"Most of our target market think that 'green' means your business is providing lower quality at a higher price," panelist Carmelo Turillo (far left) explained to the Small Business Sustainability Summit audience on Saturday, February 29.  The panel discussion was part of a 3-day dialogue between business owners, financial and technical resource providers, academics and others on best emerging strategies to achieve economic sustainability citywide.  

 

Carmelo, who with wife Katrina owns La Divina Gelateria on Magazine Street,  advised business owners that are implementing renewable resources and other green practices to be prepared to educate everyone from contractors to city inspectors to consumers on the value and rationale of such a business model. 

 

La Divina's marketing strategy is to sell customers on the quality of the product first, and then let them know that "by the way, that 'plastic' bowl is in fact corn-based and 100% biodegradable.  With all the green-washing going on, you have to first convince people of the quality of the product."  One major benefit of going green?  "We have no shortage of committed employees who are excited to work for a business such as ours that shares their eco-conscious values," says Carmelo.

 

Other panelists (from left to right) discussing Sustainable Growth Strategies in the new New Orleans included Nathan Rothstein, executive director and co-founder of NOLA YURP (Young Urban Rebuilding Professionals), Myla Reese of Seedco Financial Services, and Dar Wolnik of Market Umbrella.  

 

In addition to the panel, the summit also included Donna Childs, principal of Wall Street investment firm Childs Capital, LLC who spoke about continuity planning, and "neighborhood check-ups" in Gentilly, on St. Claude at St. Roch, and on Freret Street to learn about innovative and  important work under way at the neighborhood level by business and non-profit interests.

 

Issues, ideas, and needs brought forward at the summit include: 1) small business training and certification in continuity planning to reduce risk of loss and in turn reduce insurance premiums; 2) regular neighborhood check-ups along key commercial corridors throughout Greater New Orleans; 3) identifying "green" businesses on staylocal.org to make them easier for consumers to find; 4) developing a "green toolkit" including marketing assistance, a trained workforce, and other resources for business owners.

 

Stay Local! partnered with Seedco Financial, the National Association of Women Business Owners, Desire NOLA, American Red Cross, and the Louisiana Small Business Development Center (Greater New Orleans Region) to convene the summit.  Sponsors included Capital One, Latter & Blum, Entergy, and Louisiana Economic Development.

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Do You Know What You've Done?!

 

Business owners:  let your customers know that they've just made a difference by shopping locally. 

 

Stay Local! has created attractive shopping bag inserts for any retailer looking for an easy way to reinforce customer loyalty and express gratitude for their patronage at the same time.  We've left room at the top for you to customize with your business info.

 

To request inserts, contact Dana at dana@staylocal.org or 232-7821. 

 

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Tonight!  Bill McKibben Speaks at Garden District Book Shop 

 

Please join co-sponsors Stay Local! and Garden District Book Shop for an illuminating evening as Mr. McKibben signs and discusses his best-selling book, Deep Economy:  The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future on Wednesday, March 12, from 5:30- 7:30 pm,  2727 Prytania St.  See map.

 

In his book, author Bill McKibben posits that it is not only futile to pursue a course of infinite economic expansion in a world of finite resources, but also dangerous.  McKibben argues for the need to re-evaluate long-held notions of how economies function, and what we mean when we talk about "economics" and "progress."

 

In this brave new world, progress will mean a shift to economies that are more local in scale, and will look a lot like the Harrison Avenue Marketplace on the third Wednesday of every month, or the Freret Market on the first Saturday, or Magazine Street any day of the week.  A robust local economy, argues McKibben, means a healthier, happier, more connected community. 

 

Read more about McKibben's visit to New Orleans this week by Times-Picayune book editor Susan Larson.

 

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Check out our 2007 Progress Report, the latest news on local businesses, our events listings, and more! 

This newsletter was sent to you for at least one of the following reasons:  you have registered a qualifying locally-owned and operated business within Greater New Orleans to be listed on Stay Local!'s website; you are a business advocate that provides financial, technical or other assistance to locally-owned businesses in the Greater New Orleans area; or you are an individual who understands that shopping at independent businesses first and whenever possible supports a more sustainable economy and environment, and strengthens New Orleans' one-of-a-kind culture. 

 

 Stay Local! is an initiative of The Urban Conservancy.

 

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