WAVE 3 TV Louisville, KY | As holidays approach, businesses hope shoppers think local

As holidays approach, businesses hope shoppers think local

By Carrie Weil - bio | email

LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) - If you haven't started your holiday shopping yet, you've probably at least thought about it. And as you're making your list, some Louisville businesses hope you'll think of them first.

Members of the Louisville Independent Business Alliance (LIBA) gathered Tuesday morning to announce a holiday contest to inspire you to "buy local first." It starts by picking up a "passport" or booklet listing the 250 business members located in Louisville.

"I think by people seeing this - it creates an image of like, wow there really are a lot of places that are number one: really cool and give the city its character, but number two: it shows that we matter in way," said LIBA member Todd Brashear with Wild and Woolley Video.

Once you know where to shop, collect receipts from 10 different stores. You can then enter to win $1,000 worth of gift certificates to the stores of your choosing. You have until January 5, 2010 to complete your shopping.

The campaign is all about keeping the doors open to local stores and local people in those jobs.

"We hear about Black Friday and about how stores are going to be open all night at the malls and the big box stores, but we don't quite anticipate that traffic here," said John Timmons with ear X-tacy. "But we're very hopeful this year is going to be a comeback for the local economy. And thinking about where you spend your dollar really does go a long way."

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