Buying from local businesses pumps twice as many dollars into the economy, according to a study by the Columbia Institute, Loco BC, and UBC’s Sauder School of Business.
The study compared office supply companies, and found that local company Mills Basics recirculates 33% of its revenue to other B.C. businesses and residents. Large office supply chains put between 17% and 19% of their revenue back into the local economy, according to the study.
The authors of the study say local governments and school districts should consider putting local buying policies in place, instead of focusing solely on price.
“When local purchasing dollars are re-circulated in the local economy they create good jobs and build local business,” said Joanna Buczkowska, managing director of Sauder’s ISIS Research Centre. “It is a very meaningful way of growing local economies while supporting our communities.”
