online.

Then they need us to head out to one of the wonderful shops we have around our region and buy that special something from a local business.

Christmas is a time we should stick together and support each other and this includes our local businesses.

Different regions around Australia and the world tackle the idea of buying local in many different ways.

Some places beg their residents, tourists and visitors to spend as much as they can locally.

One of the most innovative solutions was developed by Berkshire County in Massachusetts, a small region with about 400 businesses.

In 2006 they launched their own currency, which they called BerkShares.

BerkShares look like real money and are pegged to the real currency of the United States, but are accepted in all the businesses in the county and sold to residents for a discount.

The program “seeks to increase public awareness of the importance of local economies and to foster optimism for the prospect of gaining local economic self-sufficiency”.

This means locals are encouraged to shop locally and tourists walk away with a fascinating souvenir.

It’s hard to say if a scheme like this could work in Mandurah and the Peel region.

For now, let’s stick to spreading the Christmas cheer to one of the many local stores we can find.

Let’s show the rest of the state how we can look after each other this Christmas.

By shopping local this Christmas we will all benefit, as individuals and as a community.

Follow Nathan Hondros on Facebook.