3/50 Program

This past weekend, I spent $53.00 and $57.00, respectively, at two of my local "Mom and Pop" or independent retail shops in my local down town shopping district.

The $57.00 was for dog food (a very large bag) and dog treats for Mr. Snarfle. We normally spend about $100.00 a month for Snarfle, @$40 in dog food and @$60 for the dog walker.

The $53.00 was spent on two birthday gifts.

And on Friday night we went our with friends (again in our local down town area) and spent $40.00 or so on drinks and snackeroos.

So, without diverting any money from our budget we participated in the 3/50 Program.

The point of the 3/50 Program:

Think about which three independently owned businesses you’d miss most if they were gone. Stop in and say hello. Pick up a little something that will make someone smile. Your contribution is what keeps those businesses around.

If just half the employed U.S. population spent $50 each month in independently owned businesses, their purchases would generate more than $42.6 billion in revenue. Imagine the positive impact if 3/4 of the employed population did that.

Now, I am not suggesting or encouraging mindless spending by mentioning this program. In fact the money we spent last weekend was money we were going to spend regardless of where we spent it. The point is, if you are spending budgeted money, consider diverting that money to support your local independent retailers.