There are many, many benefits to buying locally, especially during the holiday season, and Virginia has no shortage of small businesses from which it would be advantageous to make your purchases. Many of the art-related establishments such as 16 Hands in Floyd, VA, Sunspots Studios in Staunton, VA, and Glenfiddich Farm Pottery in Leesburg, VA even feature local artisans who display and sell their beautiful pieces of artwork.
It would take an abundance of time and energy to research every single small business in Virginia, not to mention that it would be a very long, increasingly dull blog entry. Thus, I would encourage you to do a google search for downtown shopping in Virginia, and I guarantee that you will find a vast amount of small, eclectic shops that will fulfill all of your gift-giving needs.
If you have read any of the BBAV’s previous blog entries, you know that I, your humble blogger, love a good list. Therefore, enjoy yet another list, this one presenting you with a few reasons as to why you should shop and buy locally:
1. Obviously, by buying locally, you are supporting your local economy which is an indirect benefit to yourself because of the re-circulation of money and all that jazz. See? It’s good for you!
2. Small, local businesses provide a wide range of unique holiday gifts. From jewelry to artwork to random trinkets, downtown shops offer any type of item that you can think of, and gifting someone with something unique is sure to make you the most celebrated gift-giver of them all.
3. You avoid the crabby crowds that infest big retail stores during this time of year. I mean, really, who wants their toes run over by cart-pushing grinches and line-cutting scrooges?
You know what? Those three reasons pretty much sum it all up, so Merry Christmas and Happy Shopping!
Photo by Patrick Neil
