With the holiday shopping season right around the corner, The Starke County Chamber of Commerce is teaming up with multiple businesses in the area to encourage citizens to shop local first.
Executive Director Jessica Craig said the Chamber is sponsoring a ‘Shop Local Bingo’ this year.
With this local business bingo game, residents can pick up a card that lists more than 20 area establishments. The game, which is similar to the one on w88.com, will begin the day after Thanksgiving and run through the week before Christmas.
Director Craig mentioned shop owners get to determine what a customer has to do at their particular place of business in order to get their card stamped.
Once the shopper gets enough stamps for a ‘Bingo’, they’ll turn in the card and be entered into a drawing to receive a prize basket. Craig said the basket will have about $1,000 worth of merchandise donated from the local businesses.
Bingo cards can be found at participating businesses as well as the Chamber of Commerce office. You can also pick up some other ‘Shop Small’ items there such as pens, signs, pins and reusable tote bags.
Craig shared that after taking a leadership group on a bus tour of the area, she noticed there were some people that have lived here their whole life who didn’t know about quite a few of the local businesses. She indicated that she hopes this game will help shine a light on all the various establishments in Starke County.
A few more reasons you should shop local, according to Chamber representatives, is because local competition and diversity can lead to more product choices and it also strengthens the local economy by helping support local job and opportunity creation and ensuring that tax dollars stay local.
According to the Chamber, it also helps to shape and preserve our distinctive community character and encourage community pride and ownership. Additionally, representatives highlight the fact that local businesses reinvest in our community and help fund local non-profits.
The Starke County Chamber of Commerce Office is located at 400 North Heaton Street. If you have any questions about Shop Local Bingo, give the Chamber a call at 574-772-5548.
