CLEVELAND — Shopping small has an incredible impact on our communities in Northeast Ohio by keeping dollars in our local economy, as explained on this week's episode of 3 Things to Know with Stephanie Haney podcast.
Destination Cleveland's Emily Lauer joins Stephanie to break down the benefits of Small Business Saturday and why we should spend money locally year-round, in Saturday's brand new episode of the show. (Scroll down for links to listen and subscribe.)
3News contributor Laura DeMarco, a 20-year veteran covering Cleveland's retail scene, offers her recommendations for where to get the most bang for your buck, and 3News reporter Jasmine Monroe shares why Avalon Exchange is her favorite place to shop on the west side, in this week's installment of Need to Know in NEO.
Plus, for people who love handmade items, Stephanie shares why Made Cleveland is such A Good Follow on social media.
"For every dollar that someone spends at a locally owned shop here in Cleveland, more than two thirds of that dollar stays in Cleveland," Emily tells Stephanie in the podcast.
"That doesn’t happen when you shop online at a national chain or at a national chain in Cleveland. Not to say that they don’t provide an important service in the retail atmosphere and in the ecosystem, but in a time like this, the more dollars we can keep in Cleveland, the better off we’ll be to help preserve that Cleveland experience."
For those of us that want to shop small but maybe don’t quite know where to start, Laura has come up with an extensive list of places that are not only a great value, but also safe to patronize during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
"The Cleveland Independents Gift Card, which you can get at ClevelandIndependents.com, can be used at more than 80 local restaurants and bars on all sides of town," Laura says, adding that it includes one of her favorite spots, Bruno's.
"If you want to go classy, Pier W is on there, if you want to go casual, there’s lots of casual places. And they’re good indefinitely, most of them, so it’s a great option."
Laura shares several other options, and her extensive local holiday gift guide is available here.
For more why and how to shop small this holiday season, subscribe to 3 Things to Know with Stephanie Haney on your favorite podcast platform: