Maximize Leverage from Your Stimulus

LocalOfferings.jpgIn yesterday’s StarTribune (4/6/08), there was an interesting opinion piece. “Have dollars-will spend locally”, by Christy DeSmith, discussed her plans for spending her stimulus check.

Christy is a freelance writer and, from her description, it sounds like she’s generally pretty careful with her money. It’s also clear that she’s quite thoughtful about how she spends her limited resources.

She’s going to spend her anticipated money in an effort to maximize the local stimulus. Specifically, she is going to try to direct as much of that stimulus check as possible to the state’s economy “by shopping local, family-owned businesses for Minnesota-made goods”.

Christy is one of those creative professionals, she earns her bread by writing, and it appears that she hangs out with other creative types. Her “local-only bender” begins with an “extravagant dinner” at a local restaurant and then she heads to a play performed by local actors and, “most important, written by one of the Twin Cities wealth of fine playwrights”. Finally, she ends up at one of the locally-owned boutiques that carries Minnesota-designed products.

I think she’s on to something. If we follow her advice and spend our stimulus checks locally, it might really have a meaningful positive impact. We can dine at one of our locally-owned restaurants, swing into a shop that carries Minnesota-made products (pictured is the Arts Guild’s Felicia Peters gesturing to her shop’s wide-range of local artists’ offerings), and then check out some of the hometown talent on one of the many local stages. It would be a hot time for you and a heat-up for the local economy.

I really enjoyed her closing lines: “For the first time in a long while, I’ll shop without guilt. Buyer’s remorse? Try hometown pride.”

Yeah, let’s try some hometown pride.

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