Keep It QC highlights power of doing business locally to improve economy

The Quad Cities Chamber has launched Keep It QC, an initiative to bring awareness to the power of doing business locally. According to Chamber representatives, buying local has many tangible economic benefits for the region, in addition to helping area businesses rebound faster from the financial impact of COVID-19.

“Keep It QC is about educating members of our community about why buying local should be the first choice every time,” Chamber spokesperson Erin Platt said. “Ultimately the goal is to increase business for all Quad Cities businesses.”

“Businesses and individuals are encouraged to make a conscientious choice to buy as many goods and services in the Quad Cities as they can,” Chamber President & CEO Paul Rumler said. “Whether you’re buying clothes from a local boutique or commissioning a nearby architectural firm to expand your company’s headquarters, it all makes a positive impact on our local economy.”

The economic benefits of Keep It QC include:

Increases GRP: When businesses and consumers buy goods and services from companies in the Quad Cities, it increases the area’s gross regional product (GRP), an indicator of a region’s economic health.

Better schools, roads and more: Local purchases also simultaneously support local roads, schools, parks, police and fire departments and other quality-of-place projects because public infrastructure is funded, in part, by sales taxes and other taxes paid by the local businesses to the city, county and state where they’re located. Those local taxes are what help fund upgrades to improve the community.

Supports and creates jobs:  When a business is healthy, it can keep its doors open and sustain its workforce. Better yet, it can grow and hire more workers who also have individual spending power as consumers.

Increases regional attractiveness: Strong businesses also make for a more vibrant, robust and powerful Quad Cities, which increases our attractiveness to companies looking to expand or relocate. Growth breeds growth.

The Chamber recently surveyed area businesses and found 82 percent of respondents support buying locally; 75 percent already do.

According to Platt, prioritizing spending locally doesn’t require more spending, just a change in where consumers and businesses are doing it, including when shopping online. Instead of ordering directly from a corporate website for delivery, consumers are encouraged to choose in-store pickup from the online retailer in the Quad Cities. The local store, which pays taxes, employs local workers and helps fund local city, county and state coffers, can often fulfill the product order from their store inventory.

“Every dollar we keep in the Quad Cities increases our collective success, and by working together, we all win,” Rumler said.

For more information on ways to support Keep It QC, visit KeepItQC.com.