Some of you have likely started your Christmas shopping by now. Since there are only 29 days till Christmas, that’s a good thing. Hopefully, you have been able to purchase products and services from the many local merchants in the area. That effort truly does make a difference.
I am amazed at the sincere appreciation I feel each time I buy something from a local business. The reply is not just a robotic thank you, but rather a heartfelt gratefulness for choosing to spend my dollars locally rather than with an online global chain that connects with me only by my credit card number and the thousands of personal data points they steal from me.
With our company being a locally owned business, we also sincerely appreciate when businesses choose to market with us. It helps us invest in our staff, our facilities, our publications and our communities. We know that local businesses have all kinds of advertising options today, and that the Big Tech companies seem to be continually pitching something bright and shiny and new to sell them. So with that in mind, I want to say thank you to the local business owners and managers who choose to market their goods and services to each of you through our growing family of publications.
Loyalty is said to be a thing of the past, but that’s not what we see. We see people who look out for each other, support each other, and buy from each other during good times and bad — and encourage others to do the same. We see smart people who aren’t distracted by the fly-by-night offers but instead show their support for those who have proven to help them get to where they are. And we see business owners and managers who appreciate their customers and their vendors alike, and they don’t hesitate to show it. That’s appreciation. That’s community. That’s loyalty.
None of us are perfect, and we can all improve, but I want to thank those in the local business community for being here to serve all of us. We appreciate you. And for those of you who are in the holiday shopping mode, our local merchants would be glad to help you out.
Have a terrific Tuesday, and thanks for reading.
Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707