Interview: Ingrid Ault Talks About Why You Should “Think Local First”
1. Talk a little about Think Local First and how the organization has grown since its inception.
In 2003 our founder Lisa Dugdale gathered the original 25 businesses that started Think Local First of Washtenaw County. In the past ten years we have grown our membership to over 250 businesses. We are part of a network of other local firsts around the United States and Canada that are supported by two national organizations called American Independent Business Alliance (http://www.amiba.net/) and the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (http://bealocalist.org/). As networks we meet to discuss and develop best practices to share with other networks. It is advantageous to be a part of these two organizations to bounce ideas off one another, as it is essential to remember that each community is unique and what works in one may not work in the other. These alliances are invaluable to the work that we do.
2. TLF is currently in the middle of a campaign to remind Ann Arbor shoppers to support local businesses this holiday season. Do you think the changing mix of downtown (more restaurants, fewer retail outlets) has impacted the viability of small, local businesses?
In the last 30 years there has been a shift in downtown Ann Arbor retail from inhabiting 30 percent of the commercial space to 14 percent. At the same time restaurants, cafes, and taverns have moved from 7 percent to 13 percent. I believe this is attributable to the flight of customers leaving the downtown and shopping at Briarwood Mall. What we are now seeing is a resurgence in interest and in understanding that it is the local independently owned businesses that make our community a great place to live, work, and play. Patrons choose to spend their dollars in the downtown because it is unique, they have relationships with shop owners, and they value the contributions that they make to our community. Fortunately we have landlords that value these contributions and work to keep a balance of all kinds of businesses in our downtown by being selective in who they rent too. However, it is becoming more and more difficult for retail as the rent is pricing them out of their spaces. Many of the retailers that are in business, remain in business because they invested in their business by purchasing their building. Thankfully there are those that value our retail businesses and support them by patronizing them and landlords that understand balance is essential to a healthy and vibrant downtown.
3. You’ve spoken about the great success of the local food movement. Why are people so excited about local food, but not as excited about local retail? Price point comes immediately to mind, but local food is often more expensive than non-local food, so people are willing to pay more for locally “grown” products, right?
The food movement is an obvious first step for the local movement because we all have to eat. There has been an increase of over 100% in farmers markets in the United Sates in the last 10 years. As the population has learned more about the harmful affects of processed and fast food, there has been a shift to eating locally produced foods. Not only do you have the opportunity to understand who is growing or producing your food, you are also eating fresher, more nutritional food with a smaller carbon footprint. And here is the best part; most of the time it does not cost more. In fact according to a study by Zenith Management Consulting 80% of the time local does not cost more. Big business has just done a great job marketing to the public that it does and that the low price is always the best price. Our job is to help the consumer understand the true costs associated with the “low price”. Examples would be poorer quality goods, cheap labor in third world countries, and high transportation costs in the form of fossil fuels. We believe our community is a local living economy and we need to be good stewards of our resources and care and nurture it.
4. TLF’s membership is flat, and you’ve attributed this to the tough times facing small, local businesses. What are you doing to get membership growth on an upward trend?
Over the next year Think Local First is crafting a strategic plan that will add value to our membership beyond the local message. We recognize that there are many directions that we can take and we are exploring the best partnerships to compliment our mission and vision. One example is the work that we have been doing with the Washtenaw County Office of Community and Economic Development regarding implementation of a local procurement policy over the past year. The Washtenaw County Commissioners are discussing this topic early next year that we are hopeful will put local businesses at the top of the list when contracts are being awarded. It only makes good economic sense to return the tax dollars that are collected by the county to the businesses that paid them in the first place. We are excited that this conversation is happening!
5. Has the real estate development downtown (the addition of more student high rises and condos) impacted small, local businesses positively, negatively or not very much at all in terms of their bottom lines and profitability?
This is a good question that I can only surmise as to the answer, as it is still a little early to understand the impact. We do see more traffic on the streets and clearly restaurants are seeing an increase, as this is a market that has grown over the last couple of years. We know that this generation spends more on dining out than past generations have and they prefer to walk than drive (many don’t own cars.)
We also know that chains have been moving into the State Street Area and doing well. This provides Think Local First with an opportunity to make outreach and present reasons why young people might want to seek out local independently owned businesses. We have seen and hear young people who report they are so pleased to have found the unique and interesting businesses that are in their “back yard”. They understand the value that they bring to the town that they are calling home.
6. What kind of local, small business retail does downtown Ann Arbor need that it doesn’t have already?
The market has been telling us the answer to this question by the new businesses that are opening up in downtown. Independent bookstores have been on the upswing for the past five years. There has also been a shift to local clothing boutiques as several have opened in the past year.
What people are discovering is good service and quality goods do have a value. They are learning that businesses that have a passion for what they do are eager to share their expertise. These businesses want to build a relationship with their customers and to do that they strive to provide a good experience. This takes many forms all of which we highlight in our “Seven Reasons To Think Local First.” (http://www.thinklocalfirst.net/resources/sevenreasons )
7. TLF is a typical small business, in terms of its revenue and expenses, what’s your vision for the organization in, say, five years? Will you still be leading TLF?
In five years we plan to have established partnerships with local government that will build upon the local living economy concept. We are in the exploratory phase at the moment, but expect there will be several collaborations to enhance the livability in Washtenaw County. We are more than the Buy Local part of our campaign and I expect there will be new programs announced that will move into the sustainability component of our work shortly.
As for my tenure, I am one person in this organization. There is a board of directors that work behind the scenes and I serve at their will. As long as they are pleased with my work, I plan to continue serving as our “local lady.”