We are committed to the goal of helping locally-owned businesses across the country—and We Speak Local!
To achieve this goal, we launched the LocalFirst Community as a place where we gather, collaborate and thrive. Membership in the LocalFirst Community is open to alll independent businesses and any nonprofit organization whose membership is comprised of locally-owned businesses. Whether you call yourself a Merchant’s Association, Independent Business Alliance, Collective, Guild or Group, if your members are locally-owned businesses, we welcome you to the LocalFirst Community.
Joining the Community has many benefits. But more than these specific benefits, the Community gains strength with your participation—Strength to aid one another, strength to collectively grow local businesses and strength to propel all of us to sustain thriving local economies.
Our Beliefs
We believe that the pursuit of owning a local business is the pursuit of happiness.
We believe that locally owned businesses run by people who care about our community are the foundation of a healthy local economy, not by creating commerce over people but by creating commerce with people.
We believe that local business is more than the exchange of money for goods and services. It is the action of needs being fulfilled, of human to human interaction. The “hello, how are you doing?” from a clerk, the smile from a waiter or a warm greeting from your favorite barista give us connectivity and a sense of place. Yes, I do need a cup of coffee. But I also need your smile, the chatter of other customers, the scent of warm pastries.
We believe that connectivity means more than 100 people in a room exchanging business cards. That’s an exchange of information. True connectivity comes from shared experiences, shared struggles, shared hopes and dreams. Local business owners share a connectivity because of who they are—they all had the ambition and courage to pursue a talent, a passion, a dream.
We believe in collaboration over competition. How can the Local Business Institute help locally-owned businesses? By collaborating with the nonprofit organizations that serve local business. We all benefit from a healthy local business ecosystem and helping others is part of that.
Come join us in these beliefs. Become a LocalFirst Community member.
