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Keeping the Mocha Local
"It's kind of like a neighborhood bar without the booze." --Fair Grinds patron John
Russell
When Starbucks bid on retail space for lease on Jackson Square in May, Stay Local! added its voice to those of
hundreds of others urging the owner of the property, the Louisiana State Museum, to consider the long-term cultural and economic benefits of leasing space at the historically significant
site to a local business instead. At the same time, Stay Local! asked Seattle-based Starbucks to consider withdrawing its bid for the lease in
a
letter to the editor in The
Times-Picayune. Last week, Starbucks did just that.
New Orleanians do not distinguish their love of coffee from their affection for their local
coffeehouses, public spaces that reflect the unique personality of the neighborhoods they serve. Take Fair Grinds Coffeehouse, for example. Fair Grinds
was so committed to its community that for months after Katrina it opened its water-logged doors and doled out free coffee to FEMA workers, Red Cross
volunteers,
first responders and residents as owners Robert and Elizabeth Thompson slogged through the building's renovation. In June, Fair Grinds
officially re-opened as a fully-operational
for-profit coffeehouse, and continues to be a respite from the rigors of recovery and a hub of community
organizing and information
sharing.
In huge swathes of this country, a formula chain coffeehouse experience is the best you can hope
for. It's safe, predictable, and sterile. And let's face it, the coffee ain't all that. Fortunately, in New Orleans you still get
that "local flava" with every cuppa joe you buy. At no extra charge.
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Wal-Mart, Home Depot, and Lowe's, Oh My!
Stay Local! says they're bad
for local culture. Recovery chief Ed Blakely says
they're bad for the local economy. And now the Gulf Restoration
Network, a network of environmental, social justice, and citizens' groups and individuals
committed to restoring the Gulf of Mexico to an ecologically and biologically sustainable condition, says Lowe's, Home Depot and Wal-Mart are really,
really bad for the local
environment.
Cypress swamps are clear-cut and entire trees are ground up to make cypress garden mulch. Wal-Mart, Home
Depot, and Lowe's are driving destruction of the Gulf's best natural storm protection by selling cypress mulch all over the country. Watch the brief
entertaining and educational video clip and learn more about efforts to halt cypress
logging.
So, where can you go once you've decided to boycott the Big Boys?
Twenty-five
locally owned and operated businesses pop up under "Hardware and Building Supplies" on the Stay Local! directory. Check them out...and let them know you found them on Stay Local!
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Got Socks?
How about bath towels? Bed sheets? If you are a local business owner and sell any of the
above, add those search words on your business
listing
and you'll corner the market! Nary a Stay Local! business pops up
currently when a user enters those search words.
We complain that we
can't find these basic goods at locally-owned businesses, then shrug
our shoulders and head out for the nearest
Target.
Stay Local! says it doesn't have to be that way.
Local
retailers: Test your entry's searchability on staylocal.org. Type in words that describe your business, goods, or services and see
what pops up. Update your search words if
necessary. Make it easy for consumers to find you!
Remember: Your basic listing provides you with 10 search words. Use them wisely. Or...
Enhance your listing and you get 30 search words. The more words, the easier you are to find. It's easy, inexpensive, and
best of all, your tax-deductible donation gets reinvested in projects that support the local economy.
Consumers: Let your neighborhood businesses know what
you're shopping for. Many of New
Orleans' business owners are amazingly flexible and receptive. Just look at how Mardi Gras Zone in the Marigny reinvented
itself to meet the basic needs of Marigny residents.
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News and Events
You don't need a passport or an Italian-English dictionary to get to Venice.
Sustainable homebuilding and
design info at the Restore Connect Event on July
21.
And so much more worth knowing about on our Links, Reports & Studies, and Events pages.
And this just in...Stay Local! has been named one of CityBusiness' 2007 Innovators...stay tuned for details!
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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.
If you were sent this newsletter in error, please accept our apologies. Opting out is as easy as
clicking on the "opt out" button below.
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